March is Women’s History month. Pausing to remember the contributions of women is delightful. I welcome the day, however, when women are part of all written history. Honoring “women firsts” is vital and I hope someday identifying any woman as the first will not be necessary.
Gerda Leaner was one of the first well known historians to write about women history in the early 1970s. She advocated for the inclusion of women in all of history and particularly noted the lack of information about Black women. Further, Lerner promoted not only the need to acknowledge famous women but also to recognize the contributions of ordinary women who labored, often invisibly, to improve family and community life.
One example of the numerous contributions of women that have not always been noted is the new Estes Park Women’s Monument dedicated in September 2021. It depicts images and the lives and brief stories of a dozen women of various backgrounds that were part of the fabric of life in Estes Park during its 100-year history. The center of the plaza is a sculpture of a little girl and Helen Hondius, a central figure in the community who among other endeavors, was instrumental in funding the library.
When I think of women who contributed to everyday history, I think of my mother and all her efforts for our family and as an elementary school teacher and community volunteer. As a small token of her work, I purchased a brick in her honor at the Plaza of Heroines outside of the Carrie Chapman Catt Building at Iowa State University.
Catt was a distinguished alumnus of Iowa State’s class of 1880 and was a leader in the US women’s suffrage movement and a crusader for women’s rights across the world. Marjorie A. Henderson’s brick joins 3900 other women who made an impact on individuals, families, communities, and society. The description I included to describe my mom was: “Mother, Teacher, Community Volunteer.”
I appreciate the stories about women during Women’s History Month. Honoring the accomplishments of women is significant. I look forward to a time when both men and women will be remembered similarly for their important and unique contributions to history.
I love this post- you knew I would. Gerda was right about so many things, and while we have come a ways, we still have so far to go. But you are helping to make our way forward, Kar…. your name is and will continue to be one of those mentioned about women who made a difference.