Linda Smith Dyer (August 6, 1948 - September 27, 2001) is an American women's rights lawyer, lobbyist and activist. After two decades of legal care, he entered public service as deputy commissioner of the Maine Department of Agriculture. He founded Lobby Woman Maine and was active in efforts to ratify the Equal Rights Amendment in Maine. A member of various councils and committees, he is a former president of the Maine State Bar Association and the Maine Family Planning Association. She was inducted into the Women's Maine Hall of Fame in 2001, a few months before her death.
Video Linda Smith Dyer
Early life and education
Linda Smith was born in Lewiston, Maine to Clement and Mary Ellen Smith. He has two brothers and two sisters. He grew up on his family's dairy farm in Monmouth. After the death of his mother in 1961, his father remarried.
He earned his bachelor's and master's degree in mathematics from the University of Maine in Orono. In 1980 he obtained a law degree from the university.
Maps Linda Smith Dyer
Prosecutors and lobbyists
In 1979 he joined the law firm of Doyle and Nelson at Augusta. In 1981 he opened his own legal practice in Augusta, which became known as Dyer and Goodall. In the 1980s and 1990s he specializes in legislative advocacy, representing many groups including Tetra Pak Inc., a juice maker, ITW Hi-Cone, and dairy and dairy companies.
In 1999 Dyer was appointed deputy commissioner of the Maine Department of Agriculture. During his tenure, he led the Northeast Dairy Compact.
Female rights activist
In 1977 he was appointed chair of the Maine State Meeting for Women, who selected 19 delegates, Dyer among them, to represent the country at the 1977 National Women's Conference. In 1978 Dyer founded Maine Women's Lobby with Janet T. Mills and Lois Galgay Reckitt.
Dyer was active in an effort to ratify the Equal Rights Amendment in Maine, serving on the steering committee of ERA for Maine and appearing in a debate style program at WVII-TV in 1984 as a supporter of the move. He denied claims by opponents that the amendment would result in abortions financed by taxpayers for low-income women and legalize same-sex marriages in the state.
Other activities
Dyer was the first city council member at Winthrop in the 1970s, and was re-elected in 1998. He founded and served as president of Winthrop Education Company, which raised funds to benefit local schools. He serves as chairman and guardian of the Cobbossee Watershed District, is a labor consultant for the Maine State Employees Association, and sits on the board of directors of Cushnoc Bank and Trust Company. He conducted an independent study that surveyed the same employment practices in the state government for the Maine Human Rights Commission.
Membership
A member of the Maine State Bar Association, he served as president in 1998. He is a board member of the Maine Family Planning Association, serving as president in 1990. He is a member of the Maine Advisory Committee to the United States Commission. on Civil Rights. He is a board member of the University of Maine Foundation.
Awards and honors
In 2001 Dyer was inducted into the Women's Maine Hall of Fame. That same year, she received the Sarah Orne Jewett Award from Maine Women's Fund for her efforts on behalf of women and girls. The Maine Women's Policy Center establishes Linda Smith Dyer Fellowship for qualified law students in his memory.
Personal life
Dyer got married twice. With her first husband, Isaac W. Dyer, she has twin sons. Her second husband was Charles Jacobs, a deputy commissioner for the Maine Department of Administration and Financial Services, which has one daughter. They are Winthrop residents. Dyer died of cancer on September 27, 2001, aged 53 years.
References
Source of the article : Wikipedia
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