Michelle Pailthorp, champion of women

Mothers and daughters share special moments.

One cherished by Bellamy Pailthorp was captured in a photograph showing her and her mother, attorney Michelle Pailthorp, holding Bellamy's fists high in celebration when the Equal Rights Amendment was passed.

A champion of women's rights and political and environmental causes, Michelle Pailthorp was best known for managing the 1972 referendum campaign that led to the ratification of the ERA in Washington state.

Ms. Pailthorp, 61, died yesterday at Virginia Mason Medical Center, hours after suffering an aneurysm. She was 61.

Ms. Pailthorp spent her life fighting for others, said her daughter.

In the 1970s, Ms. Pailthorp was legislative director for the American Civil Liberties Union of Washington and helped rewrite the state's juvenile codes.

In 1977, she served as a Washington delegate to the National Women's Year Convention in Houston. She also served on the judicial candidate screening committee of Washington Women Lawyers, and she was active in the Washington State Trial Lawyers Association.

On Whidbey Island, where she spent many weekends, she became involved in the Northwest Island County Conservation Voters and is credited with creating an extensive woodland garden near Langley.

"The phrase 'larger than life' truly applies to this woman," said son-in-law John Zilavy.

Ms. Pailthorp graduated from the University of Washington Law School when she was 38 and used her education to help others, her daughter Bellamy Pailthorp said.

"She was determined to keep other women from losing out," Bellamy Pailthorp said. "She took on tough cases and listened to people's (situations)."

She often would take cases other people wouldn't go near.

In 1992, Ms. Pailthorp supported the successful U.S. Senate campaign of Patty Murray, who said yesterday that Ms. Pailthorp was the first woman to do so.

"Mickie was an independent and courageous fighter for all of us, but especially for women," Murray said. "Yet for all the battles she fought for women, she never sought notoriety or recognition for herself."

Ms. Pailthorp was born in Chicago, and her family moved to Washington when she was a child.

Among her pastimes was caring for plants.

"She liked to garden and was a plant collector," said daughter Melissa Pailthorp.

Her daughters say they shared a special relationship with their mother and remember her as a strong and positive woman who didn't shy away from conflict.

"She loved a good fight," Melissa Pailthorp said.

Ms. Pailthorp is survived by her life partner, Joel Connelly; her three children, Aaron, Melissa, and Bellamy, all of Seattle; sister Joan Lawrence in Ohio; son-in-law John Zilavy; and granddaughter Olivia Zilavy.

A service will be held at 4:30 p.m. next Thursday at Town Hall in Seattle. The family suggests remembrances to The Nature Conservancy, 1000 Friends of Washington, or the Northwest Horticultural Society.

Sheila Lalwani: 206-464-2194 or slalwani@seattletimes.com.