RYAN: It means a number of things Pam. First off, Spring is around the corner. Which means my birthday is getting very close, which also means we’re only a few weeks away from the next Nintendo Switch 2 announcement.

PAM: All true. But it’s also…Women’s History Month!

RYAN: Ahhhh yes! There are SO many cool women to talk about…

PAM: Then let’s focus the show on that today! I’m Pamela Kirkland.

RYAN: And I’m Ryan Willard, it’s Thursday, March 6th.

PAM: This is Ten Things You Need to Know about Women’s History Month.

PAM: It’s officially Women’s History Month! A time to celebrate the amazing accomplishments and contributions that women of the past and present have made in history, society, and culture. But it wasn’t always a month-long celebration. It began as a local celebration in Santa Rosa, California, where the Education Task Force of the Sonoma County (California) Commission of the Status of Women put together a “Women’s History Week” in 1978. It didn’t take long for the movement to reach nationwide, and in 1980, women’s groups and historians led by the then-called “ National Women’s History Project” successfully lobbied for national recognition.

RYAN: This brings us to February 1980, when President Jimmy Carter issued the first Presidential Proclamation declaring the week of March 8th National Women’s History Week. And, by 1987, congress passed public law 100-9 to officially declare March as Women’s History Month.

PAM: While the week evolved into a month, March 8th still marks an important da te in history and is recognized as International Women’s Day. It’s a day to celebrate the historical, cultural, and political achievements of women, plus to observe the importance of standing up against gender equality around the world. The struggle for women's rights dates back to the 1800s, beginning with early activism from powerhouse women like Susan B. Anthony and Elizabeth Cady Stanton, who formed the National Woman Suffrage Association in 1869.

RYAN: By the 1900s, pay inequality, overwork, and the lack of voting rights sparked mass protests and the establishment of National Women's Day. And, on one of the most important days in history, August 18, 1920, the 19th Amendment guaranteed American women the right to vote.

PAM: Women have made extraordinary strides over the years and continue to make their mark. So, let’s take a moment to recognize trailblazing women of the past and present!

PAM: First up, the very FIRST female Olympian, Helene de Pourtales. On May 22, 1900, Helene was aboard the yacht Lerina as part of the Swiss crew that won the first of two 1-2 ton class regattas at the Paris 1900 Games. A regatta, by the way, is a sporting event that consists of a series of boat or yacht races! In addition to becoming the first female Olympian, her performance that day also made her the first woman to win a medal at the Games. Her crew went on to claim silver in the second 1-2 Ton regatta the following day, making her the first female to win multiple medals! Other honorable mentions at the games that year go to tennis player, Charlotte Cooper, who became the first female individual champion in Olympic history, and golfer Margaret Abbot, who was the first female American to win gold at the games.

RYAN: Fast forward to the 2000s, and another female breaking Olympic barriers is Chloe Kim! Chloe Kim is an American who became the youngest woman to win an Olympic gold snowboarding medal when she took first place at the 2018 Winter Olympics in the women’s snowboard halfpipe. She was only 17 years old! And, just five years later, she went on to become the first woman to win two gold medals in halfpipe at the 2020 Beijing Winter Olympics. Among her incredible achievements as an athlete, Kim is an eight-time X Games gold medalist and was the first woman to win two gold medals in snowboarding at the Winter Youth Olympic Games.

PAM: Can you snowboard, Ry?

RYAN: I can snowboard about as well as you play Fortnite.

PAM: You can do it, but you’re less than mid?

RYAN: I was going to say AMAZING, but your description feels more honest and accurate.

PAM: Up next is a woman who is <SFX out of this world!> On September 12, 1992, Mae Jemison became the first African American woman in space. She was 1 of 7 astronauts aboard the Endeavor space shuttle on mission STS-47, which made 127 orbits around Earth. During the space flight, she was the science mission specialist (an astronaut who conducts experiments, maintains the spacecraft, and launches satellites) and conducted experiments on weightlessness, bone loss, and motion sickness on herself and other crew members. Since leaving NASA in 1993, Jemison has launched Jemison Group, Inc., a research company for advanced technologies, and formed an international space camp for kids ages 12 to 16 called “The Earth We Share.”

RYAN: Okay that is about a zillion times cooler than my old summer camp, I wonder if they’d let me be a counselor there...I’m gonna look it up, while we take a quick break…

RYAN: Alright, Ten’ers, we’ve gotten your comments, reviews and emails helping me name my new orange kitten… who is now almost 3 months old. <SFX kitten meow> He still loves sleeping on my shoulder and when he’s curled up he looks like a cinnamon roll. So here are suggestions we’ve gotten so far…

•Basketball

•Pumpkin

•Orange Juice - OJ - Orange Julius

•Cutey

•Pudding

•Cinnamon Roll or Cinny

•Shouldey

•Ryan Jr.

•Tenny or Mr. Ten’er

•Mango

A ten’er named Ella suggested the name Rigby, from her favorite Beatles song, Eleanor Rigby, ooooh I like that name and I love that song. Gabe, Erin and Veronica all wrote in and said I should name the cat Garfield. I love the actor Andrew Garfield, I love lasagna and I love that suggestion, thank you! Someone suggested the name “Flutterby” which sounds too close butterfly which I would OBVIOUSLY never name this little kitten. I’m going to decide the kitten’s name by next Thursday, so if you have a favorite from that list, let us know! Leave us a comment, review or email us at hello@thetennews.com. <SFX kitten meow> Back to the show!

PAM: We’re back with a woman who is known for helping change the face of medicine during the Civil War. Dr. Mary Walker graduated as a medical doctor from Syracuse Medical College in 1855 and went on to establish a private practice until the Civil War broke out in 1861. She wanted to join the Army as a surgeon but wasn’t allowed to because she was a woman. So, instead, she chose to volunteer for the Union Army, working for free at a temporary hospital in Washington and treating wounded soldiers at field hospitals in Virginia. By 1863, her medical credentials were finally accepted, and she was appointed a War Department surgeon. Her work didn’t go unnoticed, and after leaving the government service in November of 1865, Walker became the only female Medal of Honor recipient when she was awarded the medal by President Andrew Johnson. In 1917, the medal was actually revoked because of her civilian status, but President Jimmy Carter later restored the honor in her name in 1977.

RYAN: From medicine to technology, this next innovator was also a well-known actress. Hedy Lamarr was an Austrian-American actress and inventor who pioneered the technology that is the basis for today’s Wifi, GPS, and Bluetooth communication systems. In her spare time on Hollywood sets, Lamarr developed a ‘Secret Communications System’ design that radio messages could be relayed between a transmitter and receiver over multiple randomly determined frequencies, eliminating the possibility of signal jamming. She went on to partner with George Antheil, another brilliant mind known for his writing and music compositions, to ensure the transmitter and receiver remained synchronized when messages cycled through frequencies. By 1942, the two were awarded a US Patent for their work. Although overlooked in the past, Hedy’s scientific contributions have gone on to be recognized by the Electronic Frontier Foundation. So basically, a huge actress in her era had a side hustle that LITERALLY changed the world. Insane, yet, not surprising.

PAM: Another technology trailblazer dating back to the 1800s is Ada Lovelace, who some say is the world’s first computer programmer. Ada’s mother insisted that she have expert tutors in math and science, and at age 17, she crossed paths with mathematician and inventor Charles Babbage, who created the “Difference Engine.” This is just a fancy name for what we now know as the calculator. Ada went on to work with Babbage as he developed the Analytical Engine (, where she translated French text from his engineer into English. Lovelace ended up adding her own notes into the mix, signing them “A.A. L.” Some of the notes compared the Analytical Engines design to a weaving machine, which followed patterns to make a design, leading Lovelace to imagine that the machine could also follow patterns or even codes to form letters in addition to numbers. So, basically, before the first computer was ever invented, she came up with the idea for computer language.

RYAN: Up next, we have more recent recognition of a young woman making a difference for California wildfire victims. Avery Colvert, a 14-year-old from Altadena, California, just became the youngest recipient of the TIME100 Impact Award, recognizing leaders across sectors and across the world, shaping their industries, communities, and the future. Colvert founded Altadena Girls, a recovery fund for teenage victims of the Eaton Fire, with her friends. The fund’s Instagram Account went viral and received support from big-name brands like Skims and celebrities like Charli XCX. At a pop-up location, Avery handed out collected donations of clothing, beauty products, and personal care items to those in need. Soon, Altadena Girls will have a permanent space in Old Town Pasadena to provide mental health services, homework rooms, dance classes, and a space for young women to connect. Great work Avery, way to help out your community!

PAM: And for our last thing you need to know, let’s go to our Trivia Master, Owen.

OWEN: Thank you, Pam! This female singer and songwriter has made history more than once. Just last week, she became the first female artist to surpass 100 billion Spotify streams. Is it:

Beyonce

Taylor Swift
Brittany Spears
Or, Miley Cyrus

The answer is… B. Taylor Swift! She is now just one of two artists to hit 100 billion total streams, 100 million monthly listeners, and 100 million followers on Spotify, the only other artist being Drake. This achievement just further solidifies her status in the music industry.

PAM: Among her many achievements, Taylor Swift is:

The only individual from the arts to be named Time Person of the Year
The richest female musician and the first to become a billionaire ,with music being the primary source of income

OWEN: And she’s my sister’s favorite artist, and maybe my Mom’s too, from what I overhear being sung in the shower!

PAM: I also love me some Swift. Great trivia and fun facts, thanks, Owen!

OWEN: Aaaaaanytime, Pam.

RYAN: And that was Ten Things You Need to Know. I feel like I should call my big sister and my Mom to tell them I appreciate them.

PAM: Ummmm, yeah you should probably do that like, once a month. Even when it’s not Women’s History month.

RYAN: Okay, well then I want to tell you and Kap how much I appreciate both of you. For not only making this show the cool show that it is, but also for always getting me out of trouble and also feeding me pizza when I’m having a snack attack.

PAM: Awwww, thank you so much, Ry. I appreciate you appreciating us. We should show some Ten’ers some appreciation and do Ten News Snaps!

RYAN: And before that, here’s a quick note for the grownups.

RYAN: Time for Ten News Snaps!

PAM: A Ten’er named Tianli left us a comment on Spotify and said, “Good podcast! I love this podcast!” and then left 26 butterfly emojis.”

RYAN: Great comment! I love that comment! But I don’t love that their finger slipped and somehow dropped butterfly emojis into that comment like a bird pooping on the beach. Well, that’s our show for today!

PAM: And two extra notes for the grown-ups, you can now get ad-free versions of our episodes when you join the Ten’ers Club on our website.

RYAN: And if you want to help support the Ten News, you can make a tax-deductible donation at the link in our show notes. The whole team thanks you for your support!

PAM: “The Ten News” is a co-production of Small But Mighty Media and Next Chapter Podcasts, and part of the Airwave Podcast Network.

RYAN: The Ten News creative team is giving thanks and appreciation to the cool girls and women in our lives and includes Tracey Not a Crooks, Adam the Great Bambino Bernard, Brian Not Ryan Douglas and Carson Not So Harry Potter. Big thanks to Owen, Not Slowin Down for Anybody.

PAM: Our Production Director is Jeremiah “On Fyaah” Tittle, and our Executive Producers are Donald “Albright Albright Albright” and show creator Tracy Takes the Leeds Kaplan. I’m Pamela Kirkland.

RYAN: And I’m Ryan Willard, thanks for listening to the Ten News.

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