Edie Windsor was a soft hearted and hard headed hopeless romantic for all of the 88 years she lived, and she definitely lived every day to the fullest. Her absence has been tremendously hard on the LGBT community because she was, in most aspects, their Rosa Parks. Windsor was a role model to all, and her passing has come as a devastating shock to everyone.

Over the past decade, she crossed barriers that had never been touched for the happiness of others and herself. Windsor had a Supreme Court Case in 2013 but not about gay marriage directly- it was more about state and federal law, which was related to marriage. The court made their decision in her favor and passed the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), which legally validated same sex marriage. When Windsor’s partner passed away, Windsor was taxed thousands of dollars which made her furious. Because of this, Windsor sued the federal government.

“On March 27, 2013, the day that Windsor’s case was argued before the Supreme Court, she was photographed marching out of the building, a radiantly beautiful lesbian woman in her eighties, wearing a bright pink scarf and smiling with her arms flung wide,” an article from Newyorker.com said.

The special thing about Windsor was that she gave everyone hope in their time of need. She wanted to make it apparent that it is okay to be happy and be yourself, even if you have been told your whole 80 years of life that it is wrong.

“She helped elderly woman because in the past you weren’t allowed to be ‘gay,’ it was just something you couldn’t be,” Anonymous said. “With the tragedy of Edie’s death many will still carry her legacy because of all the amazing things she did to help the LGBT community.”

Windsor died on September 12, 2017. She left behind a legacy of love and fought for everyone to have equal treatment under the law, something her admirers will continue to do even though she’s gone.