Penfield, Georgia Gellert, 1918-2010

Georgia Gellert Penfield was born in Denver in 1918. She attended the University of Denver and joined the Pi Beta Phi sorority. After graduation she worked for the Denver Post. Penfield married Nathan Henry Gellert, a former president of the Seattle Gas Company, and moved to Seattle in 1954. She served as one of only two women on the executive staff for the Seattle World's Fair and worked in the Exhibits Division with Donald Foster. After the fair, she served as public relations director of the Seattle Center until 1964. Throughout her long career in Seattle, she worked for a variety of high-profile nonprofit organizations including the Seattle Center Foundation, Seattle Lighthouse for the Blind, Seattle Children's Home, Allied Art of Seattle and Seattle Symphony. She also did public relations work for corporations, including Western Airlines. She was an ardent feminist during a time when women did not have the same professional opportunities as men, and she helped break the glass ceiling for Seattle area women. She died in Seattle on 5 Jan. 2010 at the age of ninety-two.

From the description of Georgia Gellert Penfield collection on the Century 21 Exposition, 1960-1971. (Unknown). WorldCat record id: 756856593

Georgia Gellert Penfield was born in Denver in 1918. She attended the University of Denver and joined the Pi Beta Phi sorority. After graduation she worked for the Denver Post . Penfield married Nathan Henry Gellert, a former president of the Seattle Gas Company, and moved to Seattle in 1954. She served as one of only two women on the executive staff for the Seattle World’s Fair and worked in the Exhibits Division with Donald Foster. After the fair, she served as public relations director of the Seattle Center until 1964.

Throughout her long career in Seattle, she worked for a variety of high-profile nonprofit organizations including the Seattle Center Foundation, Seattle Lighthouse for the Blind, Seattle Children’s Home, Allied Art of Seattle and Seattle Symphony. She also did public relations work for corporations, including Western Airlines. She was an ardent feminist during a time when women did not have the same professional opportunities as men, and she helped break the glass ceiling for Seattle area women. She passed away in Seattle on January 5, 2010 at the age of 92.

From the guide to the Georgia Gellert Penfield Collection on the Century 21 Exposition, 1960-1971, (Museum of History & Industry Sophie Frye Bass Library)