Helen L. Koss

Helen L. Koss (1922–2008) was a member of the Maryland House of Delegates for District 18, representing Silver Spring, Maryland for sixteen years.

Helen L. Koss
Delegate Maryland District 18
In office
1971–1986
ConstituencySilver Spring, Maryland
Personal details
Born(1922-06-03)June 3, 1922
New York City
DiedSeptember 28, 2008(2008-09-28) (aged 86)
Political partyDemocratic
Spouse(s)Howard Koss

Koss was born Helen Levine in New York City on June 3, 1922.[1] She grew up in Ellenville, New York, graduating from Bennington College in 1942 and moving to Washington, DC to work in the school lunch program at the United States Department of Agriculture.[2]

She and her husband, Howard, moved to Montgomery County, Maryland in 1951, where they raised two daughters.[2]

Koss served as the president of the Maryland League of Women Voters from 1963 to 1967, and she was a delegate to the Maryland Constitutional Convention in 1967 and 1978.[2] She was elected to the Maryland House of Delegates in 1970, serving four terms from 1971 to 1987.[2] During her tenure, she worked to pass the Maryland Equal Rights Amendment and legislation to aid displaced homemakers.[3] She was a leader on state ethics and served as the chairwoman of the House Constitutional and Administrative Law committee from 1979 until her retirement in 1987.[3] She was the first woman appointed to chair a standing committee in the Maryland House of Delegates.[4] In 1993, Governor Parris Glendening appointed Koss to the state election board, where she served until 2003.[2][4]

Koss was inducted into the Maryland Women's Hall of Fame in 1997.[4] She was recognized by the League of Women Voters of Montgomery County with one of its Lavinia Awards in 1999.[5]

Koss died of lung cancer on September 28, 2008, at Holy Cross Hospital.[2]

References
  1. "Helen L. Koss (1922-2008)". Archives of Maryland (Biographical Series). Maryland State Archives. September 30, 2008.
  2. Sullivan, Patricia (September 30, 2008). "Helen L. Koss; Pioneer In Md. State Politics". The Washington Post. p. B6.
  3. "Del. Helen Koss Will Retire". The Washington Post. June 19, 1986. p. MD2.
  4. "Helen L. Koss (1922 - 2008)". Maryland Women's Hall of Fame. Retrieved 5 April 2019.
  5. Dennis, Steven T. (March 31, 1999). "League honors Potter, Koss for public service". The Gazette.
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