As Mayor of Westwood in Make-Believe or as a visitor in Mister Rogers “real” neighborhood, Maggie Stewart adds an extra gift of sign language to her songs.
In Make-Believe Mayor Maggie lives in the neighboring town of Westwood, where she governs with the help of her Associate Mayor, Charles R. Aber. She often stops by the Neighborhood of Make-Believe to have meetings with King Friday XIII or to have some caring conversation and a song with the puppets and people there.
Fred Rogers first created the role of Mayor Maggie in the seventies. He wanted to intentionally present a female, particularly an African-American female, in the position of leadership.
Mayor Maggie, like puppet character Queen Sara, is a strong and caring female leader, and both are active members of the “Food for the World” committee. Showcasing the significance of female leadership, Mayor Maggie once served as Queen for a day in the Neighborhood of Make-Believe, when she traded places with Queen Sara Saturday.
As herself, Maggie Stewart in the “real” neighborhood, she is a welcome visitor at Mister Rogers’ door, often bringing her sign language skills to a song. She delights Mister Rogers even more when she teaches him some signs for everyday words to his songs.
