’ Ella, awomanOf the GreatAm
by Joseph Sanlei
More than likely not, most of you have not l'eard of Ella Grasso. 'Tis a pity, for hers was a truly noble life, a rarity ammg our race. She was born on tle 10th of May in 1919.; in Windsor locks, Connecticut, tl'e tom honored with rer residence until her death from cancer last week. She was tl'e daughter of 'Italain imnigrants to our "new world"; sle was tteir hope for the realizatim of that which
is called "'Ihe Great American .Drearzf- and rer life was
to see that dream fufilled. As a child, Ella Grasso attended St, Mary's Catholic school in l'er hmetown and then travelled to the pri-
Bouquets
by Jim Raven
Ipullmypen out of tie drawer and attarpt to find a topicsuitable
, for commentary, many I - themes cross my mind. 'Ihis colum not being sufficient in length tO'cover than all,
I thinkIwill follow a format that appears in the
Montreal Gazette called "Bouquets and Brickbats".
% To Herb'Gray, Minister of mdustry and Oamerce for his announcement of
‘ Federal Assistance in tl'e funding of the new Charlot- 'Ihis will._add jobs to the Tourism sectors as well as the ailing P.E.I. Cmstruction industry.
To Charlottetown
City Council for its lack of support given the Proposed generating garbage disposal plant Which would have been situated in the city's east end. While serving as energy purpose, it could have halted an even more serious environmental problem, that of the burying of garbage in our soil.
@ To Lloyd Axworthy, Minister in charge of the Council 01 the Status of Waten, for his attenpt to cancell a wmen's ccnvention on the constitution.
%\ '30 Premier Angus MacIean, Gilbert C1emer‘1ts, and Pmsidaut.Neind<e for tleir recent efforts in trying to persuade Nova - Scotia to approve the location Of the _Vet College in Charlottetown.
To M.P. 'Itm mum,
vate Chafee School for her secondary (for what is Imam in New England as 'Fprepie" years. In 1940 she garnished l’er F.A., and in 1942, rer M.A. both in Econcmics, from the pres- tigious waten's college, MI'. Holyoke, in Mass. 'Ella' as everyme it was to know lrer, was almos imtediately drawn into tl'e people's service upon grad- ation from college. Her ambitious political nature. socn gained l'er notice frcm the mquestiaed tsar of Comecticut democratic politics, John Bailey, (liairman of the States Damcratic Central Carmittee
and Brickbats
for hi; support of both sides in the moat Public Utilities Hearing looking v into the Retail Gas Omers ‘ request to regulate service Millan his never ending quest for support at hate, couldn't decide on this one, I guess.
@\To Ed Broadbent and the N.D.P. for their unfailing support of the Federal Governnents Constitutional Amendments. Just goes to shonathirdpartycanbeof
' use (11 occasion.
@ To the Hon. Horace Carver, P.EI. Minister of Justice, for his continued biting of the hand that feeds him. The Minister who hired his forner law parolers to contend tl'e Federal Governnents Constitutimal Amendments on P.E.I.'s behalf, seems to have succeeded in wasting provincial revenues while irritating those who supply us with valuable federal dollars. Just ask the Minister of Finance, Lloyd MacPhail. ' 92‘s) Jackie, Grace, the Student Union Executive, C.P.'s, Bartenders, Winter Carnival Executive, and all those who contributed to the Winter Carnival-- you deserve tie sincere gratitude of all of us who participated in "Flake-Out I81".
To those striking civic- workers in Saint John, New Brunswick, who demanded a 30% wage increase for the upcaning year. With demands that, it's little
D
Thursday, February 19,1981 page 7
e‘rican’ Dream
To "Tie Chairman" (as even John Kennedy would refer to
An ardent partisan loyalist, Ella was to capture tl'e respect and a rare, yet real love, from people on all sides-of tie political spectrum (including this Republican author who is proud to admit that I too cast a vote for rer in tl'e last election in 1979) . Under Connecticut's old constitution of 1818, two representatives fmn each - tamship in the states were elected to tie State General
Abraham Ribbacoff in his tenure as Governor in the
.Bailey) , Ella was "perfection".early 1960's; she chaired
the cpnstitutional convention
of 1965, Which brought
Connecticut its present
constitution and for 12 yearssre
was a delegate from Oonnectioat
to the United States Clongresso Yet all of her accom-
plishments tell but a part of
the story of Ella's life.
'lhe rest was mld by the dig-
nitaries fromWashington, D.C.,
her beloved New England neigm-
bours, those from other states
and the Provinm of Quebec,
and the tribute whidl poured
Assenbly, and since the 1920's into Hartford from around the it had hem custatary, 1mg world when news of her death before ~the present ERA debate, was received. Beymd that for more than aquartercentmggto elect ore man and one women tributewas the even fibre
from each tom. Thus, it should not be surprising that Connecticut would be the first state of the Anerican Union to elect a women governor in her own right - that is, without succeeding her husband into office. Give Ella Grasso's
long history of service to the
State, by her 1974 election as Governor, it was not surprising that §_1~_e_ would be
w-that firstwmen governor.
Ella had served'in the State House of lbpresentatives
neaningful display of love by the tens—of—thousands of nourners from all walks of life who waited in freezing rain and abject cold, for the 13:00 days her body lay in state to say one last "thank you" and farewell to their
'
From Charlottetown, I wish to extend my own words of thanks toithe woman, the statesperson, who-so nobly ' led my State as Governor for 5 years. Rest in Peace, Ella — for you, as fav others, have earned it.
wonder the econme is sluggish.
a_s__ Secretary of b State for
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