Diary of a Founder: We Came, We Saw, We Conquered...
And just like we are at the end of March - Women’s History Month seems to have come and gone in a flash but not without excellent events and gatherings all centered around uplifting and empowering women. From Florida to Los Angeles to Laguna, Nashville and Vegas, I met extraordinary women doing extraordinary things.?
In this season of gathering together in person, old friends mixing with new friends, thought provoking conversations and truth telling about the mountains we are climbing led to many discussions around the future of women across healthcare, business, family, wealth building and leadership. Through the sometimes painful conversations about the state of women’s choices or lack thereof, we celebrated each other, our small victories and our collective steps forward.??
While virtual meetings are convenient and enable us to be in multiple places at one time without much travel and discomfort there is nothing quite like a hug from a friend when you walk into the room or the smiles as you greet people you haven’t seen in awhile. In person togetherness is priceless.?
MARCH WAS PROFOUND…Women’s History Month Highlights:
I kicked off the month co-hosting the Penny’s Flight Fundraiser at Veronica Beard in West Hollywood alongside Nyakio Grieco and Sara Happ . My dear friend, Kate Doerge started Penny's Flight Foundation , a 501(c)3 focused on raising funds for much-needed medical research on Neurofibromatosis and related disorders. Through Penny’s story and bright light, the Foundation aims to expand knowledge around NF, while inspiring others to find beauty in imperfection, positivity in the face of challenge, and faith over fear. You can still donate to Penny’s Flight HERE .
My first flight of the month was to Florida for The Entreprenista 100 Awards hosted by Stephanie Cartin , Courtney Spritzer (co-founders of Entreprenista League) celebrate trailblazing women in business who are changing the world.
We also celebrated our own BrainTrust Founders Studio member Arion Long (Founder and CEO of Femly ) being named Entreprenista of the Year.
Then, I flew back to LA for the Emily’s List Pre-Oscar’s Breakfast and Panel. The event kicked off with welcoming remarks from California Lt. Governor Eleni Kounalakis and conversations with Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass, Massachusetts Attorney General Andrea Campbell, Garcelle Beauvais, Yvette Nicole Brow, Sophia Bush, Indya Moore, Amber Riley and Lisa Ann Walter.
EMILYs List is the nation's largest resource dedicated to electing Democratic pro-choice women to office. Donate and support women running for office
My next stop was Austin, Texas for Founders House during SXSW—our first house of the 2023 and was a beautiful weekend of community, commerce and fun! Founders House featured:
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After that, I ran home to Los Angeles, to join Karla Martin , Lisa Stone , and Nditi Oteh for the Center for Reproductive Rights (CRR) 30th Anniversary Los Angeles Benefit. CRR is a global nonprofit organization using the power of law to advance reproductive rights as fundamental human rights around the world.
The next week, I flew to Nashville to join Wells Fargo at the WBENC National Conference. I spoke on the "Growth through Acquisition and Joint Venture" panel and was also a special guest of Lisa Stone and Tara Abrahams at the C200 breakfast.
When I came back to Los Angeles, I had the honor of spending the weekend in Laguna Beach with Debra Langford , Debra Lee and 200 Amazing Black Women at Leading Women Defined.
For almost 15 years, the annual Leading Women Defined Summit has convened 150 – 175 prominent Black and brown women from across the country for insightful, authentic, and energizing conversations and connections. Hosted by former BET Networks Chairman & CEO, Debra L. Lee. Assembling a cadre of prominent women representing the private, public, and nonprofit sectors, LWD provides a platform for collaboration, community, and collective impact.
Then, I joined my long time bestie at the Salute to Black Women Business Conference “Celebrating Women Who Tell Stories” hosted by the Black Business Association honoring Gina Prince-Blythwood, Hon. Karen Bass, Hon. Sydney Kamlager-Dove, Cynthia E. Exum, Beverly White , Regina Wilson, Pat Prescott and Devyn Bakewell .
Jumped over to Las Vegas to one of my all time favorite conferences: ShopTalk where I joined Soumya Sriraman , Kevin Miller , and Andrea Moore onstage for our panel "The Forefront of Livestreaming and Shoppable Video". I loved spending those three days with innovative leaders truly leading the future of retail, technology and commerce from TikTok to Google and Warner Bros to Taubman and more.?
So I truly came, saw and conquered. It was indeed a good month.?
As I prepare for April - my birthday month, and reflect on March, I am reminded that the soul is too heavy to carry alone, there is power in community, in gathering together with collective wisdom and thought. There must always be a broader focus for our lives.?
This month and every month, let’s continue to find our power in supporting and uplifting each other as women in arms!?
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Founder & CEO of Flex-N-Fly | Stretch & Yoga Classes in Airports for Anxious travelers | | Speaker| Brand & Wellness Consultant| Private Pilot| Executive Director at The Flex-N-Fly Foundation
1 年Love this! What an incredible event. You were stunning, the speakers were amazing and I loved your whole team. Plus I got to see your daughter who I'm a huge fan of.
Principal at Kate Doerge Consulting - Helping prestige consumer brands and investors unlock value at all stages of the investment process
1 年Love you Kendra Bracken-Ferguson ! You are such an inspiration and I am so grateful for your long standing friendship and support ????????