In the footsteps of Mrs. Roosevelt!

By Hillary Rodham Clinton

One thing I've learned since becoming First Lady is that wherever I go, Eleanor Roosevelt has surely been there before me.

I've been to farms in Iowa and factories in Michigan where Mrs. Roosevelt paid a visit a half century ago. I've been to schools and colleges named for Mrs. Roosevelt and walked the halls of hospitals she toured before I was born.

Even when I go to other countries, Mrs. Roosevelt has doubtless been there first. When my daughter and I went to Pakistan and India last spring, we discovered that Eleanor Roosevelt had traveled there in 1952, and even had written a book about her trip.

Now I'm in south America, following in Mrs. Roosevelt' footsteps yet again. She came where several times and visit several countries, sharing her vision of justice and compassion with all who would listen, The United States, she believed, had a vested interest in helping any neighbor in our hemisphere that sought to build a democratic way of life.

"Our obligation to the world is primarily our obligation to our own future,"she once said. "Obviously, we cannot develop beyond a certain point unless other nations develop, too."

Traveling now through South America, I find myself thinking often about Mrs. Roosevelt -- who was born 111 years ago -- last Wednesday. And I'm convinced that if she were still alive today, nothing would thrill her more than coming to watch children perform at the Circus School in Brazil.

It's a place I'm visiting on this trip where runaway children learn the principles of discipline and teamwork, and build self- confidence through acrobatics and trapeze training. Not only do these children show a renewed interest in education and improved attendance in school, they perform before sellout crowds every weekend.

Mrs. Roosevelt also would be right at home, chatting with the poor women I met at a neighborhood center in Santiago, Chile, or listening to women in Managua, Nicaragua, talk about the sewing businesses they started with $100 loans from the local bank and support from the U.S. government.

Wherever she went, Mrs. Roosevelt celebrated the richness of the human experience. She appreciated every person;s potential to do something great with very little. Perhaps that is why people all over the world, including here in south America, remember her with such admiration and fondness.

She was. in the worlds of historical Doris Kearns Goodwin, "a woman for all times and all people."

I know I will think about Mrs. Roosevelt again during the last leg of my trip, in Paraguay. There, I'll be talking about ways to improve the health and education of children and families throughout the Americans.

It's a conversation that began last December in Miami when we met during a summit the President hosted for all the democratic nations of North and south America.

We have much at stake when it comes to building relations with our neighbors to the south. Many men and women in our country trace their roots to Latin America. And people living in those countries are among the biggest consumers of American goods and services.

Just last week, we hosted the President of Mexico for a state visit at the White House. As you may recall, our government offered loans and loan guarantees to Mexico to help the nation's economy stay afloat early this year. Already Mexico has paid back a significant portion of the loans ahead of schedule.

On a personal note, I am looking forward to spending time over the next few days with women from North and South America who are willing to devote their energy and ideas to nurturing the next generation. I think it's a wonderful way to celebrate Mrs. Roosevelt's birthday. After all, it was her example in both words and deeds that showed us how to bridge national boundaries and cultural traditions to achieve our common goals.

Talking to these First Ladies of today, I know I will be thinking of my inspiring predecessor.

Thank you, Mrs. Roosevelt.

And happy birthday.

-- Creators Syndicate