March is Women’s History Month, 31 days set aside to honor women who have impacted, and who are impacting, history.

While certain names pop up when we think of women who have shaped history, we do not have to look beyond the borders of our own town for women who have left a mark.

Jane Eliza Beach Johnson completed the tome of Newtown’s earliest history, Newtown 1705-1918, begun by her husband Ezra L. Johnson.

Susan Scudder and Edith Mitchell were the first and second women elected to the school board, when Newtown schools were nascent.

Many of Newtown’s iconic buildings are thanks to the generosity of Mary Elizabeth Hawley, who in the 1920s and 1930s determined to use her inherited wealth to enhance the town.

Ginny Lathrop founded the Lathrop School of Dance in 1951, introducing generations of dancers to the magic of entertainment. Following in her fancy footsteps, “Miss Diane” Wardenburg and currently “Miss Tamra” Saric continued the legacy.

Mae Schmidle represented Newtown for five terms at the state level, succeeded in having our Main Street flagpole preserved for posterity, and committed herself to endless civic and political activities with a zeal that could only be envied by those who encountered her.

Julia Wasserman was yet another woman elected to represent Newtown, for 18 years. Having escaped Nazi Germany, her life was one of energy and determination, serving in the Women’s Army Corp, on town boards and commissions, and eventually representing Newtown, always with the town’s wellbeing at the forefront of her mind.

We cannot fail to mention Sandy Hook School Principal Dawn Hochsprung, who rushed into death on 12/14 to protect others, as well as fellow educators Mary Sherlach, Lauren Rousseau, Rachel D’Avino, Victoria Soto, and Anne Marie Murphy. Their names are synonymous with “heroine” and are forever etched in this town’s history.

For over 300 years, women of Newtown have been unafraid to take on a cause, to stand up for their beliefs, and to be the moral compasses of their times. Their contributions remain as valuable today as when they walked among us.

We continue to celebrate today’s women who enrich our community: the female volunteers and organizers, mothers, leaders, healers, whose dedication make this a better town. Their perseverance in the face of everyday and once-in-a-lifetime challenges will secure for them a place in Newtown’s history.

Yet even as we pay homage to women this month, we acknowledge that historically, women remain woefully undervalued. Since 1923, women of history have been demanding equal rights, an amendment yet to be ratified. Equal Pay Day, marking the “day into the year on which it takes for women on average to earn what men did in 2019,” is March 24 this year. That date pushes, unfortunately, further into the year for women of color. Until women are compensated equally with men for equal work, until childcare is universally available, allowing women to pursue careers on equal footing with men, until women have choice in all aspects of their lives, we cannot say that we truly respect the legacy of women or support their futures. We can make these oversights history through supporting efforts for real change, locally and nationally.

Meanwhile, today’s heroines are tomorrow’s historical figures. You know an incredible woman, so tell her — if not this month, any month.