State Senate Celebrates Women’s History Month

Senator Fuschillo Announces Induction of Three Women into Historic Women of Distinction Exhibit 

          Senator Charles J. Fuschillo, Jr. (R-Merrick) announced that the State Senate has inducted three new honorees into its “Women of Distinction Historical Exhibit” as part of Women’s History Month. The exhibit honors historic New York women who made significant achievements in arts, science, government, military, labor, education, and social reform. 

            The 2011 honorees are Linda Richards, (1841-1930), America’s first professionally trained nurse; Mary Wilsie Fuller (1862-1943) a women’s advocate; and Susan Smith McKenney Steward, the first African-American female to earn a medical doctorate (MD) in New York State and the third in the United States. 

            In addition, the exhibit marks the 10^th anniversary of the September 11^th tragedy by remembering those honorees who gave their lives saving others at the World Trade Center; Captain Kathy Mazza, a Farmingdale resident who was the first female commandant of the Port Authority Police Training Academy; Moira Smith, a decorated NYPD officer; and Yamel Merino, New York State’s 2001 Emergency Medical Technician of the Year.  

            The Women of Distinction exhibit, which includes biographies about the honorees' achievements, was displayed in the legislative office building in Albany, and can also be viewed online by clicking here. 

            Created in 1998, the Senate’s Women of Distinction exhibit features historic New York women, from suffragists to geneticists, labor organizers to entertainers, whose contributions are still felt today and who stand as an inspiration to the next generation of inventors, explorers, and achievers. Past honorees include Susan B. Anthony, Lucille Ball, Harriet Tubman, and many others, all of whom have strong links to New York State. 

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