The Vicksburg chapter of an international honor society for women educators has honored three of its founding members.

From the Delta Kappa Gamma Society International, Chi Chapter, Elisabeth Clarke received the Woman of Distinction Award for her service in the education system. Gwendolyn Bingham and the late Martha Skelton, both former members of the organization, received a Red Rose Award, given to nonmembers of the society for service in education and community.  

“We want to honor our founders who are key outstanding citizens and who contributed so much in the community,” said Frances Hassell, vice president of the chapter.

Established in 1929 by 12 women with a vision to promote the improvement of education, the invitation-only Delta Kappa Gamma aimed to empower women during a time of heavy discrimination against them in the teaching profession.

The Woman of Distinction and Red Rose awards are given every other year. The 45-member Chi Chapter, with a theme of pulling Together With a Passion for Learning,” has given 32 awards since 1984.

Clarke, 90 and a native of Vicksburg, retired after more than 30 years of experience in Vicksburg schools.

“It was a very good surprise,” she said of her award.

Today, she fills her time with art club and book club activities. She is also part of a Prayer Shawl group and is active in her church.

Bingham, 74, who lives in Vicksburg but was born in Belzoni, is a retired accountant who taught elementary school in Isola and Claiborne County.  She also taught business classes at Port Gibson High School, then at All Saints’ Episcopal School. She established her own accounting business when her family moved to Vicksburg from Jackson.  

Bingham’s daughter Beth Hall is also a member of the Chi Chapter of Delta Kappa Gamma and teaches math at Vicksburg High School.

“My mother has always stressed the importance of education,” Hall said. “I am very proud of her and honored that she was chosen as a recipient of the Red Rose Award.”

Skelton died in November 2008 at age 89. She was a school librarian and a lifelong quilter.

Born in West Virginia and reared in Oklahoma, she was a member of the Cotton Patchers, the Mississippi Quilt Association and the Mississippi Craftsman’s Guild. She is the subject of a book, “Martha Skelton: Master Quilter of Mississippi,” by Mary Elizabeth Johnson.

Skelton was a librarian at H.V. Cooper High School, and began teaching quilting in the 1970s at The Valley Department Store. Her quilts are part of the collections of the Mississippi Department of Archives and History and the Museum of American Quilting Society.

“It’s an honor,” said son Gordon Skelton, who is a computer engineering professor at Jackson State University.

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Contact Manivanh Chanprasith at mchanprasith@vicksburgpost.com.