REFLECTING ON THE PAST (AND OUR FUTURE)

Hello August!  Is anyone else wondering where the summer went {or, better yet, half of the year already)?!! As many of you have heard, August is a special month for Women to Women Network- we are celebrating five years! To say time flies is an understatement, but big milestones such as these are a great time to reflect on the past, present, and future. 

Each of you reading this has a reason for joining and staying in this group.  For me, how it started is far from how it’s going.  I learned about Women To Women Network through my husband, who had been looking for ways to help me grow my business.  Also, we were new to the area, and had no friends or family around, and knowing me, he knew I needed connection, and a women’s networking group felt like a win-win.  He was right, but attending an event where you know NO ONE is very intimidating.  The first event I attended was Idaho’s first Spark event.  By the night's end, I was hooked and left wanting more… I may have even embarrassingly said as much to Kristie and Liz (insert facepalm here).  Yet I wasn’t hooked just because there were networking and career growth opportunities, and I wasn’t hooked just because there were some fantastic and genuinely kind women I could see myself being friends with. I was hooked because the focus and the mission was to be a community that lifted, empowered, and inspired one another - a “come as you are” and together, let's all leave a little better, a little lighter, and a bit more driven to go be the amazing women we are.  It's hard to put into words, but it felt like all these things I had thought/ felt and needed/ wanted but couldn’t find. It wasn’t a question of whether I would join but more about how to be a part of it. 

I jumped right in, and what started as joining a networking group where I might meet a friend or two is now me, being a Chapter Director of Women to Women Network with more than a few ladies I can call friends.  Now, I get the unique opportunity to work with some of the most amazing and inspiring ladies who have become friends and serve as mentors in life, business, and all-around womanhood.  Then, every month, I have the privilege of meeting other women in the community and hearing about their lives, careers, goals, and missions.  I get to laugh, smile, and connect.  Collectively, we support each other and encourage one another, which sometimes looks like cheering each other on to take the next step or even pulling back, and sometimes it’s valleys and peaks to find peace with who we are and where we are right now.  

So I wanted to say thank you, ladies—thank you for the opportunity to be a leader, but also thank you for being you and being a part of this group. You are the heartbeat and soul of this organization, and we wouldn’t be able to keep expanding and growing all of our benefits without each and every one of you showing up and driving this mission home.  

I wish you all a fantastic end to your summers, and I look forward to meeting each one of you at a future event!