Women Making History Honorees - League of Women Voters of South Central Texas

HomeWomen Making History Honorees

Honoring Women's Contributions to Our South Central Texas Communities

Our 2025 Women Making History Honorees

Standing, left to right:

Teresa Stanley Brown (Initiative)

Angela Lala (Heroism)

Maria Vega (Courage)

Rev. Andrew Stafford, accepting for his mother, Maezell Thomas Stafford Townsend (Heritage)

Lucille Ann Blume Strickland (Steadfastness)

Brenda Lincke Fisseler (Determination)

Robin Wedgeworth, accepting for her mother, Gladys Giese (Heritage)

Seated:

Karey Patterson Bresenhan (Vision)

Women Making History Honorees

2025:

Courage - Maria Vega (Fayette County)
Determination - Brenda Lincke Fisseler (Lavaca County)
Heritage - Gladys Bohot Giese (Fayette County)
Heritage - Maezell Thomas Stafford Townsend (Fayette County)
Heroism - Angela Lala (Fayette County)
Initiative - Teresa Stanley Brown (Fayette County)
Steadfastness - Lucille Ann Blume Strickland (Fayette County)
Vision - Karey Patterson Bresenhan (Fayette County)

2026:

Courage - Connie Shortes (Fayette County)
Determination - Christi Opiela (Lavaca County)
Heritage - Mary Bristow Willeford (Fayette County)
Initiative - Alice Berry (Colorado County)
Steadfastness - Dr. Mary Fanett Wheeler (DeWitt County)
Vision - Tammy Collins (Fayette County)

Heroism was the subject of the Celebrating Women Student Writing Showcase in 2026.

Our 2026 Women Making History Honorees

Standing, left to right:

Jan Dockery (subject of two Student Writing Showcase entries)

Mary Fanett Wheeler (Steadfastness)

Tammy Collins (Vision)

Ellen Ashby Kennard, Accepting for Mary Bristow Willeford (Heritage)

Christi Opiela (Determination)

Connie Shortes (Courage)

Seated:

Alice Berry (Initiative)

Award Categories:

COURAGE - For a woman who chose to stand up for what she believed in, fully aware she would face resistance.

DETERMINATION - For a woman who transformed inaction into progress by solving a significant problem that had been neglected, misunderstood, or ignored.

HERITAGE - For a woman whose life has ended but whose impact lives on, enriching our lives today.

INITIATIVE - For a woman who didn't wait for opportunities to come to her but took the initiative to build her own path forward.

STEADFASTNESS - For a woman whose enduring dedication and reliable commitment have produced a lifetime of valuable contributions.

VISION - For a woman whose commitment to women's needs and potential has rallied others to her vision, creating together noteworthy achievements that elevate women.

Texas Equal Suffrage Association, 1918

Follow Us

Support Us

Contact Us