Janet Richardson-Pearson: Fulfilling a Lifelong Vision

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Janet Richardson-Pearson has cultivated a legacy of local philanthropy and unique endeavors

In the end, it will be the land that defines her.

Living on property her great-great-grandfather once walked as a POW, Janet Richardson- Pearson is as controversial as she is revered. How she overcame lean years, juggled multiple careers, faced family tragedies, and still succeeded in serving thousands of patients and their families is the stuff of heroines or historical fiction. But the real story, yet evolving, is even more remarkable.

Texas Born, Annapolis Bound

On the southeastern edge of Annapolis, just off Forest Drive, lies a vast, rolling plot of land enclosed by a crisp, white fence. On approach, the gates open like two gracious arms. Beyond where the land slopes, stands a massive stable, impressive for its size and circus-like dome. Across the road a two-story farmhouse overlooks surrounding pastures.

These two structures, both housing nonprofit organizations, make unusual neighbors: one a haven for horses, the other for humans. In sharing this property, The Wellness House of Annapolis and the Chesapeake Dressage Institute fulfill a vision its owner has taken a lifetime to realize. 

That life began in Victoria, Texas, a place young Janet was happy to leave before high school. By age 10 she had moved several times, including a year living with relatives after her dad lost his job. Ultimately, her family landed in Annapolis.

“I went to high school in Maryland and usually that’s where it feels like your home. Annapolis is my home. I am very grateful my kids got to grow up here.”

Kids came fast. Married at age 19, a year later she had her first child, Brian. Siblings Jennifer, Andrew, and Matt were born over the next 18 years. Raising her family, she earned a degree in Housing and Interior Design from the University of Maryland, part-time.

Janet describes those early years as a blur of child-rearing, work, and studies for both her and husband David. “I got married young and had kids. I never got to leave home. David encouraged me to go. I slept in bunk beds. Did dish duty. Toured historic homes. I loved it.”

Eventually she attended graduate school towards a degree in Historic Preservation and American Studies. One of her fondest memories is a six-week semester she spent in England.

And so began her first career. Feeding her interest in historic preservation, she worked as an interior designer for 17 years, including with the H. Chambers Company in Baltimore. Numerous projects attest to her talent. She names a few favorites: the Imperial Hotel in Chestertown and the Mt. Airy Plantation, the former hunting lodge of Lord Calvert. She also served on the Board of Historic Annapolis, Inc.

Meanwhile David, whom Janet describes as an “entrepreneur,” had started an industrial staffing agency. Hard work paid off. He eventually sold the company and the stock split “a couple of times.” Even as she recalls this success, Janet restates that her origins were “shabby genteel” and that she and Daivd both came “from modest backgrounds.”

For many years, the couple lived on a small farm near the property she now owns. Then one day David heard about a massive housing development planned for the acreage behind their home.

Saving the Land 

In the mid-1990s Janet and her neighbors were “horrified” at the size of a proposed development on the nearly 200-acre property “across the creek.” It included two huge tracts of land: Crystal Springs Farm and Mas Que Farm. Fortuitously, David discovered that the contract with U.S. Homes had expired.

“He bought Crystal Spring Farm on a handshake with the Iliff family,” Janet says, “and gave it to me.”

Then tragedy struck. In news that shocked Annapolis, David was killed when the 40-foot boat he was remodeling on a pier behind his home fell off its lift and pinned him beneath. It was September 1996. He was only 58.

“He was always doing risky things,” Janet says, with the pain of that September day forever fresh.

With the resilience she learned in childhood, she kept an eye on the property. A year later, “I bought Mas Que Farm on my own.” Now nearly 180 acres were hers.

 “Over the years I’ve been approached by different developers. Houses. Big box stores. I wanted to save as much of the land as possible. But I realized to save it, I needed to pay for it.”  And so began her search for the “right” project. 

Wellness House Finds a Home

Kelly Sullivan, M.D., knew they needed more. A successful Annapolis surgeon who performed plastic and reconstructive surgery, she was—and still is—highly skilled at helping cancer patients. But she knew their families, especially the children, needed more.

 With a clear vision to establishing a place where cancer families could gather and find supportive services, Sullivan founded Wellness House in 2007. Two years later, operating mostly out of church basements with an early donation from the Rotary Club of Annapolis, the program found a home, thanks to Anne Arundel Health System CEO Martin L. “Chip” Doordan.

“As soon as Chip introduced us,” Sullivan says, “Janet was all in. She’s been incredibly supportive of Wellness House giving us the most bucolic environment for the community we serve.”

“Janet was always so gracious in wanting to do something with the property,” says Doordan, a former neighbor. “All I had to do was introduce her to Kelly. It was the right project at the right time.” 

In 2009, Janet turned over the two-story farmhouse near her property’s entrance to the Wellness House for its permanent home, rent-free. She also underwrites much of its upkeep. The organization fundraises for ongoing program support from a growing cadre of grateful supporters.

Patients and their families access counseling, individual therapy, massage, Reiki, art and music therapy, and an array of services and activities to serve nearly every need. All are free. Mary Jermann, who has served as Executive Director since 2019, fairly gushes about the impact the House has for its more than 2,000 members and for the woman who makes it possible.

“You feel her presence here,” Jermann says, “almost like an aunt. She has a way about her. She knows what she wants. She’s very direct, but very complimentary. I think she’s proud of the organization today.”

What attracted Janet most was the program’s mission. Two of her sons have had cancer, both as adults, and both are survivors of related, serious conditions. As she says, “I would love to have had all this available to me, the support, the counseling, the grief therapy.”

Because of her sons, Janet calls this her “gratitude house.” She maintains an office on the first floor and often stops in. But Wellness House is not the only charitable organization on the land. 

Chesapeake Dressage Begins

When Janet was 35, her 13-year-old daughter Jennifer began horseback riding. “I’d never been on a horse in my life,” Janet says, laughing. “It’s not like tennis. You have to seek it out.”

Her daughter eventually moved on; Janet didn’t. In the 1970s, she began owning horses and recalls her first, Chloe, a five-year-old Buckskin quarter horse. She took lessons from renowned equestrian and Olympic judge Linda Zang and her second “career” began. 

With her innate curiosity and pursuit of the best, she researched stables because “what I wanted wasn’t here,” she says. Inspired by Hilltop Farm in Colora, Maryland, Janet built her own stables and established the Chesapeake Dressage Institute (CDI) in 2003. A nonprofit organization, CDI seeks to “promote classically correct dressage training, aiming for the highest standards of care for the horse, and striving for excellence on the part of the rider.” 

CDI boards up to 18 horses and is typically full. The emphasis is on education. Boarders are required to take two to three lessons per week and attend an annual clinic. Now well known in the equestrian world, Janet also is a founding sponsor of the Global Dressage Institute in Wellington, Florida. Another Annapolis-area charity, Maryland Therapeutic Riding, also owes its roots to Janet as its founding sponsor. Currently, she serves on the board of Talisman Therapeutic Riding in Grasonville, Maryland.

At age 84, she still rides four times weekly and recently completed her “Century Ride,” in which the age of the horse and rider equal 100. Two years ago, Janet acquired a stunning horse named Whiskey who is fast gaining notoriety for a new Wellness House service.

Down at the Stables

Emma Rogers long dreamed of combining her training as a Licensed Clinical Social Worker and therapist with her love of horses. Today, she is the Consulting Clinical Director of Counseling for Wellness House and a certified Equine Gestalt Coach. Rogers’ considerable talent was on full display during a recent demonstration at the CDI stables for Wellness House members and guests.

All eyes were on Whiskey, a two-year old Gypsy Vanner. The breed resembles a Clydesdale with a smaller body and free-flowing mane. As the 1,500-pound horse stood off-center, Rogers gently guided a former cancer patient into the ring. Whisky moved slowly toward her as the woman reached up to softly stroke the giant muzzle. Not a whisper from the audience. The moment lasted just seconds. But the memory for everyone there—forever.

Teaching resilience, a strength its participants may not know they have, equine therapy under the skilled hands of Rogers brings a new level to what Wellness House now offers. Seated in the audience among the onlookers was Janet, watching her Whiskey give such solace to another human being.

Says Rogers, “Janet is deeply passionate about the life and care of her beloved horse. She recognizes the importance for horses to find purpose and connection after their riding days are over. For the Wellness House, she provides a healing sanctuary for those experiencing cancer—prioritizing the beauty, safety, and preservation of the space.”

Preserving the Space

In her office Janet stores papers and transcripts documenting the history of Mas Que Farm from 1673 to the present. She finds it extraordinary that her great-great-grandfather likely walked the property as a prisoner after the Civil War. 

Over the years pressure to develop the land has only increased. Janet knew early on that to save the land she needed money. While the two nonprofits fulfilled much of her dream, they can hardly help sustain the property. 

The concept of a continuing care retirement community grew from her mother’s experience. Janet’s father died one month after her husband David. She moved her mother from Texas to Maryland and then to a series of facilities.

“I loved the concept of continuing care on the property and having nature be part of it. Both of my kids convalesced here, too.”

Plans to build a retirement community with National Lutheran Communities began more than 15 years ago. Through her development company, Katherine Properties, Janet endured major controversy surrounding the project. Lawsuits by environmental groups and others forced delays and changes to the plans. 

“When it became obvious the development wasn’t going to happen, the Lutherans took over,” she says, adding that a few hurdles remain before construction on The Village at Providence Point can begin.

Longtime friend Chip Doordan says Janet was “maligned because people thought she would make a lot of money. Any growth in that area always would be challenged, rightly or wrongly.”

A Philanthropist By Any Other Name

In 2000, Janet married William Pearson, retired as a Rear Admiral of the U.S. Public Health Service. “Bill” was operating a wellness shop in West Annapolis. According to Janet, their courtship was “fast.” He proposed at the top of the Eiffel Tower. 

The couple, who enjoy ten grandchildren together, splits their time between homes on the Crystal Springs property and Wellington, Florida, known as the “winter equestrian capital of the world.” Despite her senior years, concerns over her family’s health, and local legal battles, Janet gives no sign of slowing down. Her personal goal is “to get back into the ring when both the horse and I are sound.”

As she says, “Some of us want to compete just to get better.” Asked if she considers herself a “philanthropist”—given that she shares the property where she, Bill, and their three dogs live with two major nonprofit organizations—she shrugs off the question.

But perhaps the founder of Wellness House, Kelly Sullivan, MD, says it best. “There is no end to her generosity. In what she is doing she is touching so many lives, so many families, children, and individuals…for today and for future generations.”