Description
The Stella Religa Collection (1918-2016, undated) contains materials from the life and career of political activist Stella
Religa. The materials in this collection concentrate on Religa's advocacy for the Democratic Party, women's rights issues,
the anti-Vietnam war movement, and domestic violence awareness. This includes documents pertaining to Religa's involvement
in local government and the National Organization of Women (NOW), as well as her work founding the Women's and Children's
Crisis Center (WCCS) for victims of domestic violence. Also included in the collection is political memorabilia collected
by Religa, including hundreds of campaign buttons, several women's rights garments and jewelry items, audio tapes, newspapers,
magazines, and commemorative political portraits and postcards. Finally, the collection includes Religa's personal documents,
including correspondence, newspaper clippings about her, certificates from political organizations, photographs, and a memorial
document.
Background
Stella Religa was born Stella Gertrude Pavlis on April 8, 1919 in Aberdeen, Washington. She was born to Christine Marie Cerny
and Frank Pavlis, immagrants from Czechoslovakia who moved to the United States at the onset of World War I. Stella's first
job was working as a stenographer for Western Electric Division of AT&T in Chicago, IL. There, she met John Religa. John
joined the Army as a radar mechanic, later serving as a Sergeant in the United States Army Air Corps from 1942 through 1946.
In 1946, Stella and John married and moved to California. The couple had their first son, Robert John, in 1951, and their
second son, James Paul, a few years later in 1953. Their third and final child, Sharilyn Jean, was born in December 1957.
Restrictions
All requests for permission to publish or quote from manuscripts must be submitted in writing to the Director of Archives
and Special Collections. Permission for publication is given on behalf of Special Collections as the owner of the physical
materials and not intended to include or imply permission of the copyright holder, which must also be obtained.
Availability
There are no access restrictions on this collection.