Gerta Bendl (July 5, 1931 – June 25, 1987) was a

Kentucky Kentucky ( , ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States and one of the states of the Upper South. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north; West Virginia and Virginia to ...

community activist and legislator who served in the

Kentucky House of Representatives The Kentucky House of Representatives is the lower house of the Kentucky General Assembly. It is composed of 100 Representatives elected from single-member districts throughout the Commonwealth. Not more than two counties can be joined to form ...

from 1976 until her death in 1987. She was the first woman to chair the Health and Welfare Committee. Her legislation involved "establishing a 'children's survival bill;' creating boarding-home regulations and bills of rights for

nursing home A nursing home is a facility for the residential care of elderly or disabled people. Nursing homes may also be referred to as skilled nursing facility (SNF) or long-term care facilities. Often, these terms have slightly different meanings to in ...

residents and persons with developmental disabilities; mandating health insurance coverage for mentally ill; and providing for a

living will ''Living Will'' is an American comedy film starring Ryan Dunn, Gerard Haitz and April Scott. Cast *Ryan Dunn - Belcher *Gerard Haitz - Will *April Scott - Krista Production In 2011, the domestic distribution rights to the film were purchased ...

." She was described as a "leading force" and "force of nature".

Early life and activism

Bendl (then Gerta Koperek) was born to Mary and Paul Koperek, second-generation

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ger ...

and

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immigrants, on July 5, 1931. She was the youngest of three children and grew up in

New Kensington, Pennsylvania New Kensington, known locally as New Ken, is a city in Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania. It is situated along the Allegheny River, northeast of Pittsburgh Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Penns ...

, but attended a

Catholic school Catholic schools are pre-primary, primary and secondary educational institutions administered under the aegis or in association with the Catholic Church. , the Catholic Church operates the world's largest religious, non-governmental school syste ...

for girls in

Coraopolis, Pennsylvania Coraopolis () is a borough in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania. The population was 5,559 at the 2020 census. In 1940, the population peaked at 11,086. Coraopolis is located west of Pittsburgh along the Ohio River and to the east of the Pittsburg ...

, for a year, before graduating from a New Kensington public school in 1949. She attended but did not graduate from the

Pennsylvania College for Women Chatham University is a private university in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Originally founded as a women's college, it began enrolling men in undergraduate programs in 2015. It enrolls about 2,110 students, including 1,002 undergraduate students an ...

(now Chatham University), but continued to study music privately and performed in opera, in concerts, and on showboats. In 1953, she married Richard Bendl; they had three children. Gerta Bendl founded

Apple Hill Playhouse Apple Hill Playhouse was the name of both a theater company and a theater building, both located in Delmont, Pennsylvania. The theater was established by Gerta Bendl as a theatre space around 1956 in a pre-Civil War barn that was part of Martz F ...

as a young mother. The Bendls moved to

Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...

, Georgia, in 1962, before settling in

Louisville, Kentucky Louisville ( , , ) is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky and the 28th most-populous city in the United States. Louisville is the historical seat and, since 2003, the nominal seat of Jefferson County, on the Indiana border ...

, in 1967. Within two years in 1969, Gerta Bendl organized her fellow housewives as the Dames of Dundee to protest school boundary lines; though there was a "highly regarded public high school four blocks from her home," odd boundaries meant their children had to attend a school several miles away. After their first success, the Dames focused on another community problem of frequent flooding; in 1970, Bendl was a major force in creating the community's Water Management Committee.

Politics and death

In 1971, Bendl won the Democratic nomination to run as a Louisville alderman and was elected by her district as one of few women aldermen ever elected in the city. She continued to organize her grassroots volunteer force, advocated for charitable causes, continued to work on water drainage issues, and was known for her stylish hats. In 1975, Bendl was first elected to the house after incumbent

David Karem David K. Karem (born August 31, 1943) was an American politician in the state of Kentucky. He served in the Kentucky Senate and in the Kentucky House of Representatives. Karem was elected to the senate in 1975 when incumbent Lacey Smith did not ru ...

retired to run for the

Kentucky Senate The Kentucky Senate is the upper house of the Kentucky General Assembly. The Kentucky Senate is composed of 38 members elected from single-member districts throughout the Commonwealth. There are no term limits for Kentucky Senators. The Kentu ...

. In the 34th district in the

Kentucky General Assembly The Kentucky General Assembly, also called the Kentucky Legislature, is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Kentucky. It comprises the Kentucky Senate and the Kentucky House of Representatives. The General Assembly meets annually in the ...

, she would push for legislation regulating nursing homes and fighting

domestic violence Domestic violence (also known as domestic abuse or family violence) is violence or other abuse that occurs in a domestic setting, such as in a marriage or cohabitation. ''Domestic violence'' is often used as a synonym for ''intimate partner ...

. For the former subject, her sponsored bills included HB 106, the Nursing Home Reform Bill, and several others. For the latter, she overwhelmingly passed her 1980 bill on warrantless arrests for domestic violence despite strong opposition and debate, including a clash where she shouted into her microphone out of turn. She served until her death of a heart attack in 1987.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bendl, Gerta Democratic Party members of the Kentucky House of Representatives 1931 births 1987 deaths American activists Women state legislators in Kentucky 20th-century American legislators 20th-century American women politicians People from New Kensington, Pennsylvania