Congratulations to the Tenacious Twelve

Left to right: Susan Butler, Ruthie Wurzburg, Beth Keough, Wendy Geisler, Lori Stockstiel, Eileen Jalnos, Barbara Moss, Marcia Waldgeir, Renee Sabel, Marlene Eichelbaum, and Janet Neuenschwander (Lee Markman not shown.)

If there’s one thing Americans love it’s a great comeback story and this one has all the elements. Truly, an against-all-odds plot formula, packed full of genuine, lovable characters.

As Sharon McMahon, author of “The Small and the Mighty: Twelve Unsung Americans Who Changed the Course of History” writes:

“I have long suspected that the best Americans are not always famous. More than twenty years of research has confirmed my intuition. The best Americans are not the critics, they are the doers. They are the people who went for broke when everyone else yelled to turn back. They are those who know that one becomes great because of who they lift up, not who they put down.”

These ladies, the Tenacious Twelve, have inspired all of us. Their determination to preserve the legacy that came before them is just jaw dropping.

As I became more involved with NCJW, I began to hear about this comeback tale, this hero’s journey, and the remarkable story of how this organization almost died, and how through determination and tenacity it did not.  It’s chilling to think of all that would not have been accomplished over the last 18 years — all the community outreach, education,  advocacy, not to mention the food, friendship, and opportunity to find your niche and flourish. The thought is like an NCJW version of “It’s a Wonderful Life.” All we can say is the deepest of thank you’s to the truly extraordinary Tenacious Twelve.  

And now here’s that story as told by the women who lived it.  [video link].

—Rhonda Grimm, NCJW-SA President