In 1917 American women were granted a federal mandate by the Council of National Defense when the wartime government established the CND’s Woman’s Committee, and 17,000 local committees sprang up immediately. Join Katelyn Bosch VerMerris (former GGRWHC board member and secretary, now director of the Zeeland Historical Society) for the next installation of the School Bell Series, this Thursday, August 12 at 10:00am at the 1881 New Groningen Schoolhouse in Zeeland for her presentation, “WWI at Home and Overseas.” Learn about the work of local women of Zeeland in creating a stronger home defense through their pioneering wartime efforts that included guaranteeing healthy food sources, raising healthy children, ensuring the health of women in the industrial workforce, and contributions ranging far beyond specific war needs and their traditional gender roles.

Katelyn Bosch VerMerris received an M.A. from West Virginia University in 2018 emphasizing public history, after her B.A. from Calvin College. She has researched many local topics including the Grand Rapids unit of the Woman’s Committee of the Council of National Defense in WWI and the cultural integration of Catholic, Hispanic migrant workers into Protestant, Dutch Holland, Michigan. Katelyn has worked with local cultural institutions including the Lowell Area Historical Museum, Fallasburg Historical Society, and the Saugatuck-Douglas History Museum. Currently, she is the development manager at a non-profit in Holland. She also continues work as a freelance researcher and writer and is recording secretary for the board of the Greater Grand Rapids Women’s History Council.