Helen Keller

 

 

Helen Keller – an extraordinary woman.  She was not born deaf and blind but became so as a result of illness at 19 months.

 

She was taught by Anne Sullivan and ended up being able to speak and understand people.

 

She went to Harvard and got a Bachelor's degree

 

She wrote books and was an activist for deaf and blind people.

 

All this is even more remarkable when you consider that she was born in 1880 – on the 27^th June in fact.

 

She even visited New Zealand in 1948.

 

She died 20 years later at the age of 87.

 

A wonderful example to us all.

Women in History – Margaret Thatcher

 
 

Margaret Thatcher was a polarising political figure.  But boy, she was an achiever at a time when things were even harder for women.

 

She died 8 years and 2 days ago.  She was brought up Methodist but the scientist in her even as a young girl made her a bit of a sceptic.  She once told a friend that she didn't believe in angels having calculated that they would need a 6 foot long breastbone to support their wings.  Much later she became an Anglican.

 

She had just been selected to contest a seat when she met her future husband, Denis.

 

She was nicknamed the Iron Lady by the Russians – but adopted it herself.

 

She was ousted as leader of her party in 1990 and left in tears – a sad figure, only to become sadder when diagnosed with dementia some years later.

Boudicca - what a woman!

 

Boudicca (or as I knew her growing up – Boadicea) was a Queen – of the Celtic Iceni tribe during the Roman invasion of Britain in 43AD. 

 

She beat up on the Romans several times before being defeated. It is said she led her forces to kill over 50,000 enemies.  She did not let herself be captured – choosing death instead.

 

Thanks to the fabulous book Fantastically Great Women Who Made History by Kate Pankhurst.

pin funny quote

Women in History – Amelia Earhart

 

 

Adventure-loving American pilot Amelia Earhart wanted to become the first ever woman to fly solo across the Atlantic Ocean.  Even though the dangerous journey had only been completed solo by one man before, and many other had died attempting it.  Amelia was still determined to let her dreams take flight.

 

On 11 January 1935 Amelia because the first ever person to fly solo across the Pacific Ocean.

 

In 1937 Amelia's plane vanished over the Pacific.  Despite a huge rescue attempt, Amelia was never found.

 

Thanks to the fabulous book Fantastically Great Women Who Changed The World by Kate Pankhurst.

Woman in History - Dame Whina Cooper

 
 

Whina is the Maori for Josephine.  Whina was born in humble circumstances on the Hokianga.

 

She was a force of nature.  She helped women speak out on the marae. She was the first President of the Maori Women's Welfare League.

 

At 80 years old she marched in protest over Maori land issues.  One of the most iconic images of all time is of her walking in the hikoi holding a little girl's hand.

 

A woman of much mana. She was made a Dame in 1981.

 

Thanks to New Zealand Hall of Fame 50 Remarkable Kiwis.

Woman in History – Lorde

 

Lorde is young to be such a famous Kiwi.  She was born in 1996 – on 7 November!

 

Her birth name is Ella Yelich-O'Connor. Her mother is a poet and her father an engineer.

 

She was signed to Universal before getting to high school.  She grew up a North Shore Girl.

 

At 16 she had a world-wide hit with Royals.

Woman in History - Jean Batten

Jean Batten was fated to be a flier.  Her mother pinned a newspaper clipping about the first pilot to cross the English Channel above her cot!

Jean sailed to England at the age of 21 and enrolled in a flying school.  On her third attempt she flew all the way from England to Australia.

In 1936 she was the first to fly all the way from England to New Zealand.

After a series of record breaking flights she simply stopped flying.  She drove ambulances in the War.

Sadly she died alone in Majorca in 1982 from a septic dog bite.

Thanks to New Zealand Hall of Fame 50 Remarkable Kiwis.

Woman in History - Coco Chanel

Fashion designer, Gabrielle Chanel, or 'Coco' to her friends, opened her first shop in Paris, France, in 1910.

At that time, women dressed in a very formal way.  Coco didn't think this suited the changing lives of women.  It was time for a new approach to fashion.

Coco snipped different parts from clothing, making them into garments suitable for  the modern woman – to do whatever she pleased in.

Thanks to the fabulous book Fantastically Great Women Who Changed The World by Kate Pankhurst.

Woman in History - Frida Kahlo

Mexican artist Frida Kahlo's life wasn’t always easy, but she turned her experiences into unique and wonderful works of art.

In 1925, aged eighteen, Frida was training to be a doctor when she was in a serious traffic accident.  Her injuries meant that she would never be well enough to finish medical school.

While recovering in hospital, Frida began painting pictures of herself, and her life changed forever.

Frida laughed a lot but she always painted herself looking very serious.  This was because she wanted to find more unusual ways to show what she was feeling, so instead she painted curious images as clues.

She is one of the most important artists of all time.

Thanks to the fabulous book Fantastically Great Women Who Changed The World by Kate Pankhurst.