The easy answer for that question is … because I created it!  Women Empowering Women was created from a NEED. Many other networking organizations are industry-exclusive, time or cost prohibitive or focus more on the referral and sales aspect. As a fluent networker, I found that there were a number of people I needed and wanted to meet but they weren’t able to commit to other groups I belonged to because their seat was already filled or the cost of membership was out of their budget. We wanted to create a place where women could come together and connect both personally and professionally without making it another job. We wanted people who WANTED to be with us rather than those forced into attendance and rigid rules. 9+ years and a pandemic later, we’re still here thriving and EXPANDING because the value of collaboration and peers who connect and support one another is something women are seeking.

This is a hard one for me because I have SO many memorable moments. I think some of my most memorable moments come from when I’ve made an introduction to two people and then later I hear about the connection they’ve made personally or the business they’ve been able to do together.  It has been incredibly special when the connection is between two so-called “competitors”.

A recent example is I connected two women in the video production industry to each other.  Their businesses do nearly the exact same thing. But together they are working together on some very high-profile projects and events together which is benefitting both of them and their businesses.  It’s so exciting because it’s exactly what we talk about when we say “collaborate don’t compete”!

I am an active board member of the United Way of Greater St. Louis. I hold or have held membership in a number of Chamber of Commerce groups in my area – O’Fallon, Belleville, Troy-Maryville, Breese. I am a graduate of Funding for Founders through the CIE/MECCA program.