Last night, I attended a local fortnightly meeting of Women Inspire at the MCL Cafeteria on the southwest side of Bloomington. I was there to promote Bloomington Startup Weekend to a group of highly motivated women, but I was glad I was able to stay through the featured speakers, Gretchen Clearwater and Ann Kreilkamp.
Gretchen is a District 9 Congressional Candidate who came to talk to WI about her motivations for running for office. In its 192-year history, the Ninth District has never had a woman represent it in Congress. Her recent activism includes co-founding the Committee for Preservation of Democracy—an organization supporting voting rights and election reform.
“It was never a dream of mine to be a politician,” Gretchen told the group of two dozen. The spark was the Abu Ghraib prison scandal, behavior that wasn’t befitting this country. Gretchen has spent a lot of time since registering voters and working to eliminate disenfranchisement at the ballot. “Our vote is the only point of control of our country,” she said. “Use that vote. It counts. It matter.”
The other speaker was Ann Kreilkamp, a philosopher, author, and editor of Krone’s Corner, a defunct magazine about the aging. Ann shared a bit about her personal life, describing her moves in and out of marriages, academic pursuits, immersion into astrology, loss of her husband, and reconnection with her family. This form of storytelling of personal experience is very reminiscent of the kitchen conversations of the 1970s and 1980s by the women psychiatrists who would found Relational-Cultural Theory, which emphasizes strength in connection.
Back in May 2005, founder Loni Dishong and Sacha Willsey organized the first list of 50 email addresses for inspiring women in the Bloomington area. The purpose of the gatherings was to share personal and professional journeys, “celebrating and contributing toward each others’ successes and creating a sense of connectedness in an otherwise transient community.”
On May 17th, 2005, after making arrangements with Tutto Bene Wine Café and sending out an online invitation, Sacha, Loni and ten other women found themselves at the first Women Inspire gathering. Barbara Leininger and Breshaun Joyner were that evening’s presenters. During her presentation, each one shared the personal experiences that led her into her career and then taught those present a little bit about what she does. Barbara taught Merengue dance movements and Breshaun showed some impromptu acting techniques. It was a great evening!
From About Women Inspire
In 2006, Women Inspire gained non-profit status. The email list has grown to almost 400 names.
I was one of two men present, making my plea to the group for involvement in Bloomington Startup Weekend that much more poignant. My view that night is the same kind of ratio most women technologists see when walking into a room of colleagues. Women comprise about one-fourth of our current registered participants. If two dozen more registered this week, we would achieve gender equity. My hope is that even a few of the women I met Friday will show up on the roster this week.
For more information on Women Inspire or becoming a member, visit their web site.