Greater Grand Rapids Women's History Council

Tracing the Steps: African American Women During the Progressive Era in Grand Rapids
2025-10-23 18:00 - 20:00 (America/Detroit) | Grand Rapids Public Library, 111 Library NE, Grand Rapids, MI, United States
Join Sophia Brewer, an academic librarian at Grand Rapids Community College, as she delves into her research on early African American women’s clubs and the remarkable women who led these organizations right here in Grand Rapids.
Special thanks to the Grand Rapids Public Library Foundation for their support of this program.

Únase a Sophia Brewer, bibliotecaria académica en Grand Rapids Community College, mientras explora su investigación sobre los primeros clubes de mujeres afroamericanas y las extraordinarias mujeres que guiaron estas organizaciones aquí mismo en Grand Rapids.
Agradecimiento especial a la Grand Rapids Public Library Foundation por su apoyo a este programa.

Rosie the Riveter: A Symbol for All American Women
2025-11-13 19:00 - 20:30 | Grand Rapids Public Library, 111 Library NE, Grand Rapids, MI, United States
Presented by Debbie Wake
Rosie the Riveter is the symbol for all the American women who worked in previously male-dominated jobs during World War II. From factories to farms, women stepped up and proved they could do it! Join historian Deb Wake as she explores how the Rosie name evolved, how these women were recruited, and the challenges they faced in both the workplace and society. We’ll also learned about what these amazing women accomplished and what became of these Rosies after the war ended.
Deb will share some of her personal collection of Rosie-related artifacts as well as images related to these wonderful, outstanding women.

Lifting as We Climb: Grand Rapids Study Club and the Legacy of Black Women Cultural Workers
2026-01-12 19:00 - 21:00 | MI
Presented by: Asia Horne Morton
Black women’s social clubs were more than places of fellowship–they were engines of education, activism, and cultural leadership. In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, the club movement spread across the country under the motto Lifting as We Climb, as Black women organized to advance racial justice, literacy, civic engagement, and community self-determination. From book circles to civic campaigns, these clubs laid the groundwork for future generations of community builders, educators, and cultural workers. Together, we’ll trace their legacy and reflect on what it means for Grand Rapids today.

History Detectives: "Give Mother the Vote: Images from the Women's Suffrage Movement"
2026-01-17 | MI

Lifting As We Climb: Grand Rapids Study Clubs and the Legacy of Black Women Cultural Workers
2026-02-12 19:00 - 21:00 | Grand Rapids Public Library, 111 Library NE, Grand Rapids, MI, United States
Presented by Asia Horne-Morton, Grand Rapids Historical Society, and Free Alchemy Studio
Black women’s social clubs were more than places of fellowship—they were engines of education, activism, and cultural leadership. In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, the club movement spread across the country under the motto “Lifting as We Climb,” as Black women organized to advance racial justice, literacy, civic engagement, and community self-determination.
This talk will explore the history of the Grand Rapids Study Club within the broader movement of Black women’s organizing in America. From book circles to civic campaigns, these clubs laid the groundwork for future generations of community builders, educators, and cultural workers. Together, we’ll trace their legacy and reflect on what it means for Grand Rapids today.

Notorious RBG: Film & Conversation
2026-03-03 17:30 - 19:30 | GVSU, Pew Campus, Loosemore Auditorium, 301 Fulton St W, Grand Rapids, MI, 49504, United States
Join the Greater Grand Rapids Women’s History Council (GGRWHC) and GVSU partners: Center for Women and Gender Equity, CLAS Flim and Visual Arts, Faculty Teaching and Learning Center, GVSU Women’s Commission, for an engaging evening celebrating the life and legacy of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg.
Location: Loosemore Auditorium, GVSU Pew Campus
Date: Tuesday, March 3, 2026
5:30 PM – Reception with light refreshments
6:00 PM – Screening of RBG (the acclaimed documentary)
After the Film – Panel discussion facilitated by Navid Darvishzadeh, GVSU Professor of Film and Visual Arts
Explore RBG’s groundbreaking contributions to gender equality, law, and culture through film and conversation with local experts.

Panel Discussion - A Place to Turn: The Grand Rapids Women’s Resource Center
2026-03-18 15:30 - 17:00 | GVSU, Pew Campus, Loosemore Auditorium, 301 Fulton St W, Grand Rapids, MI, 49504, United States
For more than 50 years the Women’s Resource Center has been a support for women seeking purpose and meaningful employment. This panel discussion will feature former staff and clients examining the formative years of the WRC, including some of its early initiatives. This panel is a collaboration between the Greater Grand Rapids Women’s History Council the Women’s Resource Center and the Kutsche Office of Local History at Grand Valley. Register at: Annual Local History Roundtable – Kutsche Office of Local History – Grand Valley State University

Women's Diaries: Unexpected Windows to the Past
2026-03-24 18:30 - 19:30 | Kent District Library – Caledonia Township Branch, 6260 92nd St SE, Caledonia, MI, 49316
Learn about the role of women’s diaries and scrapbooks as important sources of women’s history and consider how your family records might contribute to the history of Grand Rapids-area women. Led by local researcher and writer Christine Byron, this program draws on Byron’s book Perfect Omena Day!, which provides a vivid view of summer life in early 20th century Leelanau County through diary selections from Rebecca L. Richmond of Grand Rapids.

GGRWHC Annual Meeting, Reception: Historic Preservation is Women's Work
2026-05-14 19:00 - 20:00 | GVSU, Seidman School of Business, Rm. 1008, 50 Front Ave SW, Grand Rapids, MI, 49504, United States
Presented by Valerie Marvin
For more than 150 years, Michigan women have proudly preserved state and local history in libraries, museums, community centers, clubs, and public buildings. They’ve suffered horrific defeats – like the loss of old Grand Rapids City Hall – and won magnificent victories, including the preservation of Michigan’s Capitol. Valerie Marvin, Michigan State Capitol Director of Education and History) shares the work the female preservationists, their legacies, and the tools they’ve left behind for their daughters.
Join us for our Reception and Annual meeting,(this year in May) as we partner with the ﻿Grand Rapids Historical Society to welcome Valerie Marvin, Michigan State Capitol Director of History and Education.
To help us plan for food and beverages, please register in advance here
Agenda:
5:30–6:30: Reception
6:30–6:50: Annual meeting and election of new board members.
7:00–8:00: Keynote address
Pew Campus Parking Map
Free parking available in the Mt. Vernon lot at the Seidman School of Business (Lot 17)
Take a ticket when you enter and bring it in for validation.﻿
Mary Stiles Kimmell (pictured protesting the demolition of old city hall) was well known in Grand Rapids for her local activism in the late 1960s.

Women's Diaries: Unexpected Windows to the Past
2026-05-20 18:30 - 19:30 | Kent District Library – Alpine Township Branch, 5255 Alpine Ave NW, Comstock Park, MI, 49321
