Eileen Milstein was born in Denver, Colorado, on October 25, 1921. The family moved to Los Angeles in 1922. She attended Los Angeles schools, graduating from Eagle Rock High School, class of 1940, where she was a cheerleader. She attended Los Angeles City college.

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Eileen met George Brookman through his brother, and they married July 11, 1941, while he was in the Army. After the attack on Pearl Harbor, George attended Officer Candidate School, and moved with his family to Camp Adair in Corvallis, Oregon. Michael Brookman was born July 11, 1943, after which George was sent to the South Pacific.

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Deborah Brookman was born on June 4, 1948. The family again moved, this time to Las Vegas, where George became a General Contractor and Eileen entered the political arena. She was appointed the first Indian Commissioner in 1962, by Governor Grant Sawyer. She served on the Planning Committee for Clark County Technical and Vocational High School, the National Committee for the Support of Public Schools, as Executive Board Member for the Clark County Association on Mental Health, and past President of the Council on Women's Clubs for Senior Citizens.

 

Mrs. Brookman first ran for office, District #4, in 1966. She served on the 1967 to 1980 Nevada Legislature. She took a short break in 1980 to care for their son who had a heart condition. She again served on the Legislature from 1982 to 1989. She was voted Outstanding Woman of the Year by the Indians of Nevada, was Nevada Co-Chairwoman for the Cancer Drive, received the Brotherhood Award for the National Conference of Christians and Jews, and served as Chairman of the State Advisory Council Commission for the Division of Aging Services.

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Mrs. Brookman was the Humanitarian Mother of the Year for Clark County in 1974. She was awarded the Nevada Distinguished Citizen Award in 1982, and in the same year was appointed to the State Taxicab Authority. During the 1975 Legislative Session she introduced a "No-Pay Toilet Bill", which was picked up nationally. This remains her "claim-to-fame" for women's equality to men.

She served as President of B'nai B'rith, Hadassah, NAACP, and Vice President of Crestwood ES PTA and Sunrise Acres ES PTA while her children were in school. She also participated in the Boy Scouts of America and Girls Scouts programs.

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Mrs. Brookman enjoyed, knitting, sewing, listening to Opera, watching ballet, and collected thimbles and owls. They traveled extensively through the United States, China, Europe, Asia, Israel, Greece, and Italy.

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Mrs. Brookman battled a lengthy illness and passed away in July of 2004. She is greatly missed and the school community is proud to carry her name.

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See Mrs. Brookman's thimble collection which is now housed at Brookman ES.