Letter from the President

The Maryland Women's Heritage Center had a very busy March celebrating National Women's History Month. We enthusiastically participated in a number of events both at the Center and in partnership with other organizations throughout the community, most of which are highlighted in this newsletter.

Moving into spring, we have much to look forward to and hope to see both some new faces and long-time friends, either visiting The Maryland Women's Heritage Center or attending our many interesting upcoming events. Be sure to check out the "events calendar" on our website to discover the activities of interest to women and girls occurring throughout the State of Maryland.

One of the special holidays we look forward to during spring is Mother's Day, which falls on May 8^th this year. Curiously, very few of us know how this annual celebration began. Do you? For those who do not or as a refresher, in 1858, Anna Jarvis organized "Mother's Work Days" to improve sanitation and avert deaths from disease-bearing insects and polluted water seepage. When she died in 1905, her daughter sought to memorialize her mother's lifelong activism and began a campaign that culminated in 1914 when Congress passed a Mother's Day resolution, which was the first official recognition of mothers and their contributions.

This year, why not celebrate Mother's Day by nominating your mother, grandmother, daughter, or other important woman in your life as an "Unsung Heroine" through The Maryland Women's Heritage Center? Honor your Unsung Heroine by mailing, emailing, faxing, or dropping off information about the woman/women who have made a difference in your life. The nomination form also is available on MWHC's website. Information about your Unsung Heroine will become part of the Center's archives and also will be recorded on our website!  Additionally, we encourage you to make a donation to the Heritage Center in honor of someone special for Mother's Day ($25 minimum donations accepted). In exchange, we will send a lovely card to the honoree letting them know about your thoughtful contribution.

We also are excited to partner with Maryland Life Magazine again this year to recognize 10 women who have helped to change the face of Maryland. Earlier this week, an all-female panel met with Maryland Life at The Maryland Women's Heritage Center to select the 2011 honorees. The selection process was both inspiring and challenging because so many Maryland women have made enduring contributions to our state. These 10 Legendary Ladies will be featured in the July/August 2011 issue of Maryland Life, and we encourage you to check it out!

Remember to celebrate Mother Nature as well and please let us hear from you.

Frances Hughes Glendening, President

Congratulations to the New Maryland Women Hall of Fame Inductees

Spirited Woman of Baltimore Awards   

The Maryland Women's Heritage Center is once again proud to support the Spirited Woman of Baltimore Awards, which benefits the American Red Cross of Central Maryland and honors three Spirited Women of Baltimore, in various walks of life, based on their career and personal successes.

Warm Wishes to Dr. Nancy S. Grasmick

Maryland State Superintendent of Schools Nancy S. Grasmick, the nation's longest-serving appointed state superintendent, recently announced that she is retiring June 30 after two decades in that position. She is Maryland's first female state superintendent of schools and her tireless advocacy for all students has resulted in Maryland's recognition as #1 in the nation for the past three years! 

Dr. Grasmick's career in education began as a teacher of deaf children at the William S. Baer School in Baltimore City. She subsequently served as a classroom and resource teacher, principal, supervisor, assistant superintendent, and associate superintendent in the Baltimore County Public Schools.  

In 1989, she was appointed Special Secretary for Children, Youth, and Families and, in 1991, the Maryland State Board of Education appointed her State Superintendent of Schools. Dr. Grasmick was the first person in Maryland history to serve simultaneously as Secretary for two different spheres. She serves on numerous boards, including the Executive Board of the Maryland Women's Heritage Center. In 2004, Dr. Grasmick was inducted into the Maryland Women's Hall of Fame.

The Maryland Women's Heritage Center congratulates Dr. Grasmick and thanks her for her outstanding leadership in education and with our Center. We look forward to continued collaboration with her as she pursues her future endeavors!

Farm Bureau to Host National Women's Leadership Conference in Baltimore

She Matters Girls' Empowerment Conference   

WOW: Woman of Wonder Spotlight

By Carolyn Stegman, Ed.D. 

Each edition of the newsletter will feature a Maryland Woman of Wonder. This spotlight is on Senator Barbara A. Mikulski (photo below.)

In March 2011, coinciding with Women's History Month, it was announced that Maryland's United States Senator Barbara A. Mikulski and Maryland's Billie Holiday were selected for induction into the National Women's Hall of Fame (Seneca Falls, New York), which honors great women of today and yesterday.  With this distinguished tribute, Senator Mikulski will join previously inducted Maryland women of international stature, including Rachel Carson, Harriet Tubman, Clara Barton, Rita Colwell, Eunice Kennedy Shriver, Henrietta Szold, and Helen Taussig.  

As a young social worker, she was inspired by the words of John F. Kennedy:  "I believe in human dignity as the source of national purpose, and human liberty as the source of national action."  Translating those words into action, Mikulski's first political battle in the late 1960s successfully worked to save Baltimore's Fells Point neighborhood, which was scheduled to be destroyed to facilitate a proposed 16-lane highway.  Shortly thereafter, she decided that she would be more effective inside City Hall, so she ran for Baltimore City Council and was elected.

Mikulski came from modest roots and strong values.  She grew up in historic and ethnically rich East Baltimore, where her parents ran a neighborhood grocery store.  What she learned at home and in that neighborhood-values of family, faith, and community-have guided her throughout her professional life.  Even as a child, Mikulski served people in her community by delivering groceries to local senior citizens who could not make it to the store.  This interest in community service strengthened as she grew older, and instilled a firm dedication to citizenship and her nation.

With a vision and unfaltering self-confidence, she followed her heart and plunged headlong into politics. In 1976, she won her election to the United States House of Representatives.Ten years later, she moved to the Senate, becoming the first Democratic woman elected to both the House and the Senate, and the first Democratic woman to hold a Senate seat by being elected in her own right, instead of inheriting it from a deceased husband. 

Now a leader in the Senate, Mikulski is the Dean of Women-serving as a mentor to other women Senators when they first take office.  As the dean, she builds coalitions-proving that the Senate women are not solo acts, but work together to get things done.  In the 1980s, she was instrumental in establishing National Women's History Month.  In 2010, Mikulski became the longest serving female Senator in U.S. History.

Mikulski's experiences as a social worker and activist provided valuable lessons that she draws on as a Senator.  She believes her constituents have a right to know, a right to be heard, and a right to be represented.  She lessons to her constituents and makes the personal, political.  In doing this, Mikulski has put her values into action to make a difference in people's lives on all fronts:  education, jobs, health care, women, minorities, and veterans.  She tells her fellow Democrats that their four priorities should be creating jobs, providing job training, keeping people safe, and offering all citizens a level playing field.

Mikulski is committed to a safer, stronger and smarter Maryland and nation...and she has served the people by doing more than just promising.  She delivers. 

Senator Barbara A. Mikulski is a member of the Honorary Board of the Maryland Women's Heritage Center. 

This article was written by Carolyn Stegman, author of "Women of Achievement in Maryland History." It includes excerpts from the book and from Senator Mikulski's official biography. 

We Need Your Support! 

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