CWU makes a day of it at Mass. Conference for Women

CWU hosted a booth at this year's Massachusetts Conference for Women held on December 8^th at the Boston Convention and Exhibition Center. More than 7,000 women attended the conference, which has become the largest of its kind in Massachusetts.

Not only did we host a booth, but we were also one of 11finalists for the conference's "Be the Change" award. In 2011, conference organizers expanded the annual award to honor Massachusetts nonprofit organizations whose mission aligns with the conference-helping women and girls achieve their full potential.

The day-long event  featured a star-studded roster of keynote speakers and covered topics such as career advancement, personal development, reinvention, social media management, and entrepreneurship.

Nine CWU program participants received full scholarships to attend the Mass. Conference for Women, thanks to the generosity of Jonathan and Jeanne Lavine. For each of the scholarship recipients, attendance was a first time event and, for all of them, it was an unforgettable experience.

Six of the CWU-connected women who received Mass. Conference for Women scholarships were students in the fall cycle of Woman to Woman, CWU's 12-week career development course. The other three scholarship recipients are participants in Career Family Opportunity, CWU's innovative long-term program for families committed to becoming fully economically independent in five years.

Lesley Harrington, a CWU Woman to Woman student, said, "I was so impressed that there were so many women. When we sat down for lunch, there were thousands of women filling the room. I attended Mel Robbins' 'How to Become Unstoppable' and she was very funny and wise. She gave her presentation with her coat wrapped around her because her skirt had ripped open. She said one of the lessons she had planned to share with us was no matter what life throws at you, just keep moving forward-and she proved it."

The Mass. Conference for Women afforded  our organization and our program participants unmatched opportunities  to support and realize the empowerment of women. As Michelle Feliz, another CWU program participant, declared, "Take your creativity and dreams and make them a reality!" What a great day!

Rachel Horwitz
Marketing and Communications Intern
Crittenton Women's Union