The Truth Staff
The Women of Toledo and the Toledo School of the Arts held a press conference on Friday, March 7, to highlight the variety of events to be held during Women’s History Month and to present the offerings created by the TSA students that are serving as a fundraising opportunity for both TSA and WOT.
TSA’s Porter Gallery is displaying the portraits and information for a number of Toledo women – historical figures such as Ella P. Stewart, Margaret “Rusty” Monroe and Gloria Steinem, among others. Local young women have built and decorated chairs in honor of these women. The chairs are for sale as part of the WOT and TSA shared fundraising effort.
“It’s an annual observation that highlights women’s contribution in history and celebrates social, economic, cultural and political achievement,” said WOT member Mary Brucker as she led off the press conference that was attended by a number of TSA students.
Brucker went on to describe some of the upcoming events that are of special interest during this year’s Women’s History Month: International Women’s Day Luncheon on Monday, March 10; Northwest Ohio Business Mentoring Program on March 12; HeForShe Connectors Social at Quench & Tempered on March 19; HerHub Networking Luncheon at Toeldo Botanical Garden on March 20; Women’s History Month Bunch So Hard at TolHouse on March 23.
Julia LaBay, program coordinator for WOT, spoke of the displays, the chairs, a critical part of the fundraising campaign, that have been created by GirlsHub.
“Each chair is a unique expression of identity and achievement,” said LaBay. “Through carpentry and art our builders have created chairs that reflect their experiences, the voices and beliefs of the women that came before them … it challenges the status quo and inspires others. It is a call to action.”