Felisa Rincón de Gautier (1897-1994), affectionately known as Doña Fela, was the first female Mayor of San Juan, Puerto Rico from 1946 to 1969. During her time in office she practiced a political philosophy of “benevolent maternalism,” prioritizing health and public works. 

For Further Reading: 

• Felisa Rincón de Gautier (Doña Fela)

• Felisa Rincon de Gautier, 97, Mayor of San Juan

• Felisa Rincón de Gautier, mayor of San Juan, Puerto Rico

• La Brega - Snow In The Tropics

• Museo of El Rincón

• ‘Doña Fela’: Fashion Icon

This month we're talking about Go-Getters. Women who purposefully—or accidentally!—acquired life-changing wealth, good fortune, or influence.

History classes can get a bad rap, and sometimes for good reason. When we were students, we couldn’t help wondering... where were all the ladies at? Why were so many incredible stories missing from the typical curriculum? Enter, Womanica. On this Wonder Media Network podcast we explore the lives of inspiring women in history you may not know about, but definitely should.

Every weekday, listeners explore the trials, tragedies, and triumphs of groundbreaking women throughout history who have dramatically shaped the world around us. In each 5 minute episode, we’ll dive into the story behind one woman listeners may or may not know–but definitely should. These diverse women from across space and time are grouped into easily accessible and engaging monthly themes like Educators, Villains, Indigenous Storytellers, Activists, and many more. Womanica is hosted by WMN co-founder and award-winning journalist Jenny Kaplan. The bite-sized episodes pack painstakingly researched content into fun, entertaining, and addictive daily adventures.

Womanica was created by Liz Kaplan and Jenny Kaplan, executive produced by Jenny Kaplan, and produced by Grace Lynch, Maddy Foley, Brittany Martinez, Edie Allard, Lindsey Kratochwill, Adesuwa Agbonile, Carmen Borca-Carrillo, Taylor Williamson, Sara Schleede, Paloma Moreno Jimenez, Luci Jones, Abbey Delk, Hannah Bottum, Adrien Behn, Alyia Yates, and Vanessa Handy. Special thanks to Shira Atkins. Original theme music composed by Miles Moran.

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