Thanks for a great 2013!

As we reach the end of 2013, I want to personally extend my gratitude to all the PWA members, board of directors and committee members that have made this an amazing and eventful year for our organization. It has been a privilege and honor to serve as a President of this dynamic organization. Through PWA I have seen what is possible when we connect our professional women's passions with identified goals and efforts. Today, our organization thrives with civic-minded entrepreneurs and corporate leaders who aspire to grow personally and professionally through our engagement with each other. The impact of our organization in our community has been tremendous. Following are some of the accomplishments that were possible because of you: •    A record number of 1,750 professional women attended PWA events during the year. •    47 different events were created, implemented and executed for our members this year. •    Created new and innovative programs such as the Book Club, on-line training and training for mentors. •    Business Owner Forums and the new partnership which was established with COCA provided additional training opportunities. •    Our social networking activities were highly attended and provided us with the opportunity to interact in unique venues around St. Louis. •    Developed a new framework for corporate partners that allowed us to increase our corporate members to 10 organizations. •    Our service projects allowed us to help women in our local community through Lydia's House and around the globe through the Blessing Basket Project. •    A record number of 180 women participated in the panel & round table discussion for the book, Lean In. Some of the guests came from out of town to participate in this event. •    Our membership continues to grow at a steady pace. We completed four new member breakfasts and discussed ideas on how to increase the diversity in our organization. •    PWA's social media has doubled to nearly 500 likes on Facebook and has grown our LinkedIn membership by approximately 25%. •    Training and development has been a primary focus in 2013 with outstanding speakers at our monthly meetings, our two mentoring cohorts, and expert training sessions on communication and branding. •    We are a financially sound non-profit organization due in large part to our fundraising activities. We are able to subsidize some of the cost for our members at the monthly meetings at the Ritz and continue to support Lydia's House with our donations of time, talent and treasure. •    One of our biggest accomplishments has been the feedback provided by our members in our recent member survey. 100% of the members said that they would highly recommend PWA to other professional women. This is the best testimony and truest measure of our success. There are many women at PWA that assist in our success and these women work very hard to ensure that we spread the mission of our organization, which is to support women in becoming VOICES (vibrant, outstanding, influential, confident, effective and strong) in business and in the St. Louis community. My admiration and gratitude go to our 2013 Board members for their leadership and commitment. They have worked tirelessly to ensure PWA continues on a remarkable path. Their guidance, knowledge and ability to go above and beyond have been an inspiration to me. A big thanks also goes out to our 2013 Committee members for volunteering and helping our organization to be a wonderful place where women lift each other up to become the best they can be. "Excellence is never an accident; it is always the result of the high intention, sincere effort, intelligent direction, skillful execution and the vision to see the obstacles as opportunities" - Anonymous You all have been the anchors in encouraging me to believe in what is possible. My hope is that you feel as proud as I do for being a part of this amazing organization and all that we were able to accomplish in our community. My sincere thanks for all your support for PWA in 2013 and in the future! Best wishes for a successful and prosperous 2014. Nino Clarkin President, Professional Women's Alliance