WOMEN OF INFLUENCE
BERNICE SECREST PYKE (1880-1964)
Bernice Secrest Pyke was the first woman elected to be a delegate at a national political convention and continued to be a delegate at the four following conventions. She was very active in the women's suffrage movement, assisting in the fight for women's right to vote. Pyke’s mission to promote the value of women in the domain of public affairs endured throughout her life. Education was of the utmost importance to Pyke. She taught math in high school and later became a member of the Lakewood Board of Education, chairman of the literature committee of the Ohio Federated Clubs, the chairman of the literary department of the Cleveland Sorosis. She was also the secretary of the Woman’s Committee of the Council of National Defense and the only woman member of the executive committee on Liberty Bond campaigns.