Seraphine Eppstein Pisko (January 1, 1861 – July 27, 1942) was an American

clubwoman The club movement is an American women's social movement that started in the mid-19th century and spread throughout the United States. It established the idea that women had a moral duty and responsibility to transform public policy. While wome ...

and hospital administrator based in

Denver, Colorado Denver ( ) is a List of municipalities in Colorado#Consolidated city and county, consolidated city and county, the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Colorado, most populous city of the U.S. state of ...

Early life

Seraphine Eppstein was born in

St. Joseph, Missouri St. Joseph is a city in and county seat of Buchanan County, Missouri, Buchanan County, Missouri, United States. A small portion of the city extends north into Andrew County, Missouri, Andrew County. Located on the Missouri River, it is the princ ...

. Her parents were Max Eppstein and Bertha Eppstein. She moved to Denver with her parents and five younger siblings in 1875.

Career

From 1893 to 1901, Pisko served as president of the Hebrew Ladies Benevolent Society (also known as the Jewish Charities Association, and the Jewish Relief Society) in Denver, as her mother had been before her. She represented Denver at the national Conference of Jewish Charities meeting, and at the

National Conference of Charities and Correction National Conference of Charities and Correction (NCCC) was an American organization focused on social welfare. It was established in 1874 as the Conference of Boards of Public Charities. During the period of 1875 through 1879, it held the name Confe ...

in Ohio in 1899. She helped to organize the Denver Jewish Settlement Home, and worked for free

kindergarten Kindergarten is a preschool educational approach based on playing, singing, practical activities such as drawing, and social interaction as part of the transition from home to school. Such institutions were originally made in the late 18th cen ...

for immigrant children.Jeanne Abrams
"Seraphine Eppstein Pisko"
''Jewish Women's Archive'' (March 1, 2009). She wrote to national Jewish publications about women's suffrage from the perspective of Colorado women, explaining, "In Colorado we have had the enfranchisement of women for twenty-three years and I know of no homes that have been broken up on account of this." She represented the National Council of Women at the

International Congress of Women The International Congress of Women was created so that groups of existing women's suffrage movements could come together with other women's groups around the world. It served as a way for women organizations across the nation to establish formal ...

in the Hague in 1922, and continued active on international women's issues. She was president of the Denver chapter of the

National Council of Jewish Women The National Council of Jewish Women (NCJW) is a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt organization. Founded in 1893, the NCJW describes itself as the oldest Jewish women's grassroots organization organization in the USA and currently has over 225,000 members. ...

(NCJW). In 1911 she became executive secretary of the National Jewish Hospital for Consumptives in Denver; she had been, since its founding, a successful traveling fundraiser for the hospital. During her tenure the hospital established a research department. She retired from that work in 1938. A wing of the hospital was named for her in 1925.

Personal life

Seraphine Eppstein married Edward Pisko in 1878, when she was seventeen years old. Her husband was born in Austria, and was a leader in the Jewish community in Denver. He also served in the Colorado state legislature. Seraphine Eppstein Pisko was widowed in 1891, when she was thirty. She died in 1942, aged 81 years. Some of her papers are archived at the

University of Denver The University of Denver (DU) is a private research university in Denver, Colorado, United States. Founded in 1864, it has an enrollment of approximately 5,700 undergraduate students and 7,200 graduate students. It is classified among "R1: D ...

."Pioneering Jewish Women of Colorado"
University Libraries Online Exhibits, University of Denver.

References

External links

Seraphine Eppstein Pisko's gravesite
on Find a Grave. {{DEFAULTSORT:Pisko, Seraphine Eppstein 1861 births 1942 deaths People from St. Joseph, Missouri Clubwomen International Congress of Women people Hospital administrators American Jews