Miriam LaFollette "Mimi" Summerskill (June 2, 1917January 31, 2008) was an American educator, author, political activist, and vineyard owner.

Early life and education

Mimi was the eldest of four children. She grew up in Colfax, Washington where her father,

William Leroy LaFollette Jr. William LeRoy "Roy" LaFollette Jr. (1890–1950) was an American political figure and lawyer. He served in the Washington House of Representatives in the State Legislature. He was elected Prosecuting Attorney of Whitman County several times. H ...

, was an attorney and politician and her mother was the daughter of the

Congregational Church Congregational churches (also Congregationalist churches or Congregationalism) are Protestant churches in the Calvinist tradition practising congregationalist church governance, in which each congregation independently and autonomously runs its ...

missionary. She was educated in the local public schools. She studied the violin, was rodeo queen, and took lessons in elocution with

Ida Lou Anderson Ida Lou Anderson (November 6, 1900 – September 16, 1941) was an American radio broadcaster and academic. A pioneer in the field of radio broadcasting, she was a professor at Washington State College in the 1920s and 1930s. One of Anderson's earl ...

. She began college at nearby Washington State University and graduated from

Stanford University Stanford University, officially Leland Stanford Junior University, is a private research university in Stanford, California. The campus occupies , among the largest in the United States, and enrolls over 17,000 students. Stanford is consider ...

, where she played the violin in the college orchestra and was part of the Speakers' Bureau.

Media

In the pre- World War II radio era she hosted her own show for NBC, broadcasting from Waikiki Beach in Hawaii. In the 1950s she worked on several programs in the early days of public television for

KQED KQED may refer to: * KQED (TV), a PBS member station in San Francisco * KQED-FM KQED-FM (88.5 MHz) is a NPR-member radio station in San Francisco, California. Its parent organization is KQED Inc., which also owns its television partners, both ...

in San Francisco.

Educator

A firm believer in learning through doing, she founded InterAlp, a program that sent American high school students abroad to live with local families in Greece and Kenya. She helped establish the theater at

Athens College Athens College ( el, Κολλέγιο(ν) Αθηνών; formally Hellenic-American Educational Foundation (HAEF)) is a co-educational private preparatory school in Psychiko, Greece, a suburb of Athens, part of the Hellenic-American Educational ...

in Greece.

Vintner

Along with her husband, John Summerskill, she founded LaFollette Vineyard in the Belle Mead section of Montgomery Township, New Jersey. They produced a Seyval blanc in the winery they built on their vineyard just north of Princeton, New Jersey. Their LaFollette brand was a local favorite and the annual grape harvest was featured in the November 15, 1989, issue of Wine Spectator.

Political activist

Mimi encouraged political dialogue and discussion. Politicians, policy makers, journalists, business people, artists and show business people discussed issues around her pool. During the 1992 presidential campaign, Bill Clinton spent a day at the LaFollette Vineyard discussing political strategy with fourteen Democratic governors and their staffs.

Author and writer

She authored four books: ''Aegean Summer,'' ''Seduced by a Greek Island,'' ''Daughter of the Vine,'' and ''The Land of Solomon and Sheba.''

Family

She was a member of the

La Follette family The La Follette family is a prominent family in the United States, especially in Wisconsin. Many of the family members have pursued political office. Members * Robert M. La Follette, Sr. (1855–1925), District Attorney of Dane County, Wisconsi ...

. Her grandfather was Washington state Congressman

William La Follette William Leroy La Follette (November 30, 1860 – December 20, 1934) was a four-term member of the United States House of Representatives representing Washington. He represented the 3rd District from 1911 to 1915, and the 4th District from 1915 ...

, cousin of Wisconsin Senator Robert La Follette Sr. Indiana educator and Tennessee industrialist

Harvey Marion LaFollette Harvey Marion LaFollette (September 8, 1858 – September 20, 1929) was an American teacher and educator, who as a young man, served two terms as Indiana Superintendent of Public Instruction. He then moved to Tennessee, where he established the tow ...

was her great uncle. Her father was

, Whitman County, Washington prosecuting attorney and state legislator. The artist

Chester La Follette Robert Chester La Follette (March 31, 1897 in Pullman, Washington – May 24, 1993 in White Plains, New York), was an American painter. His portrait of his cousin Senator Robert M. La Follette, Sr. hangs in the Senate Reception Room of the Un ...

was her uncle. Editor and writer Suzanne La Follette was her aunt. Political leader

Richard L. Wright Richard LaFollette Wright (born January 18, 1943) is an American political leader who held a number of positions at both the state and national level. He served as Chief of Staff to the Governor of New Jersey in the Cabinet of Governor Jim Florio. ...

was her son.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Summerskill, Mimi Lafollette La Follette family People from Moscow, Idaho People from Colfax, Washington People from Montgomery Township, New Jersey Stanford University alumni Writers from Idaho Writers from New Jersey Writers from Washington (state) American people of Welsh descent 1917 births 2008 deaths