Jean Wilson
Member of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives
from the 144th district
In office
1991–1992
Preceded byBenjamin H. Wilson
Succeeded byThomas W. Druce
Personal details
Born
Jean Lennox

(1928-06-13)June 13, 1928
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
DiedJanuary 27, 2014(2014-01-27) (aged 85)
Doylestown, Pennsylvania
Political partyRepublican
SpouseBenjamin H. Wilson

Jean Louise Lennox Wilson (June 13, 1928 – January 27, 2014) was a Republican member of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives.[1] [2][3]

Elected in 1988, after placing her name on the ballot following the death of her husband, Benjamin H. Wilson, an eleven-term member of the Pennsylvania House who had died nine months before that year's election, she represented the 144th District.[4][5]

Formative years

Born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania on June 13, 1928 as Jean Louise Lennox, she graduated from Frankford High School in 1945, and earned a bachelor of science degree in education from Pennsylvania State University.[6]

She was married to Benjamin H. Wilson, a fellow Penn State graduate and realtor who became the tax collector for Warminster Township, Pennsylvania in 1980 and then a member of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives.[7]

Academic and business career

Following her graduation from Penn State, Wilson became an educator.[8] She subsequently worked for two years as an executive secretary with Publicker Industries, and then as an office manager with Camden Fibre Mills for ten years.[9]

Public service career

Appointed as the assistant tax collector for Warminster Township, she served in that capacity for ten years.[10]

A member of the Bucks County Council of Republican Women, she was elected as a Republican to the Pennsylvania House of Representatives for the 1989 and 1991 terms, but was not a candidate for reelection to the House for the 1993 term.[11][12][13]

During her tenure in the Pennsylvania House, she was pro-choice and an advocate for increased daycare services for children as a way to help working parents, but voted against a parental leave bill in September 1990, which was designed to give workers up to twelve weeks of unpaid leave per year for childbirth or medical emergencies, stating her belief that it would "hurt small businesses by mandating leaves."[14]

She also served on the boards of directors of the Bucks County Fox Chase Cancer Center and the VIA, Doylestown Hospital.[15]

Death

Wilson died on January 27, 2014 in Doylestown, Pennsylvania.[16]

References

  1. "Jean L. Wilson".
  2. Cox, Harold. "House Members W". Wilkes University Election Statistics Project. Wilkes University.
  3. DiFlaviana, K.; Pennsylvania; Pennsylvania. Dept. of Property and Supplies; Pennsylvania. Bureau of Publications (1991). The Pennsylvania Manual. Vol. 110. Department of Property and Supplies for the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. ISBN 9780818201455. Retrieved 2015-02-27.
  4. Hall, M. Floyd. "Incumbent, challenger seem to agree: Family leave bill only issue dividing 144th District foes." Allentown, Pennsylvania: The Morning Call, October 31, 1990, p. 18 (subscription required).
  5. "Dublin Road Improvements Among Projects." Perkasie, Pennsylvania: News Herald, February 15, 1989, p. 2 (subscription required).
  6. "Jean L. Wilson".
  7. Hall, "Incumbent, challenger seem to agree: Family leave bill only issue dividing 144th District foes," The Morning Call, October 31, 1990.
  8. "Wilson Will Not Seek Re-election." Perkasie, Pennsylvania: News Herald, January 15, 1991, p. 1 (subscription required).
  9. "Jean L. Wilson".
  10. "Jean L. Wilson".
  11. "Jean L. Wilson".
  12. Cox, Harold. "House Members W". Wilkes University Election Statistics Project. Wilkes University.
  13. "Wilson Will Not Seek Re-election," News Herald, January 15, 1991.
  14. Hall, M. Floyd. "Incumbent, challenger seem to agree: Family leave bill only issue dividing 144th District foes," The Morning Call, October 31, 1990.
  15. "Jean L. Wilson".
  16. "Jean L. Wilson".
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