Los Gatos-Saratoga Soroptimists Help Women

In Silicon Valley there is a group of women who do their day to day jobs then also put themselves out there to help others. These are the women of Soroptimist International Los Gatos-Saratoga. 

On Nov. 2 they are hosting a luncheon with the theme of Awakening Women's Potential. The event's sole purpose is to help spread the word about nonprofit services that help women and girls in Silicon Valley.

The event will be held at Villa Ragusa, 35 So. Second St. in Campbell, and tickets are $35 a person. Various organization like Parisi House on The Hill, Boys & Girls Club of Silicon Valley, The Reading Program of Santa Clara County Library, CORA Support and Good Samaritan Access Program will be coming to the event. There will be booths with representative at each table from the non-profits, and networking at the start of the luncheon. If you are a nonprofit and want a table, you can go to the eventbrite page and sign up for $25.

The keynote speaker is Mary Ursettie, Life Coach at Have a Better Day. The title of her presentation is, “Tapping into Your Inner Guidance.” Change your world from the inside out, using your thoughts, imagination, intuition, impulses, and discover how powerful you really are.

Mary Ursettie is a successful life coach, teacher and astrologer, and an enthusiastic believer in the power of positive thinking and inner guidance. She combines her business background and experience in applying metaphysical principles to show individuals and business professionals how to create the life they want. In addition to her many years of teaching, coaching and counseling, she has over 20 years of experience working at IBM and other corporations. She has an M.B.A in Organizational Behavior and a B.A. in Economics and lives in the San Francisco Bay Area.

Robin Wolfgram, the current president of the Soroptimist International Los Gatos-Saratoga club, had this to say, “I’m always amazed at the services the organizations in our community are providing women and girls. In the four years we have hosted this event, no two groups have offered the same services. It’s a great opportunity for non-profits to form alliances.”

Soroptimist is an international organization for business and professional women who work to improve the lives of women and girls, in local communities and throughout the world. Almost 95,000 Soroptimists in about 120 countries and territories contribute time and financial support to community–based and international projects that benefit women and girls.

The name, Soroptimist, means "best for women," and that's what the organization strives to achieve. Soroptimists are women at their best, working to help other women to be their best.

Soroptimist members belong to local clubs, which determine the focus of volunteer work to their communities. Club projects range from renovating domestic violence shelters and providing mammograms to low-income women, to sponsoring self-esteem workshops for teenage girls. In addition, Soroptimists participate in organization-wide programs including the Soroptimist Women's Opportunity Awards, Soroptimist Club Grants for Women and Girls, the Soroptimist Workplace Campaign to End Domestic Violence, the Soroptimist Violet Richardson Award and Soroptimists STOP Trafficking.

The club meets at the Los Gatos Lodge the second and fourth Thursday of every month. You can come to any meeting, order off the menu, and there is no additional cost to attend the meeting. The next special event meeting after this weeks Awakening Women's Potential will be Dec. 13 for the holiday dinner.

Awakening Women's Potential pre-registration required at: http://awp2012.eventbrite.com. Details: Sheila Gall, 408-540-4238
Shesonline@sbcglobal.net, Debbie Miranda, si-losgatos.saratoga@soroptimist.net, 408-281-6575