Martha Jane Horne Tingey (1857–1938) served as the second general president of the Young Ladies’ Mutual Improvement Association (YLMIA) from 1905 to 1929. Born in Salt Lake City to Mary Isabella Hales and Joseph Horne, she was baptized at age eight by her father. She attended private schools and Deseret University, developing gifts in music and elocution.
Tingey was called as second counselor in the YLMIA at age twenty-two and served in the general presidency for an extraordinary 49 years. During her tenure as president, the organization instituted yearly slogans, roadshows, the Beehive program, leadership week, and camps for young women. In 1922, she selected green and gold as the official colors.
She authored a handbook for young Mormon women and declared: “My heart is with the Mutual Improvement work. I love the youth of Zion, and I am anxious that they may become a mighty army for righteousness in the kingdom of God.” Two of her counselors, Ruth May Fox and Lucy Grant Cannon, later succeeded her as YLMIA presidents.