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our mission!
Veteran Feminists
of America
VFA is a nonprofit organization for veterans
of the Second
Wave of the feminist movement.
The goals are to enjoy the camaraderie forged during those years of intense commitment, to honor ourselves and
our heroes, to document our history, to rekindle the spark and spirit of the feminist revolution and act as keeper
of the flame so that the ideals of feminism continue to reverberate and influence others.
VFA is the foremost source of information
about the Second Wave women's movement for journalists, historians and other writers. It is the foremost organization
for honoring the achievements of Second Wave feminists. It is the foremost organization for bringing together pioneer
feminists in a continuing campaign to educate and motivate today's young people through the example of feminist
victories and sacrifices.
Contact: jcvfa@aol.com
Veteran Feminists
of America
Jacqui Ceballos
PO Box 44551,
Phoenix, AZ 85016
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2011 - 2013
VFA BOARD OF DIRECTORS
President - Jacqui Ceballos
Co pres/Exec VP - Sheila Tobias
Vice President - History - Judith Kaplan
Vice President - Public Relations - Joan Michel
Vice President - Intergenerational - Gracia Molina Pick
Secretary - Virginia Watkins
Treasurer - Amy Hackett
BOARD CHAIR: -Muriel Fox
Board of Directors:
Kathy Bonk, Heather Booth, Mary Jean Collins, Roxanne Conlin, Barbara De Battiste, Carole DeSaram, Mary Eastwood,
Janet Elsea, Lois Herr, Merle Hoffman, Dori Jacobson, Jean Ledwith King, Barbara Lifton, Barbara Love, Rebecca
Lubetkin, Sally Lunt, Mary Ann Lupa, Beverly McCarthy, Jeanne McGill, Maureen Nappi, Zoe Nicholson, Himilce Novas,
Eleanor Pam, Helen Pearl, Kathy Rand, Bernice Sandler, Karen Spindel, Mary Stanley, Linda Stein, Grace Welch, Bonnie
Wheeler
ADVISORY BOARD
Karen Coolman Amlong, Nikki Beare, Patricia Hill Burnett, Inez Casiano, Marlene Crosby, Karen DeCrow, Dr. Carl
Degler, Frances ( Sissy) Farenthal, Sonia Pressman Fuentes, Bonnie Howard, Ann Jawin, Jurate Kazickas, Anita Murray,
Betty Newcomb, Jennifer MacCleod, Jill Ruckelshaus, Dorothy Senerchia, Elizabeth Shepard, Gloria Steinem, Winnie
Wackwitz
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HONORARY BOARD
Marion Arenas
Anne Hazlewood Brady
Rosalyn Baxandall
*Suzanne Benton
Shirley Bernard
Roxcy Bolton
Ivy Bottini
Ruth McLean Bowers
Sarah Brabant
Susan Brownmiller
Charlotte Bunch
Inez Casiano
Phyllis Chesler
Judy Chicago
Lucinda Cisler
Mary Jean Collins
*Noreen Connell
Carol Council
Theresa Conant
Roxanne Conlin
Evelyn Cunningham
Karen DeCrow
Carl Degler
Anselma dell Olio
Merrillee Dolan
Betsy Dunn
Cynthia Epstein |
JoAnn Evansgardner
Florence Falk
Elizabeth Farians
Jo Freeman
Brenda Feigen
Shulamith Firestone
Arvonne Fraser
Kim Gandy
Judy Goldsmith
Sonia P Fuentes
Aileen Hernandez
Joan Hull
Nan Johnson
Paula Kassell
Myrna Lamb
Allie Latimer
*Janice LaRouche
Gerda Lerner
Roberta Madden
Maura McNeil
Kate Millett
*Irma Newmark
Zoe Nicholson
Joyce Nower
*Mary Orovan
Eleanor Pam
Letty C Pogrebin |
Louise Raggio
Helen Reddy
Sylvia Roberts
Ruth Rosen
Alice Rossi
*Barbara Rubin
Marlene Sanders
Bernice Sandler
Kathie Sarachild
Pat Schroeder
*Dorothy Senerchia
Elizabeth Sheppard
Alix Kates Shulman
Ellie Smeal
*Elayne Snyder
Jean Stapleton
Gloria Steinem
Catharine Stimpson
Charlene Suneson
Karline Tierney
Ann Turpeau
Bede Urich
Naomi Weisstein
*Dell Williams
Laura X
Virginia Whitehill
*Sandy Zwerling
* co founders of VFA |
REMEMBERING FOUNDERS AND FOUNDING MEMBERS
OF VFA
Bella Abzug
Dolores Alexander
Shep Aronson
*Betty Berry
Elizabeth Boyer
*Gene Boyer
Toni Carabillo
Elizabeth Chittick
Minette Doderer
Catherine East
Gerald EvansGardner
Shirley Fahey
Marilyn French
Betty Friedan
Richard Graham
Martha Griffiths
Allie Hixson
Millie Jeffrey
Flo Kennedy
Midge Kovaks
Larry Lader
Judith Meuli
*Barbara Seaman
*Mary Jean Tully
*Mary Scott Welch
Molly Yard |
A brief history
by
Jacqueline Ceballos
VFA Founder & President
Jacqui Ceballos
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In the 1980s I was living in New Orleans, recuperating from ten years of heavy feminist activity in New York. It
was the Reagan years, the ERA had failed and feminists were dubbed Feminazis by some. Though, as always, men were
being honored for their contributions to society, the feminists who'd changed America were practically disdained.
Destiny moved me to South Florida
in 1989, where I met old NOW buddy Mary Jean Tully, who had made the NOW Legal Defense and Education Fund a thriving
reality. Mary Jean was excited about an oral history project for the Schlesinger library involving the history
of NOW and Betty Friedan, for which she needed help. So back I went to New York and began interviewing my sisters
from NOW and Women's Liberation. To a woman, they expressed a wish to reunite. With the help of Dorothy Senerchia,
from New Feminist Theater, and Barbara Seaman, founder of the Women's Health Movement, a committee was organized
to undertake the planning of a reunion.
Remembering how my father and brother met regularly with their war buddies, I asked the group to think beyond a
single reunion toward an organization to
Muriel Fox
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document our history and inspire future feminists. Recognizing that we too are veterans, Barbara Seaman suggested
we call ourselves Veterans of the Feminist Wars. Later, warned that we could be sued, we became Veteran Feminists
of America.
In May 1993, we organized our first reunion in honor of Catherine East of Washington D.C., the woman Betty Friedan
called "the midwife of the feminist movement." Over 250 came to New York to honor the beloved Catherine.
After that glorious occasion, Catherine and D.C. attorney Mary Eastwood, both founders of NOW, wanted us to honor
other Pioneers, starting with Congresswoman Martha Griffiths, who made it possible to include "sex" in
Title VII; Virginia Allen, Director of the Women's Bureau under President Nixon; and Phineas Indritz, the attorney
who had advised feminists. In Spring 1994, we honored these, and other greats, right here at the Sewall Belmont
House.
1996 was the 30th anniversary of NOW, and Muriel Fox, one of that organization's founders, helped organize a landmark
celebration that reunited founders and early leaders. Muriel then became chair of VFA's board, and, when Sheila
Tobias, a founder of university Women's Studies programs, became our executive vice president, VFA was able to
expand its projects and hold events beyond New York and Washington. Since our founding, we've held over 35 reunions
and conferences: in New York, Washington, Boston, Baltimore, Connecticut, Chicago, New Orleans, Boca Raton, Los
Angeles, Tucson and Phoenix.
Catherine East
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Barbara Love's monumental Feminists Who Changed America 1963-1975, published in 2006, has generated more local
celebrations of pioneer feminists. Tonight, we're paying tribute to 140 Washington-based pioneers, with particular
attention to White House correspondent Helen Thomas and Elizabeth Chittick, who was eight-term president of the
National Woman's Party.
On June 9, 2008, VFA hosted a "Salute to Feminist Lawyers" with special tribute to Ruth Bader Ginsburg,
founder of the Woman's Project at the ACLU, and, since 1998, Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court. We have a fabulous
webpage, an archive of news and events collected by our web manager, Jan Cleary, and we send out a monthly ENEWSletter.
Future events will honor athletes, the women's health movement, women journalists, and women in business and finance.
DVDs of our events are, or will, be housed at major Women's History libraries.
My hope is that VFA will continue to offer support and camaraderie to pioneers of feminism's Second Wave and provide
the recognition, respect and honor they so richly deserve.
HOW YOU CAN HELP THE VFA!
You can send a check to keep Veteran
Feminists of America going. You can become an:
Activist Angel - $1000
Big time Benefactor - $ 500
Super Supporter - $ 250
Devoted Donor - $100
Other amount $__________
PLEASE INCLUDE YOUR:
NAME, ADDRESS, PHONE NUMBER, FAX,
E-MAIL
Tell us if you'd like to make
your donation in the honor of someone and who that person is.
Veteran Feminists of America
VFA
PO Box 44551,
Phoenix, AZ 85016
WEBPAGE..www.vfa.us
E-MAIL Jacqui: jcvfa@aol.com
REMEMBER VFA IN YOUR WILL!
You can also donate stock! VFA
's tax deductible number is 72-1301951
photo credit: Bettye Lane
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E-mail Jacqui Ceballos here:
jcvfa@aol.com
Veteran Feminists of America
Jacqui Ceballos
VFA
PO Box 44551,
Phoenix, AZ 85016
WEBPAGE: www.vfa.us
E-MAIL Jacqui: jcvfa@aol.com
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