Millie Jeffrey marched with Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and helped found the National Organization for Women, the coalition of Trade Union Women, the Michigan Women's Foundation and the National Women's Political Caucus.
    She shook hands with Presidents, walked with First Ladies and stood on picket lines; she helped change the gender balance in the Democratic Party and, in 2000, received the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the highest honor paid to U.S. citizens outside the military.
    But to Sharon Lehrer, Millie Jeffrey was just...mom.
    "I didn't know," said Lehrer, when asked about growing up with such a legendary figure. Only when her mother became ill did Lehrer begin to hear from old friends about the profound influence Millie had on other peoples' lives. "When she was with us, it was just family."
     Millie seemed far more to Riki Chomsky. The 19-year-old Oakland County resident still remembers seeing the grey-haired dynamo from across the room at the 2000 Democratic convention.
    "She was wearing her Congressional Medal of Honor," Chomsky recalled. "She said she wore it everywhere she went. I thought that was so awesome."
    The two were kindred spirits; Riki cut her political teeth at age 13, volunteering with the campaign of former Vice President Al Gore. Her friends and classmates didn't see the point. "I was so shocked that it wasn't the coolest thing to do."
    Even now, most of her friends suffer from severe political apathy. Chomsky herself had only a passing involvement in the last big political season; if either of the major parties brings a convention to Detroit in 2008, though, she'll either be inside working or outside protesting. "How many chances do you get to be involved in a national political convention?"
   For as long as Lehrer can remember, activism was just a way of life, something she thought everyone's family did. Her mom may have spent less time sewing and making cookies for her and brother Balfour, but how many children have the chance to attend an NAACP convention and meet legendary political figures, like Walter Reuther?
    "Here was a woman who was purusing her passion and her purpose," Lehrer recalled. "That has always affected my decisions."

Legacy for the next generation
    One of three founding members of Students for a Democratic Society in 1960, Lehrer has also lived a life of activism. Her parents didn't only approve of the choices she made, they fully expected her to make them.
    So when it came time to honor Millie's life, her family focused on the idea of encouraging social activism. Rather than endowing a professorship, they have established The Mildred Jeffrey Endowed Internship for Social Justice at Wayne State University, where Millie served on the Board of Governors for 16 years.
    "She really believed in public education. She was a social activist and organizer, and nothing would make her happier than knowing people were learning because of her, and particularly that it goes to young people," Lehrer said. "We need to have more people getting involved."
    Chomsky agrees. She believes young people take for granted the battles hard-fought in the 1960s and 1970s, like Roe v. Wade, because they happened so long ago. Still, she forecasts a new feminist movement, as women see their freedoms eroding.
    "My prediction is we're going to see an awakening in women's rights activists. I think women will start looking at each other and saying, 'We have to do something.'," Chomsky said. "I think the driving force will be women in their 20s, who have not grown up with the struggle, but will realize it must be continued.
    "If we don't speak up, who will speak for us?"