“Every great dream begins with a dreamer. Always remember, you have within you the strength, the patience, and the passion to reach for the stars to change the world.”

Born in 1821 in Maryland and raised in the African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church, Harriet Tubman is probably best known for two key roles in American history: as a freedom-fighting, anti-slavery activist and “conductor” on the Underground Railroad, and as a post-Civil War fundraiser for women’s suffrage. But she also was so much more, including the first African American woman to serve in the US military and a scout, spy, and nurse for the Union Army. Despite having a bounty posted for her capture or death, Tubman, brave and scrappy, took great pride in helping more than 300 slaves to freedom—and never lost a “passenger.” 

She also knew how to apply her experience and gift for strategic thinking in assisting the Union Army. Her work on the Underground Railroad, for example, enabled her to learn the towns and transportation routes of the South, which contributed greatly to her value as a scout and adviser. Also during the war years and just after, she demonstrated her nursing acumen, often seen administering herbal treatments to black and white soldiers dying from infection and disease. 

As if all of this was not remarkable enough, in her later years, she established the Harriet Tubman Home for the Aged on land near her home in Auburn, New York. She died in 1913 at age 92—a truly long life for someone who had experienced such adventure and danger. She is commemorated in the Episcopal calendar of the church year on July 20. Harriet Tubman is truly an Episcopal woman of courage and determination to celebrate this month.