Elected in 1977, Bellows was the first woman to serve as the president of a State Bar association.
Her father Alfred Kamin had been a labor attorney who was notable for representing John L. Lewis and the United Mine Workers.
[3] Bellows began her career as a clerk to the Chief Judge of the Illinois Court of Claims.
[3] In June 1961, Bellows was appointed to serve on the Bill of Rights Committee of the Illinois State Bar Association.
Bellows was elected Illinois State Delegate in 1978, also serving as chairperson of the Fellows of the American Bar Foundation.