The Civil Rights movement was accomplished in large places and small, by the famous and those from everyday walks of life. Ethel Hyer, like many women in the 1950s and 60s, served her community of Rome in a variety of religious, civic, and social organizations. She attended Spellman College and was a member for 65 years of Thankful Baptist Church. She was also a trailblazer. Hyer was the first female president of the Rome Chapter of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), a position she held for 15 years. For her service on behalf of human equality, Hyer was honored by the city of Rome in 1973 and given the key to the city. She represents the untold number of Georgians who served as foot soldiers of a movement that would not have succeeded without them.