Inaugural Women’s History Month Breakfast

Mary McLeod Bethune wearing a Victorian-stye dress with a locket

Who Was Mary McLeod Bethune, Really?

Thursday, March 12, 8:30 a.m.

Presented by the Orange County Regional History Center, the Hannibal Square Heritage Center, the League of Women Voters of Orange County, Florida, and the Wells’Built Museum of African American History & Culture.

Of the more than 5,000 public statues depicting historic figures throughout the United States, it’s estimated that fewer than 10 percent are of women. Now, Florida will honor educator and activist Mary McLeod Bethune of Daytona Beach (1875-1955) with a statue representing our state in the U.S. Capitol’s National Statuary Hall in Washington, D.C.

Bethune will be the first African American to have a state-commissioned statue in Statuary Hall.

Join us for this exciting inaugural breakfast as we celebrate Women’s History Month, the centennial year of woman suffrage in the U.S., and the extraordinary life of Mary McLeod Bethune—educator, activist, champion of racial and gender equality, and advisor to presidents.

Our featured speaker is Ashley Robertson Preston, Ph.D., of the African American Studies faculty, University of Florida, and author of Mary McLeod Bethune in Florida: Bringing Social Justice to the Sunshine State. Our second presenter will be Ersula K. Odom presenting “Dr. Mary McLeod Bethune Comes to Life.”