Emily Bissell (1861-1948) founded Wilmington, Delaware’s first public kindergarten, worked to introduce child labor laws and fought for women’s suffrage. In 1907 she was asked to help raise funds for a small facility working to fight tuberculosis. At the time, tuberculosis was a greatly feared disease, with no known cure. Emily knew of a Danish charity campaign that raised funds by selling special adhesive seals that could be placed on holiday greeting cards. She replicated this idea in Delaware. The funding project proved so popular that the Christmas seals, which featured Christmas or holiday imagery, were sold nationwide the following year. Emily spent the rest of her life promoting Christmas seals and fighting tuberculosis, with the help of the American Red Cross and the National Tuberculosis Association. In 1980, the U.S. Postal Service honored Emily with her very own postage stamp.
