Mary Owen (née Evans), OAM (8 February 1921 - 23 March 2017) was an Australian feminist, unionist, and activist. Biography Owen was born in Balwyn, Victoria in 1921 to Tyrrell and Mary Evans (née Withers), granddaughter to Walter Withers, a landscape painter and member of the Heidelberg School. Her mother died when she was just sixteen months old, following the birth of her twin sisters. Owen's godmother, her mother's sister Margery, taught her how to sew. Her father remarried and had three more children, making Owen the eldest of five. She attended girls' schools Korowa and Lauriston. She left school at fifteen and worked as a typist, a clerk, and an editor. Owen married Richard (Dick) Owen in 1942 at twenty-one years old. She had her first child Rosemary in 1947, followed by Wendy in 1950, and David in 1953. By 1967 she had separated from her husband, and was granted divorce in 1973. Career Owen's first job after having children was working part-time with the Electrical Supply and Service Company (ESCO). She worked door-to-door selling Supermix food processors, before returning to office duties. From 1965 to 1975, she was on the staff of the Association of Architects, Engineers, Surveyors and Draughtsmen of Australia. Owen was responsible for advertising, layout, and proofreading editorial for their journal, Blueprint. It was through this job that she was first exposed to the working conditions of women and the union movement. She successfully argued that her work made her eligible for membership of the Australian Journalists Association, and a sub-editor's salary. Her first venture into politics was in 1969 when she joined the Progressive Reform Party, founded by Bertram Wainer, offering her typing and shorthand skills, taking minutes, and writing policy proposals. Owen was finally convinced to join the Women's Electoral Lobby beginning in 1972, after previously stating in 1969 that she didn't believe in separate female groups. She represented the Lobby on many government committees, making a significant impact on policies advancing the status of women, especially the fight of equal pay. Owen assisted Edna Ryan in making a WEL submission on a minimum wage for women to the National Wage Case in Melbourne. She co-founded with Sylvie Shaw, the Working Women's Centre in Melbourne in 1975. The Centre's charter included equal opportunities for women to work, free of discrimination and with equal pay. They paid special attention to the needs of women