Overview

• She served eight terms in the U.S. House from 1977 to 1993 representing Cleveland’s West Side, becoming the first Democratic woman from Ohio elected to Congress.
• She drove major increases in federal breast cancer research funding in the early 1990s and helped establish stronger mammography standards.
• She co-founded the Congressional Women’s Caucus and advanced into House Democratic leadership, serving as caucus vice chair in the 1980s to expand access for women on Capitol Hill.
• She helped shape Cleveland development by aiding the push to bring the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, supporting senior housing initiatives, advocating lakefront projects, and backing NASA Glenn.
• Her tenure ended after the House bank overdraft scandal and a 1995 guilty plea to illegal campaign contributions, followed by public service in the Ohio House and as president of the American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee; no cause of death has been released and funeral details are pending.