At the beginning of the Civil War, Dr. Edward Beecher read a letter to his church congregation in Galesburg, Illinois, about the dreadful condition of the Galesburg men in the Union army. The congregation agreed to send money and supplies to these men, but a trustworthy, strong person was needed to see that they received them. The congregation chose Mary Ann Bickerdyke to do the job.

Leaving her own two sons behind, Mrs. Bickerdyke set out to do the "Lord's work" for the Union. She was a forceful, determined woman who rolled up her sleeves and set right to work improving the lot of the wounded in hospitals and camps. Mother Bickerdyke followed the army and went wherever her services were needed: from Cairo, Illinois, to Vicksburg to Atlanta. Never one to sit back and wait when supplies and food ran low, she poured all her energies into getting whatever "her boys" needed.

Mother Bickerdyke was a one-woman whirlwind. When money was needed, she went on fund-raising tours. She was a powerful, effective speaker and her forthright manner, authenticity, warmth and directness brought in great amounts of money. Mother Bickerdyke even had cows and chickens shipped down South so that her boys could have all the fresh milk and eggs they wanted!

In 1866, at the end of the war, Mrs. Bickerdyke finally resigned from this work. The following years of her life took her to Kansas where she helped fifty homestead families settle; to New York where she worked in the Tombs, Bellevue Hospital and with the derelicts of the city; and to California where she helped veterans of the war receive the pensions they deserved.

Mary Ann Bickerdyke was a brave and devoted woman. She lived not to be remembered by future generations, but to devote her services to those in need. The inspiring story of a dedicated and courageous woman.

From the book