Five women have been named as this year’s newest inductees into the Delaware Women’s Hall of Fame, joining a class of hundreds of trailblazing women who have made their mark on the First State.
First established in 1981, the Delaware Women’s Hall of Fame is considered a “lifetime achievement award” for women who have made an impact on Delaware and the world. Notable honorees include political figures like Rep. Lisa Blunt-Rochester and first lady Jill Biden, suffragists and civil rights leaders, athletes, scientists and community leaders.
Melanie Ross Levin, director of the Office of Women’s Advancement and Advocacy, which oversees the Hall of Fame, sees this project as a beacon of hope for the next generations of women and girls to look up to.
“Delaware women have always done awesome things, but they haven’t always been honored for what they’ve done,” Ross Levin said. “You can’t be what you can’t see.”
More:Black babies in Delaware dying at much higher rate. How this grassroots group is helping.
A private committee of seven individuals read through nearly 50 applications over the past few months to decide on this year’s inductees. Gov. John Carney’s office released the final list.
Many of the new women inductees dedicated much of their lives and careers to the well-being of children and survivors of domestic abuse, including the first Black woman to practice law in the state of Delaware. Here are the honorees set to be inducted into the Hall of Fame later this year.
Patricia Dailey Lewis
Patricia Dailey Lewis is the chief executive officer of the Beau Biden Foundation for the Protection of Children. As a practicing attorney for nearly four decades, Dailey Lewis spent her career handling litigation concerning child protection and abuse, domestic violence and juvenile delinquency among other specialties. She has practiced law in all Delaware courts and is admitted to the Supreme Court of the United States.
Dailey Lewis was a former deputy attorney general with the Delaware Department of Justice and also served as the director of the Family Division to advocate for children and families in the justice system. She worked as a law professor at Delaware Law School for 35 years and sat on multiple boards related to advocating for children and victims of domestic violence.
Opinion from Dailey Lewis:Those who work with kids must be proactive about preventing child abuse
Considered an expert in the field of child advocacy, she has trained thousands of professionals worldwide on handling child and domestic abuse cases and spearheaded her own program, the Shield of Protection, which aims to ensure that educational institutions use best practices to protect children in Delaware and nationwide.
Bonnie Meszaros
Bonnie Meszaros has spent over 50 years teaching economics and the importance of having autonomy over personal finances. As an assistant professor of economics at the University of Delaware and associate director for the university’s Center for Economics Education and Entrepreneurship, she educates students on how to effectively teach the basics of economics to children in grades K-12.
More:This Wilmington child was lead poisoned. How it could have been prevented
Meszaros has published many works of research pertaining to the importance of economic education that has inspired educators and policymakers in curriculum development and educational policy. In her honor, the UD center created the Meszaros Economic Educator of the Year Award in 2019 to be given to Delaware educators following in her footsteps of empowering the next generation in the sector of economics.
A Wilmington resident, Meszaros is also the project director and a member of the writing team with the National Association of Economic Educators and is a recipient of the Bessie B. Moore Service Award and the Patty Elder International Award, which both recognize excellence in the field of economic education.
Paulette Sullivan Moore
Paulette Sullivan Moore is the first African American female attorney to practice in Delaware. Born and raised in Wilmington’s East Side, she was admitted to the Delaware Bar in 1977 and was later elected New Castle County recorder of deeds from 1990-1994, the first African American to be elected to a countywide position.
Throughout her career, Moore’s work focused on advocating for victims and survivors of domestic violence. She worked as a policy coordinator for the Delaware Coalition Against Domestic Violence, served as vice president of public policy for the National Network to End Domestic Violence and sat on the American Civil Liberties Union’s board of directors.
As vice president of public policy for NNEDV, her insight and advocacy led to major policy improvements to the federal Violence Against Women Act by expanding survivor services and increasing funding for survivor programs nationwide. Although Moore has retired from practicing law, she remains active as an organizer and leader for the Delaware Coalition Against Domestic Violence’s Women of Color Task Force, where she reviews legislation for its impact on women, children and people in marginalized communities.
Leslie Newman
Leslie Newman has been an active member in the Delaware community since she moved to Wilmington in 1980. Newman spent nearly 30 years working for Wilmington’s Children & Families First organization and acted as the group’s chief executive officer for over 10 years until her retirement in 2020.
Under Newman’s leadership, Children & Families First was able to expand its reach throughout the state, providing resources for families and children such as foster care, adoption programs, child welfare programming, therapy and setting up community schools. She’s been an advocate for child wellness throughout the state and was crucial to the establishment of wellness centers and health-based programs in many Delaware public schools.
Newman has also worked for the state on various committees related to this cause including the Child Death Review Committee and the Delaware Early Childhood Council and has chaired Delaware’s Home Visiting Community Advisory Board since its inception in 2008. She has been awarded the Kids Count Delaware Professional Award for her excellence in child welfare services.
More:Teacher from Delaware couldn’t find diverse children’s books so she wrote her own
In addition to her contributions to the field of child protection, she is an active member of the Jewish community in the state. She served as president of the Jewish Federation of Delaware and co-chaired a comprehensive study of the Jewish population across Delaware and the Brandywine Valley.
Lynn Snyder-Mackler
If there is ever a question as to why the University of Delaware’s physical therapy program is so renowned, the answer is at least partially due to Lynn Snyder-Mackler. An internationally renowned physical therapist and sports medicine researcher, Snyder-Mackler’s influence cannot be overstated.
Snyder-Mackler has been with the University of Delaware’s physical therapy department since 1989, where she still operates an active Sports Physical Therapy practice to cater to collegiate, amateur and professional athletes. In 1996, she served as the head trainer for the beach volleyball venue during the Olympic Games in Atlanta.
Her groundbreaking research in anterior cruciate ligament injuries has won her several major awards and has reshaped the industry’s perspective on orthopedic rehabilitation. Throughout her career, she has tended to professional athletes around the world and was approached by the NFL last year to serve on its Scientific Advisory Committee.
An induction dinner and ceremony is set to honor and officially induct the women this fall. The Delaware Women’s Hall of Fame is currently displaying profiles and hand-painted portraits of all of its honorees at Delaware Technical Community College’s Georgetown until January 2024.
Contact Molly McVety at mmcvety@delawareonline.com. Follow her on Twitter @mollymcvety.
