Ruth Johnston Skidmore

When a friend told me about the Jeannette Rankin Foundation, I knew I had to learn more. What an extraordinary force of nature she was—suffragist, peace activist, advocate for workers’ rights, reformer, and a driving force behind the 19th Amendment. Her life was proof that education and conviction can change the world. Through the friends and supporters who carry her work forward, her vision of a better future, especially for women, continues.

I understood that vision early, even if I didn’t yet have the words for it. As the daughter of a single mother in the 1950s, I saw firsthand how critical it was for a woman to be educated and employable. My mother was a registered nurse. The pay wasn’t generous, but it was steady. Because of her training, there was always food on the table and shelter from the storm.

When I was four, my mother enrolled in a university program to become a nurse anesthetist. She was determined to improve her skills and expand her opportunities. But determination alone wasn’t enough. The cost of tuition—combined with the expense of childcare—forced her to leave the program before graduating. Education was within reach, but just out of grasp. That loss stayed with her, and it stayed with me.

My mother died on March 14, 2024—Pi Day. 3.14, an irrational number whose decimal goes on forever. It feels like the perfect metaphor for her life.  She taught me the value of learning and the importance of friendships. 

When you help a woman improve her life, she brings a community with her.   Education opens doors and extends possibilities. My mother’s legacy didn’t end with her life—it continues through those coming after her.