Remarkable Latter-day Saint Women of the 20th Century

Sister Belle Spafford

Apr 6, 1945

Sister Belle Spafford was born on Oct. 8, 1895. She taught special education classes at ByU before her marriage at age 26. She was called as the general Relief Society President April 6, 1945. She served in this calling for three decades--longer than any president before or since. She also served as the president of the National Council of Women in the United States and represented the United States at the conference for the International Council of Women in Helsinki, Finland.

Ivy Baker Priest

Jan 28, 1953

Ivy Baker Priest was the Treasurer of the United States during the two terms of President Dwight D. Eisenhower. She was appointed Jan. 28, 1953, as the first woman to serve as Treasurer. Previous to that, she served as a Utah Congresswoman, and she was a friend of First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt according to Roosevelt's book, "Ladies of Courage."

Rose Marie Reid

Dec 18, 1955

Rose Marie Reid is the inventor of the modern bathing suit. She was named "Designer of the year" by Sports Illustrated in the 1950s and "Woman of the Year" by the Los Angeles Times for her swimsuit design--the first elastic, one-piece swimsuit without buttons--on Dec. 18, 1955. Reid contributed her talent and money to ByU and the Los Angeles Temple, served as a full-time missionary, and redesigned the temple garment.

Barbara Lockhart

Feb 18, 1960

Barbara Lockhart competed in the 1960 Olympics, the first woman on the U.S. speed-skating team. At age 17, she not only became a two-time Olympian; she also developed close friendships with the Russian team, although Russia and the U.S. were in the middle of the Cold War. Lockhart is now a ByU professor.

Sharlene Wells Hawkes

Mar 16, 1964

Sharlene Wells Hawkes was born on March 16, 1964 in Asunción, Paraguay until moving to Salt Lake City. In 1985, Hawkes ran for the Miss America Pageant from Utah and was crowned the Miss America. After, she continued her studies at BYU where she graduated as one of the top ranking Communications students. in 1987 she worked on-air for ESPN. Sine then, she has released an album and written a book. Now, she is the executive vice president of Story Rock publishing.

Valerie Adams

Oct 6, 1984

Born on October 6, 1984 in new Zealand, Valerie Adams is a world champion shot put Athlete. At the age of 14, Adams broke the regional schools 20-year shot put record during physical education. Since then, she has competed in many shot put competitions ranging from world championships to the Olympics. In the recent 2014 IAAF World Indoor Championships she ranked #1 in her discipline.

Princess Elisiva Fusipala Vaha'i

Oct 24, 1989

Princess ‘Elisiva Fusipala Vaha’i of Tonga was born on June 12, 1949 and baptized in Las Angeles on Oct. 24, 1989, the first member of the royal family to join the Church. She was first introduced to the Church by then-Elder John H. Groberg. He gave her a copy of the Book of Mormon as a wedding present in 1968, according to his book, "The Fire of Faith."

Sister Chieko Nishimura Okazaki

Mar 1, 1990

Chieko Nishimura Okazaki was born in Hawaii on October 21, 1926 and was raised Buddhist until her baptism at age 15. She married Ed Okazaki, a non-member at the time, and moved soon after to [Salt Lake City](http:////m.sltrib.com/sltrib/news/52320992-78/okazaki-lds-women-church.html.csp) in 1951. She served in the Japan—Okinawa Mission from 1968 to 1971 with her husband, who was the first mission president of that mission. On March 1, 1990, Okazaki was the first non-caucasian woman to serve in the Relief Society General Presidency.

Sahar Qumsiyeh

Feb 4, 1996

Sahar Qumsiyeh, a Palestinian from Bethlehem, was baptized on Feb. 4, 1996, while at ByU. She attended church in Jerusalem despite her family's opposition, even though it meant hiking 3 hours before squeezing through a small hole in the Israeli separation wall and then running from armed soldiers. She later worked for the United Nations Relief and Works agency. Qumsiyeh has served a full-time mission in London, England and continues to serve as the district Relief Society president in Jerusalem.

Gladys Knight

Mar 22, 1997

Gladys Knight is a 7-time grammy award winning singer. Born 18 May, 1944 in Georgia, Glady’s music career took off with Gladys Knight and the Pips and had a healthy career in Motown in the 1960s and 1970s. In 1997, Knight joined The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and conducts an American Gospel Choir, Saints United.

Marie Osmond

May 1, 2001

The youngest of the musical [Osmond](http:////marieosmond.com/marie-bio/ ) Family, Marie was the youngest female to have a hit, Paper Roses, to reach the #1 position on the country music charts at the age of 12 in 1973. On May 1st, 2001, Osmond wrote the New York Times best-selling book, "Postpartum Depression, Behind the Smile."

Stephanie Meyer

Jun 2, 2003

BYU Alumna Stephanie Meyer had a dream that became the 2005 New York Times bestseller Twilight, which eventually resulted in three more incredibly popular books and film adaptations. In 2008, Meyers was voted as the #49th most influential person for “Your Time Magazine 100 list.” She beat out Nancy Pelosi, Mark Zuckerberg and Vladimir Putin.
Photo by Tara Rebeka of Project Book Babe via Flickr.

Shannon Hale

Jan 23, 2006

This Salt Lake City native is the author of several New York Times best-selling young adult novels. Her book, "The Princess Academy," received the Newbery Honor Jan. 23, 2006. She has written several books for adults, included the popular "Austenland," which was recently made into a film.

Jane Clayson Johnson

Feb 2, 2008

This California girl was born in 1967. Growing up, she played the violin and earned a scholarship to BYU in 1985 for her skill. She graduated from BYU in communications in 1990 and then went on to be work for several broadcast stations. Most notably, she was a CBS News Correspondent until 2003 when she left the position to focus on her family. On February 2, 2008, Johnson covered President Gordon B. Hinckley’s Funeral on BYU TV.

Stephanie Nielson

Dec 14, 2009

After a plane crash in August 2008 that left 80% of her body burned, Stephanie Nielson became one of the most successful “Mommy-bloggers.” Her blog the NieNie Dialogues is an inspiration to women worldwide. Nielson has spoken at various venues and has even had several appearances on television, most notably on The Oprah Show. On December 14, 2009, Oprah’s blog nominated her as the Most Inspirational Guest of 2009.