Five Dedicated Daughters Who Inspire Me

I marvel at the perseverance and sheer gumption of the women who founded and have sustained our National Society. They dreamed big dreams – and made them come true at a time when women rarely held professional positions outside the home. Had I the chance, how I would love to ask them about their motivations and their grand vision for our service organization, which continues to thrive 132 years after its first organizational meetings. These women didn’t just “witness” history – they created it!

Having served during the great pandemic, I will always especially admire the women who led us through times of difficulty; I have drawn strength from their example and resolve from their achievements despite external events that could have shaped their administrations. Though it is hard to choose, here are five Daughters from history whom I would like to meet and why (listed by year of birth):

Virginia Cabell (1839-1920), Vice President General Presiding, for her Humility

When First Lady Caroline Scott Harrison accepted the invitation to serve as our first President General, it was obvious that her White House duties would preclude her from active involvement in the launch of our Society. In stepped Virginia Cabell, who had chaired the October 11, 1890, organizational meeting of the National Society and who invited Mrs. Harrison to serve with the understanding that Mrs. Cabell would complete the necessary work. She called the second meeting of the nascent Society in her home, which would become the headquarters of our National Society for the next year. It was she who proposed the idea of a “House Beautiful,” what she further referred to as “the finest building owned by women.” During the earliest formative years of our National Society, it was Mrs. Cabell who shaped the strong foundation that supports us to this day – though she served without benefit of sash or title, solely dedicated to the future of what she called “…our sisterhood, the patriotic, home-loving and country-loving women of America.”

Helena Pouch (1874-1960), 18th President General, for her Strength (and her backhand!)

Mrs. Pouch devoted her entire three-year administration to serving and supporting the United States during World War II. Believing it was her patriotic duty to aid the government, she successfully rallied our members in support of various wartime activities and moved her three Congresses outside of Washington, D.C. She often spoke of the importance of courage, faith and prayer – and requested that all Daughters pray daily for those serving in the Armed Forces. The war was not the first trial to which she had been subjected; the Pouches’ only daughter, Helen, had died in 1919 at the age of 18. Though Helen’s obituary lists no cause of death, one online source lists it as pneumonia, and it would seem likely that the Spanish Flu could have been a contributing factor given her age and fast decline. The Memorial Fund that bears her name has provided millions of dollars of support to DAR Schools in her memory, leaving a lasting legacy for both of these women. And a final reason to admire Mrs. Pouch: she won the 1894 U.S. Open Tennis Championship in both Women’s Singles and Doubles! Wow!