Cyber Exhibit

1. Cyber Exhibit Welcome This exhibit is designed to enlighten and educate you. Use your arrow keys on your keyboardto navigate through the exhibit.You will notice many hyperlinked words throughout the exhibit. Please click on those links for more related information. Hit the Escape key to exit.Enjoy!

2. Women’s History MonthMarch 2010 Cyber Exhibit Writing Women Back into History Presented by Federally Employed Women (FEW) Part 4 – Chapters Celebrate

3. Chapters Celebrate • Federally Employed Women’s (FEW) Chapters celebrate Women’s History Month. • Here are present and past celebratory events. Thank you to the chapters that shared their stories!

4. Chapters Celebrate Women’s History Month • New Carrollton FEW Chapter co-sponsored an event with IRS’ Military Outreach for Service (MOS) on March 4, 2010.

5. Chapters Celebrate Women’s History Month • In 2009, the San Diego Chapter celebrated Women’s History Month with a member speaking about the “Call to Celebrate Women’s Achievements. • They had a full house of Women from other organizations in including Blacks In Government, Fleet Readiness Center Southwest, Military, Naval Air Technical Data and Engineering Service Command, Marine Corps Recruit Depot and Human Resource Navy Region Southwest, National IMAGE and Federal Asian Pacific American Council.

6. Chapters Celebrate Women’s History Month • They also held a quiz on Women's issues and rewarded answers with Susan B and Sacagawea coins. • The day was recognized by a Proclamation from the Honorable Bob Filner, 51st Congressional District, U.S. House of Representatives.

7. Chapters Celebrate Women’s History Month • Also in 2009, the Montgomery Chapter really got into the spirit of celebration with members re-enacting famous women. April Jones portrayed entertainer Josephine Baker.

8. The items on the display table belonged to Mrs. Valla Elder Ferguson, born in 1892. She died at the age of 90.  She was a licensed nurse in the 1920's. • She served as president of the United Daughters of Confederacy for several years. These are several items from her life that has been preserved.

9. Items: an antique phone, her nursing school book that was used in her schooling from the 1920's, her Bible from 1924, one of her many hats, several pair of glasses (pictured is one pair w/the case), her iron, and, the oldest item on the table is the View Master she had as a small girl dated the June 1, 1901.

10. Chapters Celebrate Women’s History Month • Costumes from the Montgomery Chapter’s Women’s History Month Event.

11. Chapters Celebrate Women’s History Month • Elizabeth Titrud portrayed Secretary of Labor Frances Perkins

12. Chapters Celebrate Women’s History Month • MSgt Patricia Gaspard portrayed the first African American female millionaire, Madam CJ Walker   

13. Chapters Celebrate Women’s History Month • Valla Johnston portrayed Clara Barton.

14. Chapters Celebrate Women’s History Month • The entire cast.

15. Chapters Celebrate Women’s History Month • In 2008, the members of the Greater Merrimack Valley Chapter got together at a member’s home for a “movie night.” They viewed “Iron-Jawed Angels” together over popcorn and camaraderie with a discussion period after the film. • They were a newly chartered chapter. This was a good way not only to celebrate Women’s History Month but to help the new members get to know one another.

16. Chapters Celebrate Women’s History Month • In 2003, the Great Lakes Chapter, Great Lakes Region, invited then-President Patricia Wolfe to visit their facility.

17. Chapters Celebrate Women’s History Month • In the early 1990’s, the Federal Triangle Chapter purchased a script called WomanSpeak. It was a series of vignettes that lead from one character to another starting with Abigail Adams “fomenting a rebelion” [sic] up to a modern day young woman questioning, “Why is it so important for women to have the vote, anyway?” By performance end, she had her answer.

18. Chapters Celebrate Women’s History Month • Chapter members Bea Varias, the first Chapter President; Brenda Starr, first Chapter Vice President; and Dawn Nester, member, were Executive Producers and script writers, adding parts and expanding script to give a more in-depth characterization to the women portrayed. • Chapter members volunteered for the roles, took it upon themselves to arrange for their costumes, and came to rehearsals.

19. Chapters Celebrate Women’s History Month • They recruited a fellow employee who was a director of local “little theater” for their production. • The agency (IRS in Washington, DC) gave the employees administrative time to rehearse and present the performance. And they rehearsed…and they rehearsed…

20. Chapters Celebrate Women’s History Month • Originally, the performance was to be held over a two-day period. The first day, the 400-person Auditorium was at capacity with more people. • On the second day, then IRS Commissioner, Fred Goldberg, came late to the performance. The Fire Marshal, not recognizing him, wouldn’t let him into the standing-room-only filled Auditorium.

21. Chapters Celebrate Women’s History Month • He personally requested a third day’s performance, which was again standing-room-only. • When the last performance was finished, Commissioner Goldberg invited cast and crew to his conference room for a “cast party.”

22. Chapters Celebrate Women’s History Month • After the IRS broke ground at their New Carrollton, MD, location, many of the Federal Triangle Chapter members were reassigned to the new location. They formed their own chapter, but kept close ties with their sister chapter in the Headquarters building in Washington, DC.

23. Chapters Celebrate Women’s History Month • One year shortly after the New Carrollton Chapter was formed, they partnered with the Federal Triangle Chapter to invite “Eleanor Roosevelt” and “Frances Perkins” in to visit and reminisce about what it was like to be a part of the Franklin Roosevelt Administration. Brenda Starr and Dawn Nester wrote their own script, researched their costumes, and rehearsed.

24. Chapters Celebrate Women’s History Month • On the day of the performance, the New Carrollton FEW Chapter invited seniors from a nearby local high school to the performance. • The students’ teachers thought it was a great idea and the students were allowed to come.

25. Chapters Celebrate Women’s History Month • In the late 1990’s, the New Carrollton FEW Chapter again partnered with the Federal Triangle Chapter to create a roundtable discussion of the year’s National Women’s History Project honorees (www.nwhp.org). • Brenda and Dawn collaborated again in 2004 to develop the script for the event; FEW members volunteered for the parts; and, a living room setting was recreated on the Auditorium stage.

26. Chapters Celebrate Women’s History Month • Brenda acted as Moderator of the group much as Steve Allen had done on his popular television talk show many years earlier. • The script was developed using as many original quotes from the honorees as could be found and weaving them together to form a conversation as if the women really did know one another.

27. Chapters Celebrate Women’s History Month • Maxine Hong spoke to Marian Wright Edelman, who spoke to Sarah Buell, who turned to Jill Ker Conway and so on as the women sat on sofa and chairs, as comfortable as if in their own home.

28. Chapters Celebrate Women’s History Month • One of the most successful Women’s History Month programs coordinated between the Federal Triangle and New Carrollton FEW Chapters was a “Jeopardy!”-style “game show.” Chapter members researched categories of women’s history and made up the answers the participants would provide the questions for.

29. Chapters Celebrate Women’s History Month • Employees volunteered to be contestants. An Auditorium engineer created a system of buzzers for the emcee to announce who had rung in first. • Contestants were given sheets of possible answers that would be similar to what they would encounter during the contest but not any of the real answers. • The contestants had a week to do their own research into the possible categories.

30. Chapters Celebrate Women’s History Month • When the day of the Women’s History Quiz arrived, the Auditorium was packed, co-workers coming to cheer on the contestant from their area. • The first place winner, the person with the most points at the end of the quiz show, earned a $100 savings bond; second place earned a $50 savings bond; and third place earned a $25 savings bonds.

31. Chapters Celebrate Women’s History Month • The savings bonds were donated by then IRFederal Credit Union housed in the Headquarters building of IRS in Washington, DC. The Credit Union (now named FedChoice Federal Credit Union) has been a working partner of the Federal Triangle and New Carrollton FEW Chapters since each chapter was chartered.

32. Chapters Celebrate Women’s History Month • There are a lot of ways to celebrate the importance of Women’s History Month. • Living History makes people from the past come alive again. • Game shows make learning fun.

33. Chapters Celebrate Women’s History Month • Panel presentations are a good way to share information and encourage audience participation. • Movie nights encourage camaraderie. • Whatever way your Chapter celebrates Women’s History Month, enjoy the experience and share the details through News and Views, your chapter and/or region newsletters, and post photos from the event on your chapter or region website so that we truly are “Writing Women Back into History.”

34. We hope you enjoyed our presentation. This presentation is part of a 4 part series.Be sure to view all sections. Cyber Exhibit Federally Employed Women