"My father died in the midst of the Depression at a time when I was entering Walton High School, an all-girls [public] school. My mother supported us on the insurance money and by working as a cashier and saleswoman in department stores. My mother sent Helene to college while I, enthusiastically athletic, earned money in the summers as a camp counselor. During the school year I attended a special Hebrew High School after school, and later enrolled at the Jewish Theological Seminary in Manhattan. On weekends I taught Hebrew and Jewish history and culture to young kids."

Notes

1. Quote from Bella Abzug, Bella! : Ms. Abzug Goes to Washington>, Mel Ziegler, ed (New York : Saturday Review Press, 1972) 85.