The world has many accomplished women.
The leaders of Great Britain and Germany are women.
Major companies led by women include Kraft Foods, PepsiCo, DuPont Chemical, Xerox, Sunoco, and Archer Daniels Midland.
Then there are the “powerful” and “influential” women: Melinda Gates, Ivanka Trump, Oprah Winfrey, Beyonce, Taylor Swift, Serena Williams, and Ruth Bader Ginsburg.
These are women who have worked hard and achieved great success. They have made a great deal of money, live in big houses, have lots of people to care for them, have someone to drive them around in the limo, eat at the finest restaurants, fly on private jets, get to sit in a skybox at the Super Bowl, and are hounded for autographs by their admirers.
In short, these are women the world sees as the model of success. Each is a “wonder woman” in her own right.
Then there is Marianne Wren, 80, of Cottonwood, Idaho.
According to the Lewiston Tribune, she was a homemaker and sold Avon products for many years. She also worked as a librarian at Prairie Community Library and for Summit Academy in Cottonwood.
Her hobbies include playing cards and games, scrapbooking, sewing, quilting, and watching her grandchildren’s extracurricular and sporting activities. She is a member of the St. Mary’s Guild, Regnum Christi, and Christian Mothers, all at St. Mary’s Catholic Church, and the Sunshine Club and card groups.
Last Saturday, a Mass was held at St. Mary’s Catholic Church in Cottonwood in honor of her 80th birthday. The Mass was celebrated by her son, Fr. Bruce Wren, LC. I don’t know Marianne, but Fr. Bruce is a friend, author, and poet.
I’m pretty sure Marianne doesn’t have a limo driver, private jet or tickets to the Super Bowl. On the other hand, I bet she is welcome at the best restaurants in Cottonwood.
Her name will never be spoken in the same sentence as the women mentioned above, but in my mind, she is about the most accomplished woman you could ever imagine.
She and her husband have seven sons, four daughters, 60 grandchildren, and 22 great-grandchildren. That isn’t a career that typically leads to fame and fortune. But it does lead to a likely place in heaven, not to mention the preservation of the human race.
The world owes Marianne Wren the greatest thanks. She is the real wonder woman.