Letter from Celia: September 2019
Early fall greetings! I hope you are enjoying the crisp, cool weather and new colors that surprise us and are so welcomed each September.
I am honored to take on the role of your new President and have dug in! I am grateful to Claire Richards for her leadership these past few years as well as the efforts, the leadership and the support of the Berkshire BPW Board.
By the time our first e-newsletter is published and relaunched, the September event, celebrating our scholarship recipients will have taken place. It looks to be quite well-attended. It is so rewarding to be able to women get the education they seek and help them be the best they can be!
Our event for October, An Evening of Women, Leadership & Politics, to be held on Monday the 7th, will be one you won’t want to miss. Andrea Harrington, our first female District Attorney and Amy Diamond, Board Member of the MWPC AND FOUNDER OF THE BERKSHIRE COUNTY COMMITTEE, will be talking with us. October is Domestic Violence Awareness month and so Andrea will discuss the topic and highlight a month-long community read of “No Visible Bruises” by Rachel Louise Synder. We will then hear from Amy about the Berkshire Committee of the Massachusetts Women’s Political Caucus on what trends they are seeing in politics as it relates to women in office and issues affecting women.
While as a Board we will soon be re-visiting our mission, vision and values, it is always helpful to reiterate our overarching purpose of elevating women in Berkshire County. This includes networking and social events, mentoring (stay tuned!), education and fundraising to support our scholarship program.
Feedback from our June members meeting
In response to the questions we worked on in small groups, I have highlighted the key points you raised. Please know the Board is committed to addressing these and making your Berkshire BPW the best women’s group around.
- Networking: connecting with other women, meeting likeminded women, increasing professional and personal connections, networking to get out of comfort zone, to meet people in other industries.
- Interesting, relevant speakers with events that are mixed up and offer something different each month. Include small group discussions from time to time, etc.
- Growth in membership, reaching out to young and diverse women in our community.
- The continuation the Woman of Achievement recognition fundraiser and the BCEC Scholarships.
- The strengthening our Brand through improved communication and marketing. The re-launch of the newsletter is a key piece of this.
- The enablement of women to build their management and leadership skills through committee participation and engagement.
- The offering of a fully fleshed-out Mentoring program to assist with career development.
- Providing opportunities for members to shine, to build their businesses and to share with others through the newsletter and other opportunities.
Relaunch of our monthly newsletter
Our new e-newsletter will bring members and guests to our website to utilize it in increasingly efficient ways. Beginning with the October issue, members will once again be able to provide content regarding their businesses. What a valuable tool! Look for deadlines for input in the Newsletter. We will work to add features soon, such as Member Spotlight as well.
Member engagement
We are a 100% volunteer organization and there is so much we can do! We welcome your participation in committees and recognize this helps you grow in skills and experience! Opportunities include Woman of Achievement, Communication, Public Relations, Membership, Succession Planning, Mentorship, Legislative and more! Stay tuned on this; we are planning on signups at our October meeting.
Summer get-together
We initiated a summer social gathering at Tanglewood in late August. We will continue and build on this next summer, perhaps as a pot-luck.
As you can see, there is a lot happening. Your board is energized and is working hard. We are excited by new members and we are committed to making the Berkshire BPW worth every minute of your time and energy.
See you around our ‘Shire!
Warmly,
Celia
