Mayor Helen Boosalis: My Mother's Life in Politics

by Beth Boosalis Davis

Overview

As a 1950s housewife and League of Women Voters volunteer who spearheaded the city of Lincoln’s switch to a “strong mayor” form of government, Helen Boosalis (1919–2009) never anticipated that she herself would one day be that strong mayor and chief executive of Nebraska’s capital city.

Helen Boosalis’s story, told by her daughter, Beth Boosalis Davis, is that of a true pioneer of women in politics. The daughter of Greek immigrants, Boosalis achieved national prominence as the first woman president of the U.S. Conference of Mayors and as an outspoken advocate for economically distressed cities facing President Reagan’s “new federalism.” Winning the Democratic nomination for governor of Nebraska in 1986, Helen Boosalis ran against Kay Orr in the first gubernatorial contest between two women in U.S. history. The interwoven tales of conflict and challenge, from the mayor’s office to the campaign trail, combine personal insight into one woman’s trailblazing political history with a compelling memoir of a half century of public service and private devotion  shared by two remarkable women, mother and daughter.



 
 
Listen to an interview with Helen Boosalis and Beth Boosalis Davis on AARP's Radio Prime Time show.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780803271739
Publisher:	UNP - Bison Books
Publication date:	09/01/2013
Pages:	552
Product dimensions:	5.70(w) x 8.60(h) x 1.40(d)

About the Author

Beth Boosalis Davis is the daughter of former Lincoln mayor and gubernatorial candidate Helen Boosalis. She has practiced law in both the private and the public sectors, was executive director of the National Lekotek Center for children with disabilities, and serves on the boards of Carleton College, Steppenwolf Theatre, the Illinois Arts Council, and First Bank & Trust. Davis lives in Evanston, Illinois, where she was elected and served ten years on the city council.

Table of Contents

List of Illustrations   000

Note on Sources and Structure 000

Acknowledgments   000

Introduction      000

Flash Forward: Calling Me Home      000

1. Call to Action 000

Flash Forward: Down to Two    000

2. Madame Mayor   000

Flash Forward: May the Best Woman . . .   000

3. This Is Not Your Father's City Hall    000

Flash Forward: Money Talks    000

4. Roll Up Her Sleeves  000

Flash Backward: Roots--All Greek to Me    000

5. Expect the Unexpected      000

Flash Forward: Getting to Know You  000

6. Everything Old Is New Again      000

Flash Forward: One False Move and . . .   000

7. Mayors' Mayor  000

Flash Forward: Issues, Debates, Polls, and Other Irrelevancies    000

8. Another Time Around  000

Flash Forward: Trails End     000

9. Life (After) Is Politics     000

Afterword   000

Photo Acknowledgments   000

Appendix: Lincoln City Councils, 19751983   000

Notes 000

Interviews  000

Bibliography      000

Index 000

What People are Saying About This

Nebraska History - James E. Potter

"Beth Boosalis Davis has drawn on personal memory, thirty-five interviews, and voluminous scrapbooks collected by her father, Mike Boosalis, to chronicle her mother's career. The result is an intimate look at one of Nebraska's best known and most effective politicians during the 1960s, 1970s, and 1980s."—James E. Potter, Nebraska History

All About Books - Charles Stephen

"While the book will be of greatest interest to people who have lived in Lincoln, who have known [Helen Boosalis] personally or by her reputation over the decades, it is so well-done that even those who have not known her should find her story compelling. Her daughter, Beth, who lives in Evanston, Illinois, and who was a member of the Evanston City Council, has written a loving and careful tribute to her—I guess you have to say—amazing mother."—Charles Stephen, All About Books

Editorial Reviews

"Beth Boosalis Davis has drawn on personal memory, thirty-five interviews, and voluminous scrapbooks collected by her father, Mike Boosalis, to chronicle her mother's career. The result is an intimate look at one of Nebraska's best known and most effective politicians during the 1960s, 1970s, and 1980s."—James E. Potter, Nebraska History

Nebraska History - James E. Potter

“Doubtlessly, for Helen Boosalis, life and politics were inextricably interconnected; to tell the story of Boosalis, the mayor, is to tell the story of Boosalis, the person. Davis does her mother proud.”—Jan P. Vermeer, Great Plains Quarterly
 

Great Plains Quarterly - Jan P. Vermeer

"While the book will be of greatest interest to people who have lived in Lincoln, who have known [Helen Boosalis] personally or by her reputation over the decades, it is so well-done that even those who have not known her should find her story compelling. Her daughter, Beth, who lives in Evanston, Illinois, and who was a member of the Evanston City Council, has written a loving and careful tribute to her—I guess you have to say—amazing mother."—Charles Stephen, All About Books

All About Books - Charles Stephen

"Preview glance at Beth Boosalis Davis’ book, Mayor Helen Boosalis: My Mother’s Life in Politics, suggests this is an exceptional work, carefully crafted, well-researched and engagingly written."—Don Walton, Lincoln Journal Star

Lincoln Journal Star - Don Walton

"An informed and loving tribute of a daughter to her mother."—Mike Steinman, Lincoln Journal Star

Lincoln Journal Star - Mike Steinman

"A true pioneer in American politics, Helen Boosalis moved from being a housewife and volunteer to being elected the first female mayor of Lincoln, Nebraska, in 1975—then she became a nationally prominent advocate for troubled U.S. cities. Her inspiring story is told through the eyes of her daughter."—AARP The Magazine

AARP The Magazine

"For readers interested in Nebraska’s local politics and how it may have changed between then and now, the book offers a wealth of information to contemplate. . . . This book is well worth reading for its insights into the national and local political scene in the second half of the 20th century, for its insights into local political interactions, and for its descriptions of the interaction between political activity and family."—Chris Beutler, Prairie Fire

Prairie Fire - Chris Beutler

Beth Boosalis Davis has drawn on personal memory, thirty-five interviews, and voluminous scrapbooks collected by her father, Mike Boosalis, to chronicle her mother's career. The result is an intimate look at one of Nebraska's best known and most effective politicians during the 1960s, 1970s, and 1980s.—James E. Potter, Nebraska History

— James E. Potter

Nebraska History

For readers interested in Nebraska’s local politics and how it may have changed between then and now, the book offers a wealth of information to contemplate. . . . This book is well worth reading for its insights into the national and local political scene in the second half of the 20th century, for its insights into local political interactions, and for its descriptions of the interaction between political activity and family.—Chris Beutler, Prairie Fire

— Chris Beutler

Prairie Fire

While the book will be of greatest interest to people who have lived in Lincoln, who have known [Helen Boosalis] personally or by her reputation over the decades, it is so well-done that even those who have not known her should find her story compelling. Her daughter, Beth, who lives in Evanston, Illinois, and who was a member of the Evanston City Council, has written a loving and careful tribute to her—I guess you have to say—amazing mother.—Charles Stephen, All About Books

— Charles Stephen

All About Books

An informed and loving tribute of a daughter to her mother.—Mike Steinman, Lincoln Journal Star

— Mike Steinman

Lincoln Journal Star

"Preview glance at Beth Boosalis Davis' book, Mayor Helen Boosalis: My Mother's Life in Politics, suggests this is an exceptional work, carefully crafted, well-researched and engagingly written."

-Don Walton, Lincoln Journal Star

Don Walton