Residents of The Heritage of Green Hills, a healthy life plan community outside of Reading, were recently entertained by actress Peggy Orner, who portrayed Frances Perkins, the Secretary of Labor under Franklin Delano Roosevelt. Perkins was the first woman to serve as a cabinet secretary and was the longest serving Labor Secretary in U.S. history. She was credited with being the principal architect of the New Deal and was largely responsible for U.S. adoption of social security, unemployment insurance and adoption of the federal minimum wage. Proceeds from the event supported The Heritage’s Resident Benefit Fund, which provides cash to the community’s residents who have outlived their savings. Orner specializes in one-woman shows, including her portrayal of Mary Harris “Mother” Jones, the 19th century union activist.
