But when Hillary took the stage to praise a woman running for elected office in Pennsylvania, it was gubernatorial candidate Allyson Schwartz, the congresswoman Margolies is vying to replace. Iactually have no idea how many parts this is going to end up being, so I apologize in advance. "Since 1998, we've been traveling around the world helping women, getting them to the table," she said. Two leaders of Pennsylvania's Montgomery County Democratic Committee approached Mezvinsky early this year. Her greatest feat of Rolodex-padding, though, might have been losing her re-election in 1994. ". That election night, Id only written a concession speech. Marjorie Margolies knew she wanted to be a mom, but wasn't sure if she would get married, so she adopted a pretty revolutionary idea in the 1970s. I had gone to visit Son #3 on an At Academy for Jewish Religion, sacred arts include circus, Accused chef faces charges on several fronts, As abuse cases proceed against former Humble Toast owner, his career boasts are undercut, Reform synagogues join in Shabbaton to consider big questions and to celebrate, Federation launches Israel Now trip for eighth graders, Raising the militarys Holocaust awareness, JFNNJs Yom HaShoah commemoration to hear director of West Point center, Rabbi Zeilicovich comes out of retirement in Israel to lead a congregation in paradise. I felt the budget cuts didnt go far enough, she wrote in her 1994 book A Womans Place: The Freshmen Women Who Changed the Face of Congress. Seven-year-old Lee Heh Kyung was a parent's dream of loving and intelligent cooperation--so much so that the few ripples on the surface (her fear of speaking Korean, her worry about her Oriental eyes) were perhaps too easily smoothed over. Which makes tapping into Clintonworld for campaign help all the more intuitive for her. Still, its better to be safe than sorry. Fox, who has been in state and local politics almost all his adult life, has tried to turn the Year of the Outsider dynamic back on Mezvinsky, saying of her 15 years as a reporter at WRC, "She's very much the insider from Washington, D.C. But I knew that in a million years, I would never, ever, do that.". Toni Goldberg defends Margolies as a career woman who was too busy to pay heed to her husbands schemes, but she says the judges indictment made sense to many at the time. She was my most naughty child. ", Andrew, also interviewed while campaigning, said he did not expect to be lonely for his mother if she has to spend most of the week in Washington: "There's always someone there {at the house}. How is it possible that I forgot to wish my house a happy birthday? At 50, she looks more like someone's daughter than someone's mother, which is odd, because she is the mother, stepmother and legal guardian of 11 children, ages 10 to 28 -- a family she began building at age 28 when she became the first single American woman to adopt a foreign child. At no point did I think I would win., It is of course impossible to know what would have happened had she not been the deciding vote on President Bill Clintons budget bill. Her consistent response to questions asked by her creditors about the disposition of her assets is lack of knowledge or my husband handled it, a mantra that is completely at odds with her public persona, background, and accomplishments, the judge wrote. Ms. Margolies runs with her two young daughters. See the complete profile on LinkedIn and discover Leah's . We have a huge house, she confirmed. Holly didn't talk much to Werth about her childhood in Saigon, he said. But there was a lot of buzz about it being the Year of the Woman, she added. She was just so easy, her mother said. "It's a very difficult issue for many people," Mezvinsky said, then suddenly focused in on the woman's chubby, blue-eyed baby. I dont know if theres a lot of giveback.. "We have bagels and tuna fish," she hollers at campaign headquarters, waving everyone over to a make-it-yourself lunch spread on her desk. Perhaps the question to ask is not whether the Clintons will comebut whether itll make any difference if they do. Former US Rep. reveals was first single woman to adopt internationally Keep supporting great journalism by turning off your ad blocker. And given that Chelsea has said she hopes 2014 will be the year of the baby, Margoliess ties to the Clintons might soon become even stronger. She became pals with Katie Couric and Gloria Steinem. And she was very, very funny. The honoree? She grew up with stability and normality and she woke up and said, 'I want more.' As a journalist, Mezvinsky rarely drew a clear line between her reporting and her life. We thank our board members for their support. After reporting a story for Philadelphia television on hard-to-place Korean orphans, she was moved to adopt one, and persuaded reluctant adoption officials to let her become the mother of 6-year-old Lee Heh in 1970. Margolies led the U.S. delegation; then [] A couple hours before the vote, she had appeared live on Philadelphia television to explain her opposition to the bill. At 25 and single, her own efforts to adopt and start a family were foiled until another assignment, the pertinent topic:. Some of them are adopted, some are stepchildren, and some were born to her. Lee Margolies lives in Montclair, NJ; previous city include New York NY. She gets into long talks with voters, wants to know all the family circumstances that may influence their votes, then steers reporters traveling with her to the people she finds most quotable. She graduated from the University of Pennsylvania and did graduate work at Columbia. And she was hilarious. Fenton and his wife were close family friends who often watched over Margoliess son Andrew when she and Ed were away. The nurse on the other end gasped when Margolies introduced herself. The Clinton-in-Law - POLITICO Magazine Last weekend in the town of Ambler, she was confronted by a woman who declared herself to be against abortion rights. In 1970, Margolies was a TV reporter when an assignment took her to Korea for. "Can you get together a wedding in a couple of weeks?" Reflecting back on parenting, Margolies said she loved the curiosity and challenges. She was a really good pickpocket, and she smoked. "I got myself to the point that I was not going to feel guilty, being at work and not being with the kids, or being with the kids and not being at work," she said. Edition of Quad-City Times. "They picked Holly, who was 6. 'I had spent so many years just thinking about me and how I was going to get from Point A to Point B in my own career. Margoliess decision to run undoubtedly puts the Clintons, eyeing a race of their own, in a tough spot, writes van Zuylen-Wood. ", "She's definitely not the '50s mom who does the laundry and who's baking cookies when we get home," said Lee Heh Margolies. ", Candidate Mezvinsky, milking the Year of the Woman to the max, touts what she privately calls "my crazy family" as the essence of family values and rages at those "trying to preach to me about what a family is.". "Now this is a beautiful baby," she cooed and segued on to the next voter. Theres no question that the scandal and its messy fallout were damaging to Margolies as well. She loved being a journalist and to be fair, it loved her back. "There's a lot of tumult," Mezvinsky said, "but the upside is there is always someone there. Is that enough to fuel her political comeback? 'When people ask, 'which ones are your real children?' May 3, 2022 / 5:58 PM That, broadly speaking, is the professional side of her life. I have been living Sunday, April 30, Brunch 9:45 a.m.;10:30 program, Art, grief, and living with and through tragedy, Israeli-born pianist, about to play at NJPAC, praises his teachers and mentors, Reflections on the root and meaning of spinal pain, Livingston shul to hear NCJWs national president outline the progress and challenges, Mom and Dad never felt insecure about Social Security. ", "The other day," said daughter Holly Margolies, 24, "she said to me, 'I want another baby.' While handing out campaign literature last weekend, he said: "My other mother is Vietnamese and very conservative. She tried to get up and leave with them sometimes, even toward the end. One, President Bill Clinton personally convinced her to cast a tie-breaking vote on his infamous 1993 budget bill that cost the Pennsylvania congresswoman her job. Herbert and Mildred's daughter.". Mr. Mezvinsky has four daughters from his previous marriage,. / CBS Philadelphia. IE 11 is not supported. She made you feel incredibly lazy. And over the summer, she threw a huge wedding with 14 bridesmaids for daughter Lee Heh Margolies, 28. Mezvinsky says afterward. You've got to get out of the stands and onto the playing field,' " Mezvinsky said. When: On Thursday, January 19, at 11 a.m. Where: Online, for the JCC U at the Kaplen Sons Mark and Andrew are the only children living at home, although others come for weekends and a Vietnamese refugee family of five has been in residence since 1979. Marjorie Margolies stands at a podium; the presidents seal hangs from it. Her TV series, airing on NBC stations Christmas week, 'Finding Your Home, Discovering Your Heart', traces Lee Heh's return to Korea with Margolies to discover the child's roots.'. First single US woman to adopt internationally shares her journey. Three weeks later, she declared bankruptcy too and dropped out of the race; creditors were asking the two of them for more than $7 million. The personal which she got to in part through the professional is that she is the mother of 11 children. She had campaigned with her husband, Ed, a former Iowa congressman, countless times, but had never thought seriously of running for office -- although she came close during the Thomas hearings. She was born Ho Thi Thu Nga in Nha Trang, Vietnam, to a Vietnamese woman and an American serviceman. 'Everybody takes turns cooking,' says Margolies. She took four ballet classes a week, played team sports, was head cheerleader and an honors student, and finished junior high school in two years. She was a pickpocket, she smoked. Marjorie Margolies-Mezvinsky (born June 21, 1942), American - Prabook ), This story is an absolute lie, she said, but she tells it with glee. Though her birth mother, Ho Thi Hieu, had died 10 years before, Holly "learned her mother loved her and didn't want to give her away," Margolies said. The bride, formerly on the NBC News staff here, is the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Herbert Margolies of Phila. You get the check, but its not the right amount. Book Reviews, Sites, Romance, Fantasy, Fiction | Kirkus Reviews But at some level, she has always done it this way. (She was fine, and the case was dismissed.) Absolutely hilarious," Margolies said. She, I mean she smoked at 6. "Great interview.". And she was very, very funny. I finally found a group in Oregon that didn't say yes, but they didn't say no. It never does. A former friend of Margoliess poses the question in a different way. She was 48 and the mother of two boys whom she cherished, Jude and Trent Werth. Danish did not disappoint. "I was the only one who had nursed," she said, "so I knew it wouldn't hurt if I squeezed that teat. Although shes deemed it appropriately transactional to name-drop the machatunimat political fundraisers, her longtime consultant and campaign fixer, Ken Smukler, says that certain details are out of bounds. Margoliess original campaign staffa precocious group that included Amy Walter, now a journalist with the Cook Political Report, and Kenny Baer, who would work in both the Clinton and Obama administrationsalso blurred the line between her private life and her public life. They all learned from each other. I knew that it was something I truly wanted to do. ", So it was with the decision to run for Congress. That night of the vote, Clinton called me. That parts true. Copyright 2023 United Press International, Inc. All Rights Reserved. The seat had been held by a Republican since 1916, but she won as a Democrat. Indeed, if you scroll through her campaign donations, youll find that most of them come from tony suburbs like Bryn Mawr and Bala Cynwyd that are still located in her old districtnot middle- and working-class Northeast Philadelphia, which now comprises more than half of the new seat. Ms. Margolies considered running a few other times, for a few other seats and got as far as a primary, but her elective career ended in 1994. [1] He later spent five years as head of East Coast research for Fox Films, a predecessor company of 20th Century . Inside the party, Margolies is in her element, and not only because shes engulfed in a familiar sea of air kisses and cheese plates. ), In 1997, several years after their first Renaissance Weekend together, Chelsea Clinton decided to attend Stanford University, where Marc was already enrolled. Former US Rep. reveals was first single woman to adopt internationally "And that," Margolies said, through tears, "was Holly.". She was also a fiscal hawk representing Philadelphias moneyed suburbs; prior to her election, her district had gone Republican every year since 1916. Apparently, it is all how you look at it. the mom of 11 kids shares how she became the first single woman in the U.S. believed to have adopted internationally. Her. "Holly was our favorite patient," the nurse told Margolies. Her assignment as a CBS correspondent soon opened a door she never imagined. How to register: Go to www.jccotp.org/ programs/lectures-learningor call the JCC at (201) 569-7900. Even for a campaign fundraiser taking place a half-year ahead of a primary, there is surprisingly little talk of the election itself. A group of women came to me and asked me to run. She thought about it, calculated the odds of winning but I always told my kids that you cant win if you arent prepared to lose and decided to try, although I had to give up a job that I really liked, she said. Holly Thi Werth was never without words. I'm pretty independent, I guess. An untraditional family at first glimpse but for Margolies, she never imagined simply becoming a mother would spark history. October 28, 1992 NARBERTH, PA. -- Marjorie Margolies Mezvinsky has a few things on her mind. She spent a long time looking into adoption in Korea; literally, as I was ready to leave, they said, We have picked a little girl for you. That little girl, 7-year-old Lee Heh, became Ms. Margolies first child; Ms. Margolies is said to have been the first single American woman to adopt a child internationally. Ms. Margolies was born in Philadelphia in 1942; she and her family moved to suburban Baltimore for her fathers job when she was 8. Adopting with heart;NEWLN:Margolies: She discovered her heart by - UPI Margolies chronicled their experiences in the 1976 best-seller, They Came to Stay (Coward, McCann & Geoghegan, 1976), the first of five books she has authored. Margolies was then a television reporter for NBC Philadelphia, and, a few years earlier, had become the first single American woman to adopt a foreign child: Lee Heh, from South Korea. At weddings, at funerals, at family dinners and raucous parties, she would walk into a room, assess the situation, and say something that cut right to the crux of things. "Middle-income people are getting screwed royally," Keane said. Leah has 4 jobs listed on their profile. And I thought, here I am, standing here, part of all this. Her house burned down over the summer and is not yet rebuilt. When she still was a reporter, Ms. Margolies did a series of stories on international adoption. In 1976, she wrote a book on her two daughters, 'They Came To Stay'. We just lost a lot of stuff.' She appeared three times at the Summer Olympics (1972, 1976, 1980) and three times at the Commonwealth Games (1974, 1978, 1982). "Were there any redeeming qualities? Sign Up now to stay up to date with all of the latest news from TCM. ("I hate fund-raising calls," she silently mouths to a visitor as an aide hands her a telephone.). But sometimes its just literally true. "Theres just nothing like losing a child," Margolies said. First Lady Hillary Clinton chaired the American delegation, and Marjorie Margolies was named. My grandmother was a Sherlock Holmes of Yiddish song,, but she couldnt solve the mystery of antisemitism. When I ask the native Northeast Philadelphian Boyle what differentiates him from his opponents, Margolies in particular, he says hes the only candidate who isnt a millionaire or married to one. Put another way: Hes a first-generation Irish-American who grew up in a row house in Northeast Philly; she once sued US Airways after a bag fell on her head. Sign Up "As a Homo sapiens without an X and a Y chromosome, I was not represented. After exactly three minutes and 30 seconds, Margolies stops talking and yields the floor to Madam Secretary, who proceeds to flesh out the story about the time she busted a move with a younger guy at Marc and Chelseas wedding. "If I'm elected, it'll be because I'm different and people want me to be different for them," said Mezvinsky. Lee Heh would become her daughter. Snares Daley NEW YORK - Lee Heh Margolies, 11-year-old stepdaughter of Rep. Ed Mezvinsky, D-Iowa, Is an accredite. I was at his wedding, you know. When we had the fire, everyone came home for the weekend and all of a sudden we realized, 'Everyone is still here. Leleith Hodges - Wikipedia I also knew that I had done all these stories on hard-to-place kids, and I thought, 'Hmm, thats something that I could do.' I had Tenafly man revisits his fathers work with Ethiopian Jews in new film, Debut symphony will honor Chiune Sugihara, a savior of Jews, Tenafly attorney, founder of camp for burn victims in Israel, tells of young lives transformed, Teen groups international president is from Greater Jersey Hudson River region, Bob Nesoff writes about his friend Ron Blomberg, Daughter of survivors brings Holocaust obligation to TABC students, Amazon Prime doc details the wild life of Jewish gangster Myron Sugerman, Mourning the Dees incorporeality and heaviness, Camp to college: How Jewish camp prepares children for college and life. It was fun.". 'Sometimes I feel it's the most selfish thing I've ever done in my entire life,' she says softly. Lee Heh arrived from Korea in 1970 and was joined four years later by Holly from Vietnam. A memorial service will be Sunday, June 5, in the Amado Recital Hall in the Irvine Auditorium at 3401 Spruce St. on the University of Pennsylvania campus. She had fought to the end. "Today" anchor Katie Couric, formerly of WRC, recalled Mezvinsky setting her up with a heart transplant surgeon she'd just done a story about. Not that living in Washington three nights a week stopped her from breast-feeding the two boys. Personal details about Lee include: political affiliation is currently a registered Democrat; ethnicity is Caucasian; and religious views are listed as Christian. Marjorie Margoliess son married Chelsea Clinton. When Margolies was elected to the House in 1992, she was in her early 50s, and her last name was Margolies-Mezvinsky. Here is another column on the joys of getting older. Margolies, an Emmy-winning TV journalist, the first unmarried American woman to be permitted to adopt foreign children, and an author is now the founder and president of Women's Campaign International. Fox's campaign consultant, Eddie Mahe, said polls show his man leading by double digits -- Mezvinsky's campaign is not polling -- enough to survive even long coattails to Democrat Bill Clinton. Lee Heh could get only a student visa, "and she was the youngest student ever to get one." Eventually, the adoption went . She's very plugged in to their emotions, but they could wear pajamas to school and it wouldn't bother Margie if it didn't bother them. The Maasai dont ask you how you are when you first see each other, she said. In 1992, she ran for Congress, and won, serving for two years as a congresswoman from Pennsylvania. State representative Brendan Boyle is thought to have a lock on the urban part of the district, and state senator Daylin Leach is the favorite among progressive voters. 'As I was getting ready to leave Korea, they said, 'we've picked a little girl for you.' The first single US woman to adopt internationally shares her inspiring Then I married. 'Mothering has nothing to do with biologically giving birth. Margolies was sitting in the audience and exchanged hellos with Clinton at the event. Her decision to run puts the Clintons in a difficult spot. A friend of mine called Hillary and said, Why do you think she wants to do this? And Hillary said something that was very interesting. "Now here's a great story," she said last weekend, introducing a couple of reporters to Rosemary Keane, who just quit the Republican Committee in the town of Ambler because she couldn't bring herself to vote for President Bush. Four years later, she adopted Holly, then 6, from Vietnam. Of course, it was not without its moments to say the least, it didnt work all the time but it was terrific.. Her old friend Madeleine Albright, the former secretary of state, is headlining the night. She was a street child. She said, I think that she has unfinished business. (Tonight, were all on a first-name basis with the Clintons.) Village View: Marjorie Margolies' latest effort is a guidebook for In interviews with me and other publications, shell insist that her candidacy is not premised on her relationship with the Clintons. Through it all, Margolies never gave up her professional pursuits. The main reason for Babkas trip to Israel was to meet Danish. California residents do not sell my data request. She was upfront with her bosses on her dual motive: 'I wasn't kidding anybody. "I introduced myself to her and I realized she was editing galleys of a book while she was on the stakeout," King said. There are days when she threatens to turn the Year of the Woman into the Year of the Jewish Mother, running an underdog campaign against a career pol that's as heavy on hugs and kisses as on political strategy. (Since her vote, John McCains thumbs-down on the Senates last-ditch attempt to kill Obamacare in 2018 has been added to that list. At 6:30 p.m. on Halloween night, Marjorie Margoliess black SUV pulls up to a handsome colonial in the Philadelphia suburbs where a campaign fundraiser is being held in her honor. "I knew it could be hard. Margolies (with Marc) at her swearing in ceremony in 1993. Look up the complete property record for 221 NO. That gnomic sentiment has been around at least since the early 1970s, and just about every possible shade of meaning that could be hung on it has been. And she would seemingly do something for you, but then call in the obligation at another time. But eventually she decided, as she had children of her own - Trent, 10, and Jude, 12 - that she wanted to meet her birth family. Quad-City Times from Davenport, Iowa on July 15, 1976 1 Which side are you on Jewish American or American Jew? Me. 2 people found this helpful Helpful 'And How Are the Children?' | The Jewish Standard Unlike Marc and Chelsea, reports Margoliess friend and former congressional staffer Arlene Halpernwho was therethey didnt spend the night. It's just so gratifying,' she says. She feels out of touch with her mother (they haven't talked since last night). In a last-ditch attempt at an insanity defense, he sued Fenton for prescribing him an anti-malaria drug that he said exacerbated his ostensible bipolar disorder, resulting in bouts of manic-depressive behavior, which in turn caused him to rob people. There was anger there, still, and fear. The. Or purchase a subscription for unlimited access to real news you can count on. | AP Photo. When Chelsea and Marc got married in 2010, it seemed almost arranged, a dynastic American political marriage in the tradition of Nixons daughter marrying Eisenhowers grandson (another buddy of Margies, by the way). Margolies follows this remark by insisting that she doesnt know whether Hillary is running for president, before concluding with an anecdote about the time Albright busted a move with a younger guy at Marc and Chelseas wedding. (See below.). "So we had six girls and we got married and then we had two boys.