A lifelong resident of Lincoln County, Mary is the owner of C.I.S. Insurance Group, with offices in Tomahawk and Rhinelander. She is a graduate of Tomahawk High School and the University of Wisconsin - River Falls. Mary has two children, two step-children, and three grandchildren.

Mary comes from a family of independent business owners. Her father, Edward Behling, owned and operated Tomahawk Tree Farm and Behling Insurance. Mary's grandmother, Dolly Roberts, and mother, June Behling, operated the Bowling Alley Grill and founded June's Delicatessen in the Nokomis area. Her uncles, Richard and Gerald Roberts, founded Roberts Berry Farm, now owned by her brother Tom and operating as the Tomahawk Berry Farm.