Patricia Roberts Harris

Born: 1924 in Illinois

Died: 1985

First African American woman nominated to cabinet position, serving as the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development.

Served on her school’s NAACP board at Howard University and also on those at IBM and Chase Manhattan Bank.

Appointed by President John F. Kennedy, she was co-chair of the National Women’s Committee for Civil Rights.

Appointed by President Lyndon B. Johnson as the U.S. Ambassador to Luxembourg.

Demanded the best from herself & others.

Said: “If my life has any meaning at all, it is that those who start out as outcasts can wind up as being part of the system.”