U.S. Rep. Cartwright and women's rights leaders to speak at Grey Towers
Milford. This Sunday, a panel of distinguished speakers will kick-off a yearlong centennial celebration of the 19th Amendment with presentations about local women who fought for suffrage, changes in the United States since women gained the right to vote, and the work that remains to be done.
Milford /
| 15 Oct 2019 | 02:01
Tameko Patterson
Elowyn Corbyn
Siobhan Bennett (
)
Mary Zimmerman (
)
Next year marks the 100th anniversary of the 19th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, which granted women the right to vote. The League of Women Voters of Pike County, Grey Towers Heritage, and the U.S. Forest Service will kick off a yearlong celebration of this landmark with a presentation from 2 to 3:30 p.m. on Sunday, Oct. 20, at Grey Towers National Historic Site in Milford, the family home of Cornelia and Gifford Pinchot.
U.S. Rep. Matt Cartwright and women's rights leaders will take a look at Cornelia Pinchot's work, point of view, and influence on the suffrage movement and other progressive causes. Both Pinchots are known for their work in conservation, social justice, and human rights.
The panelists are well-respected women’s rights activists, both nationally and regionally. They will talk about the changes in the United States since women gained the right to vote, as well as the work that remains to be done. They will discuss the contributions made by local women from a century ago to the passage of the 19th Amendment.
Refreshments will follow the program. To pre-register, send an email to LWVPikeCounty@gmail.com or from the LWV website at LWVPike.org/contact-us.
About the League of Women Voters
The League of Women Voters is a non-partisan organization whose volunteers help voters make informed decisions. The Pike County chapter is part of the national and Pennsylvania organizations, which were founded to advocate for women's right to vote. While the name remains in homage to its founders, male members have become an important part of LWV. Members must be at least 16 old. New members are always welcome.
The panelists
Siobhan “Sam” Bennett, is chief strategic officer and senior vice president of Legal Momentum, which advocates for women’s and girl’s rights. She was CEO (2009-16) of the bipartisan Women’s Campaign Fund, the first national organization to financially support women when they run for office. Her national initiative, Name It. Change It, fights political sexism against women, and was born out of her 2008 run for Congress as one of the most endorsed challengers in the nation, with an historic number of votes and money raised. She is also a small business owner and past Fortune 500 nationally ranked executive. She was recruited by Republican and Democratic leaders to run for mayor of Allentown, Pa., in 2001, losing by 46 votes to a 20-year political incumbent. She led the top-performing swing region in the country in the 2004 Kerry/Bush presidential election, and chaired her region’s political party to its first-ever sweeps. She continues to be in demand as a national expert and media voice, from FOX News to PBS, with awards ranging from 2017 Outstanding Community Service Award from the African-American Improved Benevolent Protective Order Elks of the World, to serving as a keynote panelist for the European Union’s 2013 CEE Network for Gender Issues Conference. She was honored as Women ENews Top 21 Women in the Nation in 2012.
Elowyn Corby is Vision 2020 Program Manager, Institute for Women’s Health and Leadership at Drexel University College of Medicine. She works to boost women’s civic engagement and to turn record numbers of women out to the polls in 2020. While managing the Women 100 Women’s Leadership Forums and SHE Leads Road Rally, Corby works to ensure that, on the 100th anniversary of women’s suffrage, the importance of women’s voices at the ballot box is reflected inVision 2020’s programs. Prior to joining Vision 2020 team, she ran grassroots advocacy campaigns around a range of issues, including fighting climate change, protecting workers’ rights, and increasing public education funding, as well as electoral programs across the country. She studied political science and peace education at Swarthmore College and now lives in Philadelphia.
Tameko Patterson is now serving her fourth year as president of the Greater Pocono Section of the National Council of Negro Women, which advocates for women of African descent as they support their families and communities. Patterson spearheaded its College Planning 101 Program, which exposes high school students and their parents to educational resources and support. She is the first African American director elected to the Stroudsburg Area School Board, a member of the Monroe Career and Technical Institute Joint Operating Committee, and board director for the Jason L. Simpson Memorial Scholarship Fund. In January she kicked off STREAM University, a free science, technology, reading, engineering, arts, and math program for middle school students. She is a founding member of Monroe County United, a grassroots community initiative to build relationships through education, youth development, law enforcement, and spirituality. She also serves as a leader at the Monroe Career and Technical Institute, Monroe County Branch of the NAACP, the Greater Pocono Chapter of Jack and Jill of America, the Little Bethel Historical Association, and the Kaya Initiative. Her many honors include the 2016 Community Service Award (Upsilon Mu Chapter of Omega Psi Phi Fraternity), 2017 Women of Distinction (African American Network), the 2017 Ernest E. Just Scholarship Award (Alpha Mu Nu Chapter of Omega Psi Phi Fraternity), the 2019 MLK Community Service Award (East Stroudsburg University), and the 2019 NAACP Community Service Award. She was awarded a Proclamation by PA Rep. Maureen Madden (115th Legislative District) for outstanding leadership and community service for her contributions to the Greater Pocono Section of the National Council of Negro Women.
Mary Zimmerman is immediate past-president of the Lewisburg League of Women Voters. She has had a long career teaching and developing courses in women’s history. From 1974 to 2013, she taught at Northern Virginia Community College. In the last few years she has shared her knowledge and insight through the Bucknell University Institute for Lifetime Learning, where she is currently teaching a course on women’s suffrage. She has a bachelor's in history from Carleton College and both a master's and an ABD in history from Vanderbilt University.