Celebrate All Women on International Women’s Day

Q: When was the first International Women's Day?

The first National Women's Day (NWD) was observed in 1909 across the United States on February 28. Women continued to celebrate NWD on the last Sunday of February until 1913. In 1910 an international holiday was proposed at the International Conference of Working Women in Copenhagen and the holiday officially was observed in Austria, Denmark, Germany, and Switzerland on March 19, 1911. Following discussions in 1913, International Women's Day was agreed to be celebrated each year on March 8th. In 1975 International Women's Day was celebrated for the first time by the United Nations.

Nancy Hann | March 9, 2021 | 0 Comments

When I think of International Women’s Day I think of the amazing women who’ve personally impacted my life. Of the many smart, strong, and spectacular women who’ve been woven into my journey over the years, my grandmother is one of the first that comes to mind.

International Women's Day - Here's to Amazing Women

Table of Contents

My Grandmother in Her Youth

She was born in a log cabin in Virginia, as the youngest child in a family of 15 children. She started school at the age of 8. Later than some, because her mother was concerned about her walking to school in a rough neighborhood. She learned at home during those early years. When she started public school, the teacher immediately put her in the second grade. Mayola only attended school until the 8th grade.

One day during the evening meal at the family’s boarding house there was a knock at the door. When she answered it she was greeted by a tall red-haired man. Mayola said, “He was the “handsomest man I ever saw.”. She decided at that moment that she would someday marry him. A year later, at the age of 15, Mayola and James, the love of her life, left home to elope.

A Growing Family

Strangers often underestimated her, as a young woman, because of her small stature and humble beginnings. She was never more than 5 feet tall and grew up in the hills of West Virginia.

But she was as smart, creative and determined as she could be. She, her husband, and their growing family moved around the country because of his work in construction for many years, but in the mid-1930s she had 7 children and told her husband that she wanted to settle down in one place. They bought 14 acres of rich land near the shores of Lake Erie and she started a large garden to feed their brood.

A Small Business is Born

When harvest time came in the fall they had much more produce than they needed, even after she filled her shelves with freshly canned foods like pickled beets, jams, jars of green beans, corn, and much more. Since their property was adjacent to one of the main highways that ran east and west along the Lake Erie coast, she decided to set out some of her excess harvest by the side of the road to sell.

She set up a few cinder blocks with boards on top then her produce. Before long everything was sold out. This was the beginning of her women-run small business spanning 27 years. During this time her husband continued to work as an Ironworker, so she was in charge of the farm business.

3 Women at a Roadside Produce Stand 1964 — 1964 – My grandmother [left] at her Produce stand

Perkins Fruit Stand

During the busiest seasons, she woke up at 4 a.m. to pick fruits and vegetables and go to a nearby produce wholesaler to buy what she wasn’t able to grow herself. At the end of most days, she was up until 11 p.m. running the business, cooking, and managing the home with her husband and children.

Ten of her children grew to be adults and learned valuable life lessons in hard work, integrity, and responsibility. They became key staff on the farm and worked with customers at the roadside stand. Later grandchildren took on these tasks. They were excited to be able to learn and earn money, often at the first job of their life.

I remember my oldest brother learning how to drive a tractor there. When I was very young she would pay me and my cousin 15 cents a peck to pick green and wax beans. Unfortunately for her, more of the beans went into my mouth than in the basket, so it was probably a losing proposition.

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Her Entrepreneurial Spirit

As a woman with a creative and entrepreneurial mind, over the years she was also a regular contributor to the “Cleveland News” newspaper. She somehow found time to submit suggestions and recipes that were published in the paper. Once she wrote a Letter to the Editor about making curtains and drapes out of plastic to save money. Others took her idea and ran with it. It developed into a new industry during the Great Depression.

She also mastered the art of marketing and came up with seasonal sales and ways to attract customers. “The Stand” as most people called it, became well known in the area as a great place to pick up the best sweet corn and produce around. In the summer folks leaving the Cedar Point amusement park would make a stop to get fresh fruits and vegetables on their way back to Lorain, Cleveland, and other points East.

The Art of Marketing

THE GREAT Pumpkin has come to Perkins Fruit Stand. Free pumpkin with every $1 purchase. Free samples of apple cider and apples. Hot coffee. Apples by the bushel, winter potatoes, pie pumpkins, Jack-o-lanterns, watermelons. All you can carry for 9 dollars. Winter squash, 10 varieties, 20 lbs. for 9 dollars. Indian corn, gourds, chestnuts, home-canned fruits, and vegetables.
An extra-large pumpkin will be given away each hour to the person who most closely guesses its weight.
Perkins Fruit Stand ad
Sandusky Register Newspaper
10/29/1968

A Rich Legacy

She loved to laugh, enjoyed cooking, and was an avid reader. During the slower seasons of her life, she read an average of two books each week. Mayola never stopped learning and enjoyed sharing her practical wisdom about life with her many friends and family.

I remember one visit to our home when I was a teenager. I watched her take simple ingredients like flour, sugar, and apples and create a delicious hot apple pie, seemingly from thin air. It was magical to me but as natural as breathing for her.

Mayola counted 46 grandchildren, 85 great-grandchildren, and 11 great-great-grandchildren around the time of her 85th birthday. The family would add many more in the years to come too.

I will never forget this amazing woman and I celebrate her for International Women’s Day. She was the Matriarch in a long line of smart, strong, independent women in our family and I’m proud to be part of this legacy.

Learn More About International Women’s Day

When is International Women’s Day?

March 8th is designated as International Women’s Day around the world.

What is the mission and goal of International Women’s Day?

IWD is a global day celebrating the social, economic, cultural and political achievements of women around the world. It’s also a call to action for accelerating gender parity. International Women’s Day is one of the most important days of the year to:
– Celebrate women’s achievements
– Raise awareness about women’s equality
– Lobby for accelerated gender parity
– Raise funds for female-focused charities

When was the first International Women’s Day?

The first National Women’s Day (NWD) was observed in 1909 across the United States on February 28. Women continued to celebrate NWD on the last Sunday of February until 1913.

In 1910 an international holiday was proposed at the International Conference of Working Women in Copenhagen and the holiday officially was observed in Austria, Denmark, Germany, and Switzerland on March 19, 1911.

Following discussions in 1913, International Women’s Day was agreed to be celebrated each year on March 8th. In 1975 International Women’s Day was celebrated for the first time by the United Nations.

What is the focus of International Women’s Day in 2023?

The International Women’s Day theme for 2023 has not been announced as of the date of this post. The theme in 2022 was #BreaktheBias, which highlighted the importance of challenging biases and misconceptions in the interest of creating a more inclusive and gender-equal world.

So let’s all choose to challenge. How will you help forge a gender-equal world? Celebrate women’s achievements. Raise awareness against bias. Take action for equality. and show your commitment to choose to challenge inequality, call out bias, question stereotypes, and help forge an inclusive world.

Women Find a Way

Oftentimes throughout history, women had to find less assertive ways to make a difference. Many hardworking women learned to fly under the radar and work behind the scenes to make great contributions.

One organization that’s been run almost exclusively by women since the 1920s is The Garden Club of Virginia. This may sound like a group of little old ladies of leisure that merely get together for tea, to trade flower seeds, and share gardening tips. As you’ll see in my article about them here, their Historic Garden Week Tours have quietly raised over 17 million dollars for historic preservation and other worthy causes in the Commonwealth since the organization began.

You see, women don’t have to be famous to leave a lasting legacy. Who’s the first woman that comes to mind when you celebrate International Women’s Day? I’d love to hear about them in the comments below.