1970 marked the first year Earth Day was celebrated.  I don't think I even noticed.  My mother, on the other hand, was socially responsible and committed to the environment already and we "kids" all thought she gave too much money to too many causes. 

She was a school teacher in Los Angeles and Alaska.  She was the Outdoor School Director for Educational Environmentalist Studies in Humboldt County.  She was a representative of Environmental Quality Magazine at the UN Conference for Human Environment.  She received the Certificate of Excellence on Environmental Relations from the National Public Relations Association, a member of the Audubon Society, the ACLU, the Natural Resources Defense Council, the Holy Land Conservation Fund,  the Cousteau Society, the Defenders of Wildlife, the Environmental Defense Fund, Friends of Animals, Friends of the Earth, The International Fund for Animal Welfare, the Animal Protection Institute, the National Parks and Recreation Association and United Action for Animals and the Nature Conservancy.

She died of Breast Cancer at the age of 61 in 1978.  On this Earth Day, April 22nd, 2010 I honor the memory of my mother and pledge to continue to be a part of the solution.  I came late to the party but I made it.  I am 62 years old.