Dorothy Ridings and Judith Sedgeman. Photography by Wendy Dewhurst-Clark.

See gallery from Women's Equity Luncheon.

It was a packed room of nearly 400 guests - mostly women - who came out for "Refect, Celebrate, Engage," celebrating the 95th anniversary of the ratification of the 19th amendment, giving women the right to vote.
Held at the Polo Grill, the Women's Equity Luncheon began with guests visiting booths from a variety of organizations including event sponsors the Manatee and Sarasota League of Women Voters, the Sarasota Commission on the Status of Women, and the Bradenton, Manatee, Sarasota and Venice branches of the Association of University Women.
Seen attending the event were Joyce Raby, Judy Achre, Valerie Fisher, Andrea Stephens, Christy Womack, Dennis Stover, Michael Ayres, Debbie Engleson, Hope Byrne, Mary Glass, Karen Carpenter, Barbara Turner-Grace, Fredd Atkins, Sue Stewar, Shirley Brown, Suzanne Atwell, Pat Glas and Sandra Stone, among others.
Martha Prouix, president of the Bradenton Branch of AAUW, welcomed guests before a moving rendition of "God Bless America," sung by Zelda Mercado.
Following the luncheon, the 21st annual program got underway with a brief address by Mona Jain, co-founder of the Women's Equity Day Celebration.
She was followed by Honorary Chair Judy Sedgeman, who paid tribute to Mona Jain, calling her "an inspiring woman." She spoke about the importance for women to exercise their "hard-fought and hard-won" right to vote, saying, "Nothing is more important than exercising your rights in a free country."
She then introduced keynote speaker Dorothy Ridings, who worked as a reporter and editor at several newspapers before being named publisher of the Bradenton Herald, a position she held for eight years.
"I am delighted, honored, pleased and thrilled to be here today," said the engaging Ridings.
Ridings said she did get a chuckle when the decision was made to place the image of a woman on the $10 bill starting in 2020. "A friend told me she was against it, because then the $10 would only be worth $7.80," referring to the pay disparity between men and women in this country.
The event ended with a book signing of Doris Weatherford's book, "They Dared to Dream: Florida Women Who Shaped History."