On Tuesday, Oakland County Commissioner Marcia Gershenson (D-Bloomfield Township) held a press conference to announce a new partnership between the Board's Celebration of Women's Suffrage Ad Hoc Committee and the Patriot Week Foundation. She was joined by Oakland County Commissioner Nancy Quarles (D-Southfield), Oakland County Circuit Court Judge Michael Warren and his daughter Leah Warren, who was 10 years old when they co-created the Patriot Week Foundation in 2009.
Gershenson also announced that the Celebration of Women's Suffrage Ad Hoc Committee and the Patriot Week Foundation will host a free family-friendly event on Saturday, Sept. 28, from 1 to 3 p.m. at Hoffman Farms Winery, which is located at 2521 Rose Center Road in Highland. The event will feature games, hayrides, food and more. No registration is required.
In March 2019, the Board established the Celebration of Women's Suffrage Ad Hoc Committee in honor of the 100th anniversary of the passage of the 19th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, which guaranteed women the right to vote. Commissioner Gershenson serves as chair of the Celebration of Women's Suffrage Ad Hoc Committee, which also includes Commissioners Angela Powell (D-Pontiac) and Tom Kuhn (R-Troy). Throughout the next year, the committee will invite Oakland County residents to learn more about the history of women's suffrage through a variety of programming and events.
Patriot Week begins on September 11th, honoring the nearly 3,000 Americans who lost their lives in 2001, and ends on September 17th, Constitution Day. Its mission is to renew the American spirit by focusing on education to revive appreciation and understanding of American history.
"The suffragettes were true patriots who fought for the right to vote for more than 70 years," said Commissioner Gershenson. "We are excited to celebrate them in partnership with the Patriot Week Foundation in honor of the 100th anniversary of Women's Suffrage."
"We sometimes take the blessings of liberty for granted this is especially true for young people like me," said Leah Warren. "This event is a due and just celebration of the hard fought battles the suffragettes had to undertake for generations to better fulfill the promise of the Declaration of Independence for all Americans."
To learn more about the Women's Suffrage Ad Hoc Committee, visit www.oakgov.com/VotesForWomen. For additional information about the Patriot Week Foundation and Patriot Week, visit www.patriotweek.org.
Published: Thu, Sep 12, 2019
