This year marks the 100th anniversary of the passage of the 19th Amendment. August 26, 1920, is the day women gained the right to vote in this country.

To reflect on this momentous occasion, I have decided to highlight our pioneers from the 26th District of Texas.

The first for your consideration is Dr. Benjy Frances Brooks. Dr. Brooks became the first female pediatric surgeon in Texas.

She was a mentor and I carry around the words she gave me at the beginning of my medical career - children are not just smaller versions of adults – treating them is more complex than scaling down the size of the problem. It requires a whole host of separate tools and knowledge, and that is why this program is so important.

Dr. Benjy Frances Brooks was born in Lewisville and grew up in neighboring Flower Mound. Both towns are in my district in North Texas. As a four-year-old, she dreamed of becoming a doctor while she operated on her dolls with manicure scissors. She received a bachelor’s and master’s degrees from the North Texas State Teacher’s College and went to medical school at the University of Texas Medical Branch in Galveston in 1944, where she received her medical degree in 1948. Dr. Brooks became one of the first women to enter the department of surgery at Harvard, where she completed her pediatric surgical training.

Eventually she returned home to Texas to practice pediatric surgery at Texas Children’s Hospital. She was the first female pediatric surgeon in the state and went on to teach at Baylor College of Medicine and, at the time, the newly established University of Texas Medical School at Houston, where she established and led the pediatric surgery division.

The 26th district of Texas has a rich history. It is an honor to be able to share these stories with you.