Voices of San Antonio is a production of the San Antonio Public Library Foundation. It features interviews by Michael Garofalo with prominent San Antonians who have made an impact on the cultural landscape of the City.
Sponsored by the John and Florence Newman Foundation.
Coming soon...
Lila Cockrell (1922-2019) has shattered many a glass ceiling in her day: becoming the first female mayor of San Antonio, serving three terms (1975–1981) and then serving her beloved city again for a fourth term (1989-1991), to entertaining foreign dignitaries, royalty and presidents alike. She began her career as a WAVE (Women Accepted for Volunteer Emergency Service) with the U.S. Navy during World War II. In the 1950s, Cockrell turned her attention to public service, acting as president of the Dallas and then San Antonio chapters of the League of Women Voters. That was followed up with a run as the Good Government League's first woman candidate for City Council, a position she held from 1963-1970 and 1973-1975. In recognition of her decades-long devotion to public service and her many stellar accomplishments, Cockrell has has been awarded honorary degrees from Southern Methodist University and Our Lady of the Lake University and has also been inducted into the San Antonio Woman's Hall of Fame and the Texas Woman's Hall of Fame.