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Older men – from Colorado pioneers to current politicians – often are awarded accolades and some have streets named after them; but, when was the last time you saw or read about the accomplishments of ladies-of-a-certain-age or drove down a road honoring one of these women?
I got to thinking about this when I read one my favorite blogs written by Tammi Hartung of Desert Canyon Farm, which is near Canyon City, Colorado. Normally, she writes about plants, birds, bees and pastoral settings. In her September 17, 2015 blog entitled, “Who Are Your Heroes and Heroines,” she lists 10 people she admires most. All of them have made the earth a better place. She asks the question, “Who are the people who you really respect for all sorts of reasons…all important?”
Since this is a blog about and for ladies-of-a-certain-age, those “Invisible, powerful vital women,” I decided to list many of the women I admire most. Some you will know and some you won’t. Where possible, I have pictured them and added a hyperlink in case you want to know more about them. I do hope you will share in our comment section the women in your life you admire.
A woman of my own heart, I so wish I had had an opportunity to work with her over the past 50-plus years. She is known for the development of Larimer Square, the skidrow of Denver, which I can attest to, having had to park there when I attended CU Denver in the mid-1960s. I love her directness and guts. In a recent interview on KCFR’s “Colorado Matters,” she stated all the new buildings going up in Denver are made out of plywood and would not last very long: a sentiment shared by many, but not publically stated.
AlRuth (AL RUTH) Toney, 85
A leader in the City Park Women’s Golf Association since 1953, when few women – and certainly not African-American women, were on the golf course. She has influenced and encouraged hundreds of women to play. She regularly beats me on the golf course, and while she does so, teaches me valuable lessons about life.
My mother snickered at her appearance. I think her spirit is incredibly beautiful and courageous. Harry Truman called her “The First Lady of the World.”
She co-founded Al-Anon with Anne Smith in 1951. Today there are over 25,400 Al-Anon groups in 130 countries.
Carole June Harshman November 19, 1929 to November 19, 1994
She played golf, and softball, ran marathons, wrote for numerous national and local publications, adored her grandchildren and children alike, cooked extraordinarily, stood by her husband, the president of the local Bar, and was my soul sister, who died way to early from lung cancer. She quit smoking long before I knew her. I met her in 1980 at the office of the Chipeta Girl Scout Council in Grand Junction, Colorado when I went to sign up my daughters for the scout program. There was an immediate connect. She knew I loved old houses and when the Colony Shale Oil Project, where I worked, came to a dramatic close, Black Sunday, May 2, 1982, she called me and said “Now you have time to write that book about the old houses on 7th Street we’ve been talking.” It was published in June, in time for the Grand Junction Centennial, and sold out later that year. This is a good example for how Carole supported me and all her friends in good times and bad. I wish I had a picture of her instead of a picture of this book. If I could dedicate this blog, I would dedicate it to her.
Harriet Isabelle Cunningham Elrod and Catherine Lane Lynch
My paternal great-great grandmothers – both early pioneers, arriving long before Colorado was a state – worked beyond today’s retirement age Catherine is buried at Rosebud Cemetery in Glenwood Springs, Colorado. Harriett is buried in Aspen next to her husband and grandson, Earl Wheeler, my grandfather
What do you do after you divorce your husband? Why, buy and restore 11 California bungalows! That experience allows you to write numerous books, such as my favorites – “Bungalow Kitchens” and “Linoleum” – magazine articles in national magazines, and become a national speaker. I loved her saltiness and mourned her loss to lung cancer.
It was a pleasure and an honor to work with Marion Downs, then in her 80s, at the University of Colorado Hospital. We worked on a fundraiser together – a bike ride if I remember correctly – which, of course, she participated in by riding her bicycle. I knew I was in the presence of greatness.
Author, lecturer, writer, teacher, internationally known herbalist, Rosemary Gladstar’s wisdom has always touched me. I make and use many of her recipes in her book “Herbal Recipes – Vibrant Health.” This book has a wonderful section on “Elder Health.”
Signe is an elementary school teacher by day and an Iyengar Yoga instructor at night and on Sunday afternoons. She started and teaches the free Sunday Community Class at the Iyengar Center of Denver and collects and distributes voluntary donations from her students for numerous charities.
10 Comments
November 2, 2015 at 5:33 pm
Hello Elizabeth,
Thank you so much for sending the lovely post card to let me know about your blog and my name being mentioned there. I’m in gratitude and honor your lovely blog.
With Green Thoughts,
Tammi
November 11, 2015 at 1:10 pm
You are so welcome, Tami! Loved your latest blog. I kinda go dormant for the winter too, just like your perennials and trees.
November 11, 2015 at 8:54 pm
I enjoyed reading about the women you admire. I heard the interview with Dana Crawford, but must have missed some of it, because her statement about the buildings made of plywood was new to me. And a shock. But I guess like so many things these days — made to not last. So thank you for sharing that.
I would like to add a name to your admired ladies-of-a-certain age: Julia Brown Tobias. I met her in my Writers’ Group, and even though she was quite a bit older than me, we became good friends. Julia grew up on a wheat farm in northwestern Nebraska, married a ranch/farm hand at the age of 16 yrs., and she and Ralph eventually ended up in Denver, where she opened a couture design shop in Cherry Creek. She designed & “dressed” many of the wealthy women of Denver — and had many wonderful stories to share.
For her 90th birthday, she was honored at a Tea at the Brown Palace for her contribution to the fashion world.
She outlived her husband & 2 sons (she lost an infant daughter many years before), but kept carrying on.
She loved to read, & even after losing most of her sight, she continued to “read” with the aid of “Books for the Blind.” And she wrote a memoir, “Thunder & Mud,” about her childhood years, by recording it on tape. The book was published in 1996; she had a standing-room only crowd at the Tattered Cover, where she had a reading and book-signing.
And through all of this, I think what she treasured most were her growing up years on the Nebraska prairie, where she learned about love & caring.
February 17, 2016 at 4:31 pm
Thank you! It’s wonderful to learn in Anne P’s comments about JBT’s vivacity in her later years – just finished reading Thunder & Mud and had to Google to try to find more info about this remarkable woman – then was doubly rewarded with the entry and this delightful blog!
November 18, 2015 at 11:36 pm
I read and enjoyed your article, Elizabeth, on Al Ruth Toney in the paper edition of the Greater Park Hill News. She sounds like a fascinating lady.
January 14, 2016 at 8:00 am
I have to tell you how much I enjoy reading your blog. Your subjects and your thoughts strike
a chord with me. It’s grounding to know someone else feels the same or has similar struggles
and experiences. Please continue to post your stories!
December 20, 2017 at 8:37 pm
looking forward to teaching again
January 6, 2018 at 3:51 pm
Me, too! You taught me so much. It was an honor to visit with you.
June 30, 2021 at 11:26 am
Elizabeth, I’m in awe of your history and to be included is an honor.
I’ve been thinking about you because I’m writing a book about a 17-year-old disaster in my life and I’m looking for a publisher.
I took a course in Social Justice at my church and discovered a term ‘Systemic Racism’ which I’ve been enduring for the 17 years.
Can you give me the name of a publisher that would help me organize my notes with TLC?
Alruth
July 14, 2021 at 12:11 pm
Oh, Alruth! Thank you for writing me. I am honored. Sounds like you read my book Murder and a Victory Garden. All the characters are figments of my imagination, except you. You are a real hero! I just emailed you some suggestions for your book. I hope you keep me updated. I miss you.