Virtual Woman's Day Was a Success - THANKS For Your Support!

"I can honestly say that I was never affected by the question of the success of an undertaking. If I felt it was the right thing to do, I was for it regardless of the possible outcome." Golda Meir

To all the women (and men) who supported Virtual Woman's Day™ by signing up for our event, showing up, showcasing, sharing your expertise and promoting this historic event to your own circle of friends, we THANK YOU!

We could not have done this without all your help and support. The day was filled with laughter, learning and life! And we want to continue the celebration.

We are posting the interviews with our four guest experts, Mindy Gibbins-Klein, The Book Midwife® who shared her program, "Your Message, Your Magic", Elizabeth Gordon, The Flourishing Business, an Advisory Firm for Entrepreneurs talked about Creating Strategic Alliances to Grow Your Circle and Your Business, Linda Hollander, the Wealthy Bag Lady talked about "5 Ways to Attracting Corporate Sponsors - Do What You Love and Have Someone Else Foot the Bill" and Janice Taylor, Author of "Our Lady of Weight Loss: Miraculous and Motivational Musings from the Patron Saint of Permanent Fat Removal."

If you missed any of these interviews, just click on their names above and listen to what they had to say!

In addition 26 fabulous women "showcased" their products and services. You will be reading more about them on the blog in days to come.

And finally, we need your INPUT. Please take a moment to complete a brief survey about Virtual Woman's Day™

It is located at:
http://www.zoomerang.com/survey.zgi?p=WEB2269T8XMVWW. Your feedback is important to us and will help us in planning future celebrations. Your name will be included in a drawing for The PMS Principles: Powerful Marketing Strategies to Grow Your Business by Heidi Richards.

Thanks for stopping by and most importantly thanks for your support! Stay tuned for updates on Virtual Woman's Day™ - in the days to come we will be posting our "showcasers" winner of our Song-writing Contest and we will be making a BIG announcement about our Second Annual International Women's eCommerce Day™ (scheduled for September 2007).

And as you go about your day, remember these words by Donna Fargo: "I really think happiness is very closely aligned with success, and may almost be an interchangeable synonym. Happiness (like success) also comes from doing what we feel called to do in life; however, it's also obvious no one can experience one without the other."

Warmest regards,

Heidi Richards & Suzannah Richards
Co-founders, The WECAI Network™

Women's Firsts and WE Magazine for Women

"We must not, in trying to think about how we can make a big difference, ignore the small daily differences we can make which, over time, add up to big differences that we often cannot foresee." ~Marian Wright Edelman

In October of 2006, WE Magazine for women made it's debut (http://www.wemagazineforwomen.com) and I had the priviledge of writing about women. I was inspired by all the accomplishments women have made (and continue to make) to the world and wrote about Women's Firsts. Many of these women are no longer with us, but their legacy, the differences they made have lived on.

In celebration of Women's History Month, I am sharing an excerpt with you.

Did you know that Ann Franklin was the first woman to hold the title of newspaper editor (1796), Mary Kies was the first woman to be issued a US patent (1809) Arabella Mansfield was the first woman lawyer (1869), Lucy Walker was the first woman to successfully climb the Matterhorn in Switzerland (1871), or that 15 year old Annie Moore - from County Cork, Ireland was the first immigrant to pass through Ellis Island(1892)?

Vida Goldstein was the first woman in the British Empire to run for a national office. She ran for the Australian Senate (1902). Baroness Raymonde de la Roche of France was the first licensed woman pilot (1910), Rosika Schwimmer was the world's first woman ambassador. She was appointed the Hungarian ambassador to Switzerland (1918), Marie, Cecile, Yvonne, Emilie and Annette Dionne, were the first quintuplets to survive infancy. They were born near Callender, Ontario to Oliva and Elzire Dionne (1934)

You may know that Valentina Vladimirovna Tereshkova - Russian cosmonaut was the first woman in space (1963) and that Elizabeth P. Hoisington was the first female general in the US armed forces (1970), Barbara Walters was the first female newscaster on a US TV network news program (1976) and Wilma Mankiller (gotta love that name!) was the first woman to lead a major American Indian tribe. She was elected Principal Chief of the Cherokee Nation (1985). But did you know that Elizabeth Ann Oliver was the first woman to have her baby's birth broadcast live over the Internet (1998)? Makes you think that some women will do anything to say they were first!

Here's to women continuing to lead the way in history and in our lives.

If you have not yet done so, be sure to register for Virtual Woman's Day™ taking place all day on Thursday March 15 (this week!). We look forward to welcoming you.

Warmest regards,

Heidi & Suzannah

Inventing Women!

"It makes sense that women invent so many products to make life easier, after all, we are the ones who buy and use them." - Heidi Richards

In celebrations of International Women's Day, I thought I'd share a list of inventions by women:


Many Battery container Nancy Perkins 1986
Beehive Thiphena Hornbrook 1861
Canister vacuum Nancy Perkins 1987
Car heater Margaret Wilcox 1893
Circular saw Tabitha Babbit 1812
Computer program Augusta Ada Byron 1842
Cooking stove Elizabeth Hawk 1867
Dam and reservoir construction Harriet Strong 1887
Direct and return mailing envelope Beulah Henry 1962
Dishwasher Josephine Cochran 1872
Drinking fountain device Laurene O'Donnell 1985
Electric hot water heater Ida Forbes 1917
Elevated railway Mary Walton 1881
Engine muffler El Dorado Jones 1917
Feedback control for data processing Erna Hoover 1971
Fire escape Anna Connelly 1887
Globes Ellen Fitz 1875
Grain storage bin Lizzie Dickelman 1920
Improved locomotive wheels Mary Jane Montgomery 1864
Improvement in dredging machines Emily Tassey 1876
Improvement in stone pavements Emily Gross 1877
Kevlar, a steel-like fiber used in radial tires, crash helmets, and bulletproof vests Stephanie Kwolek 1966
Life raft Maria Beaseley 1882
Liquid Paper® correction fluid Bette Nesmith Graham 1956
Locomotive chimney Mary Walton 1879
Medical syringe Letitia Geer 1899
Mop-wringer pail Eliza Wood 1889
Oil burner Amanda Jones 1880
Permanent wave for the hair Marjorie Joyner 1928
Portable screen summer house Nettie Rood 1882
Refrigerator Florence Parpart 1914
Rolling pin Catherine Deiner 1891
Rotary engine Margaret Knight 1904
Safety device for elevators Harriet Tracy 1892
Street cleaning machine Florence Parpart 1900
Submarine lamp and telescope Sara Mather 1870
Suspenders Laura Cooney 1896
Washing machine Margaret Colvin 1871
Windshield wiper Mary Anderson 1903
Zigzag sewing machine Helen Blanchard 1873

Thanks to my friend Leslie Freude who posted this on the RYZE Winning Women Network

And here's a few to add to the list (from Factmonster.com):

Blocks Adeline D. T. Whitney 1882
Apgar tests, which evaluate a baby’s health upon birth Virginia Apgar 1952
Chocolate-chip cookies Ruth Wakefield 1930
Disposable diaper Marion Donovan 1950
Ironing board Sarah Boone 1892
Paper-bag-making machine Margaret Knight 1871
Rotary engine Margaret Knight 1904
Scotchgard™ fabric protector Patsy O. Sherman 1956
Snugli® baby carrier Ann Moore 1965
Submarine lamp and telescope Sarah Mather 1845

Wishing everyone a wonderful International Woman's Day! Be sure to sign up for Virtual Woman's Day™ and join hundreds of women around the globe as we laugh, learn and listen together.

Warmest regards,

Heidi & Suzannah

Women's Happenings All Over the Net!

"Enthusiasm is contagious. Be a carrier." Susan Rabin

So many things are going on during Women’s History Month – it seems honoring women is something we celebrate with enthusiasm and passion. I just wanted to share a few of the women I know doing their part to make their mark during Women’s History Month.

Beverly Mahone Author, Whatever! A Baby Boomer's Journey Into Middle Age is sponsoring a "Women on the Move and Making History" Contest, where one lucky winner will receive $75 for guessing the correct answers. Another winner will receive $25. The questions won't be easy but I'll be offering a hint :) THERE IS A CATCH...... You must be a subscriber to my Live to Be Drama Free Newsletter because only the subscribers will be eligible to enter this contest. You can subscribe by going to her website: http://www.talk2bev.com

Rebecca White of HYTR Radio in Toledo is going to do a show on National Women’s History Month. Stay tuned… more information to follow.

Angel Brown Women’s Business Gallery - created a whole month's worth of Women's History weekly assignments for her daughter, who is 14, and who she just started home schooling a couple of weeks ago. It's so important for young women to understand how far along we've come and how we can continue to shape the world from the female perspective. What a great opportunity to help her daughter further develop into the amazing young woman she's already blossoming into!

Bea Kunz of Sagehill Farms and a friend are hosting a luncheon next week for the women leaders in their city. They plan to use the resources they garner through these contacts to research and make available to the local library the history of one or two women who played a vital role in the founding of their city/county.

WAIT! There’s more…

I will be posting events as they are sent to me. If you are a hosting an event in celebration of WHM, drop me a note at Heidi (at) wecai.org with “WHM Event” in the subject line.

Be sure to register for the Virtual Woman’s Day™ Online Conference taking place on Thursday, March 15, 3007 – there is absolutely no charge to attend. Just enter your email address and name in the boxes on the right of the blog. Looking forward to helping you promote YOU!

Regards,

Heidi and Suzannah