Born in Port Arthur, Texas (1924), Mary Jane Perkins Galer is a well-respected Columbus resident noted for her many achievements as an educator, librarian, representative in the Georgia State Legislature (1977-1989), advocate for women's rights, author, and member of numerous civic and professional organizations. After graduating from the University of Pittsburgh in 1945 with a B.A. in Education, she began her professional career as a teacher and high school librarian. While teaching, she went to graduate school and received a Master's in Library Science from the Carnegie Institute of Technology (Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania) in 1947. In November 1951, she married Robert Fulton Galer, who in 1960 was assigned to Fort Benning as Inspector General. She then worked on Post as an Army Librarian until 1967 when she was hired by Columbus College, Columbus, Georgia. For ten years she served as an Associate Librarian and Associate Professor, chairing many committees and continuing her education by attaining Graduate hours in Political Science (1975-1978). After election in 1976 as Muscogee County's second woman representative to state legislature, she was forced to leave her position at Columbus College. Serving 12 years in the Georgia House of Representatives Galer's accomplishments include influencing an agreement involving water allocation and the uses of the Chattahoochee, Flint, and Apalachicola Rivers by Georgia, Alabama and Florida, revised Guardianship laws for incapacitated adults, allowed garnishment of pensions for alimony and child support, removed collaboration requirements in rape cases and improved child support enforcement laws to comply with Federal guidelines. In addition to her legislative position, in 1986 she became the Director for Library Services at Troy State University at Ft. Benning, Georgia, a position in which she served until 1994. Mary Jane Galer has authored or edited three books, which include Columbus, GA: Lists of People 1828-1852 and Sexton's Reports to 1866; Historic Linwood Cemetery with Linda Kennedy; and Dr. Azor and Gloriana Purdy Betts: Loyalists and Hearty Pioneers.