Clara Barton

Clara Barton was a brave angel on earth who devoted her life to helping anyone who needed it. She was a remarkable teacher inspiring kids to learn and have a bright future. She was an innovator, one of the first females to work in the United States government. She was an angel of the battlefield and appeared with medical supplies when doctors needed it most. Barton was a woman of many talents - teaching, government employee, life saver, and founder of the American Red Cross.

A family friend recommended that Clara should become a teacher. At 18 she took the necessary test and passed. During her years of teaching she founded a school in her hometown, North Oxford, Massachusetts. Then, years later she started one of the first public schools in New Jersey. She continued to teach even though they hired a man to run her school that was paid three times more than her. However, three years later she lost her voice. She moved to Washington, D.C., hoping the warm weather would help her. In D.C. she found a job in the U.S. government patent office. She was one of a few women that worked for the government. Some men believed women shouldn't work with men, but that did not stop Clara. Actually, she thought her situation was truly pleasant.

Around the time of the Civil War, Barton volunteered for two years to get needed supplies for the soldiers. She asked people for supplies, some of it she paid for by herself, and rented three warehouses to store it. Eventually she got permission to take her supplies to a battlefield near Culpeper, Virginia. Clara brought medicine, cooked, helped doctors, helped men write letters home, and when the war ended she tried to find missing soldiers. Soon everyone knew about "The Angel of the Battlefield." Afterward, she did not have any more money, so she tried speaking about her battlefield experience. Ultimately, she became ill and took a break in Europe with her sister, Sally. While in Europe, she met a man who ran the International Red Cross. When the war between France and Germany happened, she helped the Red Cross and was awarded the Iron Cross for her bravery and leadership. When Clara returned home, she tried to convince the government, but no one seemed interested. Either way, she still set up the first chapter of the American National Red Cross in Dansville, New York. When a forest fire happened in eastern Michigan, Clara's Red Cross came to aid. Immediately, the newspapers started to praise the Red Cross. After two decades the Red Cross flourished under Clara's leadership. Clara Barton was a role-model, but some people may think differently.

Clara did all these great deeds, but does that make her a hero? She was not very famous like the president or an athlete so how would people even know her? When Barton built her public school, a man took her place so that must have meant she was not doing a good job. She is just a woman, all she needed to do was cook or clean, why would she do a man's job? Back then people thought a female could not handle being in charge, but that does not mean she was doing a bad job. No, she was not a man or famous, but she worked hard and changed the world more than it was possible for any woman at that time.

Barton was a leader, government employee, savior, and founder of the American Red Cross - a woman with special talents. She gave education for kids to follow their dreams and do their part in the world. She stood up for women who did not get paid as much as her in a job like the government patent office. Clara cared for all the wounded soldiers from the war. Barton knew the troubles in the world and made the Red-Cross association so many people can help more and more people. Clara made a huge difference in this world, and that is why she is a hero.