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Women Trailblazers: They helped carve a path for others

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When Madonna Jervis Wise set out to write about women trailblazers in Tampa Bay, she was looking for women who carved their own path — through Florida’s wild lands, and within such  realms as law, politics, education, social justice, sports and community life.

Kate Jackson stands between two friends with their bicycles. Jackson, who made her mark in Tampa, was commissioner of the Girl Scouts, was involved in the business and Professional Women’s League, the Catholic Woman’s Club and nearly every women’s group in Tampa. (Courtesy of the Tampa Bay History Center)

Some of these women are widely known today, occupying — or having occupied — positions of prominence. Others played a pivotal role in shaping opportunities for future generations but were not necessarily heralded during their own lifetime, and are all but forgotten today.

Wise’s book, “Images of America: Trailblazing Women of Tampa Bay,” shares the stories of women who have helped to shape today’s way of life.

She conveys their contributions through photographs and through accounts she gleaned from artifacts, historic sources, newspaper clippings, public records, oral histories and interviews.

The 159-page book is a result of months of recent work, coupled with years of research Wise has done for her other local history books, as well as from knowledge she has acquired through deep involvement with area historic societies.

‘Alice Hall made a living doing what people say cannot be done,’ Paul Hogan wrote in The Tampa Tribune in 1990. She was active in the Zephyrhills chamber, the Garden Club and the Veterans Associations. She was instrumental in bringing a hospital to the area and later equipped it with cardiovascular equipment from funds she raised. She worked for the Tribune from 1953 to 1990, and retired as a writer for the Tribune when she was 86. Here, she is shown wearing period clothing for a Founder’s Day celebration. ‘Without her, gone would be the hospital, the city’s first nursing home, first bank, its first emergency rescue equipment, its blood drive, its floral displays, Krusen Field, the Pioneer Florida Museum, and even the continuation of Founder’s Day. What she does, she does with her whole heart,’ said councilwoman Gloria Brown. (Courtesy of Zephyrhills Historical Society)

When Wise was compiling a list of women to include, she put out feelers to former colleagues and to community leaders.

She also consulted her daughters, Mamie and Rachel, and her daughter-in-law, Emily.

Mamie is an assistant U.S. Attorney and Rachel is a public defender. Emily is a director at Academy of the Holy Names.

They brainstormed with the author, with a focus on diversity and inclusion.

Many colleagues suggested names of women whom Wise said she had not known before, but once she did her research, she knew they must be included.

Others in the book are women that Wise met during her own professional life.

One of those women in retired Sixth Judicial Circuit Judge Lynn Tepper, who presided over Family Court cases in Pasco County. Wise said the judge is known for her work in creating a family centered, trauma-informed courtroom.

The other is Margarita Romo, an ordained minister who founded Farmworkers Self-Help, in Dade City and has spent decades working to improve life for migrant farmworkers. She was recognized for her contributions when she was inducted into the Florida Civil Rights Hall of Fame, an honor bestowed to individuals who have made significant contributions to improving the lives of minorities and all citizens in Florida.

The book covers a lot of ground.

It begins with contributions of indigenous women and includes women who are still making a difference today.

The photographs came from myriad sources, including The Tampa Bay History Center, newspaper archives, fivay.org, Florida Memory (Florida State archives), The Burgert Brothers Collection at the John Germany Genealogical library, the East Hillsborough Historical Society, Brooksville Mainstreet, and others.

She even obtained photos from the Henfield Museum in London featuring some Tampa Bay suffragettes.

Local photographer Richard Riley provided some photos, and others were supplied from private collections.

When Wise couldn’t acquire a usable photo, she turned to a local retired art teacher, who sketched the photographs for her.

Throughout her research, Wise said there was one common thread — regardless of the women’s background or endeavors —the woman had to be willing to step out, to break the mold.

“Without a doubt, successful, professional, prominent women will talk about how difficult it was to speak up. How difficult it was to be one of a few, maybe the only one, in class,” Wise said.

“I think you’re always reminded of the incredible courage it takes,” the author added.

She hopes the book will show that from generation to generation, women have built on the work done by women who blazed a trail before them.

Want a copy?
“Images of America: Trailblazing Women of Tampa Bay,” is available for $23.99, at Amazon.com; the Greater Zephyrhills Chamber of Commerce; Pioneer Florida Museum & Village; Tampa Bay History Center Museum store; Wesley Chapel Barnes & Noble; and Lanky Lassie Shortbread in Dade City.

Madonna Jervis Wise book talks
March 1 at 6 p.m., and March 18 at 6 p.m.
Both talks are at the Florida Pioneer Museum & Village, 15602 Museum Road, in Dade City. The March 1 talk is in the main museum building; the March 18 talk is in Mabel Jordan Barn.

Published February 23, 2022

Betty Castor served as the Florida Commissioner of Education, was the president of the University of South Florida, was the first female member of the Hillsborough County Commission and served in the Florida Senate. Here, she is shown at the old capitol building in Tallahassee, joining students to protest educational budget cuts on Sept. 24, 1991. (Courtesy of Mark Foley Collection, Florida Memory)
The Indian Removal Act of 1830 was a relocation of Seminoles to Oklahoma, which provided the impetus for the Second Seminole War. Seminole genealogy is passed through the mother, as the children belong to her and to the clan she represents. The maternal figure rules the household. (Courtesy of Burgert Brothers Collection, Tampa-Hillsborough Public Library)
Jan Kaminis Platt is shown here at age 7. The former Hillsborough County elected leader earned the nickname ‘Commissioner No,’ for refusing to support development she deemed to be poorly planned or harmful to the environment. After Platt’s death, former Tampa Mayor Pam Iorio said Platt “could always be counted on to be a voice for honest and open government … who never wavered from her convictions.” (Courtesy of Tampa Bay History Center)
Mabel Healis Bexley served as the executive director of The Spring of Tampa Bay, for 19 years. Prior to that, she coordinated education and job training for women prisoners in Hillsborough County in the 1970s at the Women’s Resources Center, which introduced her to domestic violence and its trauma. Bexley was a powerhouse fundraiser, public speaker and change agent. In addition, she enjoyed a variety of interests, including equestrian sports. She is shown here riding her Arabian stallion, Kamazan, with her son, Christopher Healis ‘Kit’ Bexley. (Courtesy of Jennifer Bexley)
Christine Mickens, far right, leads a discussion about a community endeavor. She is joined in the conversation by, from left, Estes Smith, Rev. Cora Hall and Dorothy B.T. Baker.
Mickens became one of the first African-American women in the rural South, since Reconstruction, to be appointed to an elective position when she was named in 1981 to replace her late husband, Odell Kingston Mickens, on the Dade City Commission. She served on the commission until her death. The couple arrived in Dade City in 1933, during the Great Depression, having been referred to the area by their mentor, Mary McLeod Bethune. Mickens taught at the Dade City Colored School, Moore Academy, Mickens High School and Pasco High School, for a total of 40 years. When the boys basketball team didn’t have a coach, she stepped in to fill the gap. She also helped with integration efforts in Tampa Bay schools. (Courtesy of Moore-Mickens Education Center)
Sixth Judicial Circuit Judge Lynn Tepper, left; Madonna Wise, center; and Margarita Romo, right, all met each other through their professional work. Judge Tepper is known for her efforts to create a family centered, trauma-informed courtroom; Wise formerly worked as an educator and is the author of several local history books; and Romo has spent decades working to improve the lives of migrant farmworkers. She was recognized for that work when she was inducted into Florida’s Civil Rights Hall of Fame. Wise has dedicated ‘Trailblazing Women of Tampa Bay’ to Romo. (Courtesy of Madonna Wise)

 

 

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