02/02/2023
Exciting News!!!
The U.S. Mint has announced the honorees for the 2024 quarters in the American Women Quarters™ Program. With the outstanding honorees for 2023 rolling out now, it's a great time to look ahead for what's coming up next year too. The program gives us an excellent opportunity to learn more about outstanding and extraordinary women who have made us "America proud!" Check them out!
Patsy Takemoto Mink - WAs the first woman of color to serve in Congress. As a Member of Congress, she fought for gender and racial equality, affordable childcare, and bilingual education, most notably with the passage of Title IX, which was later renamed the Patsy T. Mink Equal Opportunity in Education Act.
Dr. Mary Edwards Walker - Was a Civil War era surgeon, women’s rights advocate, and an abolitionist. Walker often crossed battle lines to care for wounded soldiers. Captured by the Confederate troops as a suspected spy, she was held as a prisoner of war for four months. Walker is the only woman to be awarded the Medal of Honor.
Pauli Murray - Was a poet, writer, activist, lawyer, and Episcopal priest, as well as a staunch advocate for civil rights, fighting against racial and s*x discrimination. In 1966, she co-founded the National Organization for Women with Betty Friedan and other activists. Murray is regarded as one of the most important social justice advocates of the twentieth century.
Zitkala-Ša (meaning “Red Bird”), also known as Gertrude Simmons Bonnin - Was a writer, composer, educator, and political activist for Native Americans’ right to United States citizenship and other civil rights they had long been denied. She left her South Dakota home on the Yankton reservation at age eight to attend a boarding school run by white missionaries, where her native culture and traditions were prohibited.
Celia Cruz (Celia Caridad Cruz Alfonso) - Was a Cuban-American singer, cultural icon, and one of the most popular Latin artists of the 20th century. Known as “The Queen of Salsa,” Cruz’s numerous honors and awards include five Grammy awards, a National Medal of Arts, and a posthumous Lifetime Achievement Grammy.
“All of the women being honored have lived remarkable and multi-faceted lives, and have made a significant impact on our Nation in their own unique way,” said Mint Director Ventris C. Gibson. “The women pioneered change during their lifetimes, not yielding to the status quo imparted during their lives. By honoring these pioneering women, the Mint continues to connect America through coins which are like small works of art in your pocket.”
If you're like me you can't wait to see the designs. Waiting and anticipating is part of the fun. They will be released in mid-2023. Keep an eye for updates.
Here's a cool fact about the picture here of the obverse portrait of George Washington facing right. It was originally composed and sculpted by Laura Gardin Fraser. It was the recommended design for the 1932 quarter to mark Washington’s 200th birthday, but then-Treasury Secretary Mellon ultimately selected the left-facing John Flanagan design. The right-facing design will be featured on the American Women Quarters.
And, for more information about the American Women Quarters Program visit the U.S. Mint website. There you'll find more information about their commemorative coins and medals. Visit: https://www.usmint.gov/learn/coin-and-medal-programs/american-women-quarters
To learn more about our U.S. Mint visit: https://www.usmint.gov/About
