My Mother, Maurine would have loved all my work with the history of home economics and Ellen Swallow Richards in particular. The collar in her picture has been made into one of the costume changes that I have used as I have portrayed Ellen Richards for the Centennial. This piece is over 70 years old. My Mother was an elementary teacher for years and loved every bit of it. I saw how hard she worked every night preparing for the next day's lessons, and I thought that I didn't want to be a teacher. During my childhood, she was supportive of all the usual kid things that we wanted to do, including 4-H for 10 years. She had also been in 4-H as a child in Iowa. Her Mother was a club leader. She was artistic and musically talented, only some of which stuck with me. I was able to follow her footsteps as a singer in college, but failed to pursue any more of this type of performing in adulthood. She was a talented decorator as well as quite a fashion maven. She loved clothes, hats and jewelry. I don't remember her ever trying to influence me as to any career path, but she knew I loved all the various activities in 4-H, particularly those in the home economics area. When I decided that Purdue University was my choice, she supported my decision even though I don't think she was too crazy about me leaving home. She was a second generation college graduate, so there was no question that I would continue the tradition as a third generation student. My parents made huge sacrifices to send me to college, but they were proud of my accomplishments and were always interested in my career activities. I grew up in a family that valued family and home as important aspects of a strong community life. Both my parents were avid contributors to the community they lived in for over 65 years. They were living, positive advocates for strong, healthy families and embraced what our profession has stood for for 100 years. Throughout my 40+ career in education, the values and ethical role models of my parents have led me to provide leadership in numerous areas for our profession. I have been blessed to have been guided by such wonderful role models.

Nominated by:

Joyce Beery Miles