This is my first MLC blog post, or rather I am writing my first blog post of any kind.  I struggled with a topic. I had many ideas about blog topics, but picking one was a challenge. However, my new boss, Brendan, slipped into my office and told me not worry. He suggested I look at the events or holidays that are approaching and focus on one of them.

Then I thought, March is Women’s History Month. And, 2020 is the 100^th anniversary of universal women’s suffrage in the United States. Perfect. I got this. My first blog would be about women in history. But in some ways, I did not “have this.” I knew a lot less about women in history than I thought I did.

What I did know was that in 1981 Congress declared March as Women’s History Month to celebrate and encourage the study, observance, and celebration of the vital role of women in American history.

I also know many stories of very important women that made history. Stories about people like Susan B. Anthony and Elizabeth Cady Stanton, the famous suffragettes who fought for equal voting rights for women. Or the story of Eleanor Roosevelt, a woman who became one of the first US delegates to the UN. And everyone knows Margaret Thatcher, the first female Prime Minister of Great Britain. There are also civil rights leaders like Rosa Parks who changed history by just not taking it anymore, and Ruby Bridges, who at six-years-old showed more bravery and poise than most adults can muster on a good day.

But these women’s stories have been told over and over. I wanted something fresh. I realized my depth of knowledge about women’s stories did not go as deep as I would have liked.

I realized I would have to ask for assistance. Being a working parent, a lot of my work has spilled into my children’s lives. Who better to add to my blog than my daughter?  So I asked my teenage daughter what she could add to my blog, while also getting a Generation Z perspective.

My daughter, Rowan, was filled with stories of women throughout history. She rattled off a number of women I had never heard of – and she enthusiastically retold their stories. One of those stories was about Irena Sendler.

Irena saved twice as many Jewish children during World War II as Oskar Schindler. During the war, Irena worked at the Social Welfare Department. She used her work connections to create false papers for more than one thousand Jewish families. This protected them from relocations, which would have meant likely death in the Warsaw ghettos. That alone should be enough that we know her name, but she was also involved with Zegota (a Polish underground group that assisted Jews). Irena headed up Zegota’s children’s program. She smuggled out 2,500 Jewish children while pretending to do her day job at the Social Welfare Department. In 1943, Irena was arrested by the Gestapo and tortured for information. She did not break. After her imprisonment, she returned to Warsaw under a fake name and continued her work for Zegota. This time she was working as a nurse at a Jewish hospital. After World War II, the anti-Semitic communist party took over Poland and Irena received little recognition. However, in 2007 Irena was a finalist for the Nobel Peace Prize (she lost to Al Gore.) In 2008, Irena passed away.

Rowan also told me the story of a Russian woman who kicked the Nazis’ butt. Mariya Oktyabrskaya sold everything that she owned in order to buy a 26-ton battle tank. Mariya’s husband died in World War II and she took all of her anger and funneled it into learning to drive and use that tank. Mariya requested to join the Russian Army and Stalin himself allowed it. Mariya and her tank crushed it in battle after battle until she was finally promoted to sergeant for her bravery. Mariya was eventually killed in battle and awarded the Hero of the Soviet Union award for bravery, the highest award a soldier could receive.

My daughter also told me of the patriot that mustered a militia. Sybil Ludington was the daughter of Henry Ludington, the man who commanded the Sons of Liberty during the Revolutionary War. Colonel Ludington taught his teenage daughter spy codes and secret signals. She also was an exceptional horseback rider. So, when Danbury was under siege at the beginning of the War, Sybil volunteered to ride in the middle of the night to rouse the militia.  Sybil road forty miles throughout the night to rouse 400 militia men. (As reference, Paul Revere only road 12 miles). For her efforts, George Washington himself gave his personal thanks. Sybil continued to carry messages through the remainder of the Revolutionary War. Her legacy lives on in a number of statues scattered across the northeast.

Rowan continued to tell me stories of famous bygone broads, but I cannot fit them all in this blog. The stories lifted my soul. This weekend I was reminded that history is filled with super cool women who did amazing things. And, although many of us in my age group have not been exposed to all of their stories, our children are learning those stories.  I was also reminded that my kid is whip smart and funny (actually, I may have already known that).

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