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A large group of Cindie’s friends, family, activists and party regulars got a chance to reminisce at her memorial, presided over by the Rev. Gary Witte, about her dedication to social justice and human rights. There are many who have fond memories of working with Cindie Cyrus, here are some excerpts from her friends’ words:
Cindie had many passions in life. But three loves were greater than others. Cindie dearly loved her mother, daughters and grandson. She read books to him from the time he was born. When he showed an interest in plants and flowers, she encouraged him to create his own garden in the backyard. People just naturally bloomed around Cindie.
Cindie loved the Democratic Party and politics in general. She worked for the Party and was a Democratic Ward Committeeperson for 20 years. John E. Jones honored Cindie with the Chairman’s Democratic Volunteer of the Year award in 1980. As “Queen of the Petitions,” Cindie worked over candidates’ petitions line by line searching for errors, encouraging candidates to get more signatures, guarding the petitions like a mother hawk and always making sure they were on time. There was nothing Cindie liked more than working for the Dems and sitting around talking politics. It was part of the air she breathed.
Cindie’s third love was fighting for feminism and against all forms of discrimination. She was on the Feminist Task Force and NOW, a supporter of CHOICES for battered women and NARAL. She loved to get capable women elected into political office. Cindie was also proud to march in the Gay Pride Parade each year. Cindie was a great fighter – she was tough and never gave up.
Linda Evans remembers her run for Franklin County Clerk of Courts in this way:
1) Daily and voluminous schedules printed by Cindie of every single event in the County. “But Cindie, you have me down for 3 events at 6:00!” “You can make them. Now GO!”
2) And one day Cindie saying, “You’re going to be a marshall in the Gay Rights Parade.” And everything was going fine, Linda walking the parade route, doing her job—until Linda spotted a sign carrying protester and heard him vividly screaming descriptions of her “sexual behavior.” (Straight Linda) He spit in her face. Right then Linda heard the roar of motorcycle engines. The team, “Dykes on Bikes” got between her and the extremist drowning out his cries and causing him to retreat through the crowd.
Through it all, Linda said it was Cindie who was her rock, the positive face she could count on everyday, the one who made it fun.
Cindie wasn’t a full-time employee of the Franklin County Democratic Party. She rarely received a stipend for her unending volunteer work. That wasn’t the point. The point was the cause. The cause was her life —Freedom & Justice.
Strong women are found throughout history. Lynn Oschsendorf compared Cindie to Mother Jones, whose work in the late 1800’s and 1900’s is legendary. Clarence Darrow said of Mother Jones, “If a group needs organized, one will find Mother Jones there.” She once marched at night through the Appalachian Mountains with 2000 women armed with mops and brooms to turn the “mine mules” loose in Kentucky and get the miners to join the strike. Throughout the 1900’s, she drew a total of $494 from the United Mine Workers Fund. Another time Mother Jones took the crippled children from the factory mills directly to Theodore Roosevelt to show him their hands with missing fingers and their skinny arms with missing hands. “Feel the injustice in the pit of your stomach, the heartbreak of knowing children go to bed hungry, feel the anger when seniors have to decide between bills and life saving prescriptions. And families live in tents and cardboard boxes. This is not entertainment!!”
For 50 years Mother Jones was an agent for change in the union movement. Cindie Cyrus was a mother of activism and social change for 30 years. Keep her spirit alive. Continue her work. Thank you good and faithful servant.
—Lynn Ochsendorf, Carol Jevrem, Linda Evans, and everyone who misses Cindie.
Cindie’s mother asks that anyone out there in the community who may have photos of Cindie to share them with her. Cindie always avoided getting her picture taken and her mother can’t find many photos of her daughter. Call her mother at 253-6224 or 462-3679.