Edith Mai Padmore, née Wiles, (August 20, 1916 – July 3, 1988) was a Liberian politician. She became Liberia's first female cabinet minister when she was appointed Minister of Health and Welfare in 1972.

Life

Mai Wiles was born on August 20, 1916, in

Monrovia Monrovia () is the administrative capital city, capital and largest city of Liberia. Founded in 1822, it is located on Cape Mesurado on the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic coast and as of the 2022 census had 1,761,032 residents, home to 33.5% of Liber ...

. She was the daughter of Richard Wiles, Speaker of the House of Representatives of Liberia, and Mai Grimes, sister of

Louis Arthur Grimes Louis Arthur Grimes (1883–1948) served as the 10th Chief Justice of Liberia. He was appointed Attorney General by President Charles D. B. King and served in this position from 1922 to 1932 when he was appointed Secretary of State by Presiden ...

, a

Chief Justice of Liberia The chief justice of Liberia is the head of the judicial branch of the Government of Liberia, Government of the Liberia, Republic of Liberia and the chief judge of the Supreme Court of Liberia. Appointment and term Article 54(c) of the Consti ...

. Her father's mother was Vai and her other grandparents were from the

West Indies The West Indies is an island subregion of the Americas, surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean and the Caribbean Sea, which comprises 13 independent island country, island countries and 19 dependent territory, dependencies in thr ...

. She was educated at the Trinity Parish School and the

College of West Africa The College of West Africa is a Methodist high school in Monrovia, Liberia. The school was opened in 1839 as the Monrovia Seminary, making it one of the oldest European-style schools in Africa. It has produced many of Liberia's leaders. Alumni inc ...

, where she graduated at the top of her class in 1934 or 1935. She taught for a year after graduation. After training at the Eugenia Simpson Cooper Secretarial School, she became personal secretary to President Edwin J. Barclay. In April 1939 she married the future diplomat George A. Padmore. From 1940 to 1950 she was secretary to the general manager of the Firestone Plantation Company. She then became Executive Secretary to President Tubman from 1951 to 1955. In 1956 she accompanied her husband to the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

, where he had been appointed

Ambassador An ambassador is an official envoy, especially a high-ranking diplomat who represents a state and is usually accredited to another sovereign state or to an international organization as the resident representative of their own government or so ...

. She helped organize the 1959 Saniquellie Conference and the 1962 Monrovia Conference which led to the

Organisation of African Unity The Organisation of African Unity (OAU; , OUA) was an African intergovernmental organization established on 25 May 1963 in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, with 33 signatory governments. Some of the key aims of the OAU were to encourage political and ec ...

. From 1963 to 1971 she was Special Assistant to President Tubman. President

William Tolbert William Richard Tolbert Jr. (13 May 1913 – 12 April 1980) was a Liberian politician who served as the 20th president of Liberia from 1971 until his assassination in 1980. Tolbert was an Americo-Liberian and trained as a civil servant before en ...

appointed Padmore as Minister of Health and Welfare on January 11, 1972. She was minister until 1973. Padmore was active in the

Episcopal Diocese of Liberia The Episcopal Diocese of Liberia is a diocese in the Anglican Communion founded by missionaries from the Episcopal Church. During the 1851 General Convention of the Episcopal Church, the Rev. John Payne, a missionary from Virginia was consecrate ...

. Mai Padmore was a member of

Alpha Kappa Alpha Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc. () is an List of African American fraternities, historically African-American Fraternities and sororities, sorority. The sorority was founded in 1908 at Howard University in Washington, D.C.. Alpha Kappa Alpha ...

sorority. She died July 3, 1988.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Padmore, Mai 1916 births 1988 deaths Americo-Liberian people 20th-century Liberian politicians Women government ministers of Liberia Health ministers of Liberia Politicians from Monrovia