Resource Exchange to host 2015 Women of Worth conference at Foxcroft Academy

    DOVER-FOXCROFT — Registered participants for the 2015 Women of Worth Conference can look forward to a day packed full of fun and meaningful personal and professional development.
    The event will be held for the second year in a row at beautiful Foxcroft Academy on Wednesday, April 22 from 8 a.m.-4:30 p.m.

    Workshop options range from learning about aligning your purpose with your passion, balancing priorities, reflective supervision, public speaking, goal setting for real results and hearing success stories from women in business.
    Participants can choose three workshops to attend from the six options for just $49. This also includes their food and beverages for the day.
    To register and find out more about our presenters and workshop content you can visit www.wowmaine.wordpress.com or call 974-2440.
    The deadline to register is March 31. However, seating is limited, so it is best to register and make payment as soon as possible.
    Margo Walsh, founder of MaineWorks, will be this year’s keynote speaker. Margo’s talk will focus on her innovative business model that she would like to see replicated, as well as share her life story detailing successes and setbacks to inspire others.
    She will also highlight the theme and content of this year’s conference, “Unstoppable Woman!”
    She was honored by Maine Biz magazine as one of five Maine Women to Watch in the fall of 2014 and her business was recognized by SCORE as well as featured on the video for the Federal Minimum Wage Campaign.
    This year the conference organizers will once again offer the Marketplace & Resource Center, featuring a variety of products for sale that are specifically of interest to women; and service providers will be there, too, to explain their services to participants.
    During the built-in times on the day’s schedule, participants can shop at local artisans’ and crafters’ booths and purchase product from consultants such as Mary Kay, Thirty One Gifts, Scentsy, Tupperware, Avon, Pampered Chef and much more.
    The 2015 Women of Worth Conference is being made possible by funding from the Resource Exchange, Penquis and Camden National Bank. It is also supported by Foxcroft Academy, Zinnia’s and the Piscataquis Chamber of Commerce.
    Catering for the event is being provided by the Foxcroft Academy food service department and they have planned a fabulous breakfast bar, delicious luncheon and delectable desserts, including chocolate for the afternoon.

Contributed photo

    SHOWSTOPPERS — Staff from the Mountain View Youth Development Center “ham it up” during last year’s Women of Worth Conference. Pictured, front row, from left, Jacqueline Wilcox, Doris Darling, Barbara Atkinson, Linda Pinkham and Marsha Higgins. Back row, from left, Carol Cress, Dawn Pratt, and Priscilla McLellan.

    The conference, which started in 2009 and continued through 2011, was originally a community collaboration hosted by the Penquis Higher Education Center and Eastern Maine Community College, however due to staffing changes the conference was not held for two years.
    It is traditionally held on Administrative Professionals’ Day, but it is truly a way to honor all women who contribute to their communities is so many different ways.
    Last year, the Resource Exchange, a community coalition of social service agencies, non-profits, businesses and individuals voted to bring the much-valued and well-attended conference back to the Piscataquis region.
    Vice President/Treasurer, and WOW conference attendee in 2009-2011 and 2014, Sheree Brown of Penquis believes “There is no other conference being offered in this region for women with such highly skilled presenters, relevant workshop content and bringing the annual conference back just made sense to our group and I highly recommend it to any woman.
    “It fits in perfectly with the Resource Exchanges’ mission to share information and resources and to offer trainings and conferences to both our membership and the community. I’m thrilled that we are hosting it again this year and I am so happy to be part of it. I cannot wait to meet this year’s participants and experience the day with them on April 22.”
    The group has been meeting locally since 1995. Currently there are 17 member organizations and businesses, which pay a $35 per year membership fee, but they are always open to adding more members at any time.

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WOW VENDOR — Mary Kay consultant Nanette Redmond.

    Members of the Resource Exchange include Care & Comfort, Charlotte White Center, Community Health and Counseling Services, Division for the Blind and Visually Impaired, Eastern Area Agency on Aging, Eastern Maine Development Corporation, Families & Children Together, Mountain View Youth Development Center, Piscataquis Public Health Council, Piscataquis Regional YMCA, Piscataquis Valley Adult Education Cooperative, Penquis, Pine Tree Hospice, MaineStream Finance, Rape Response Services, United Way of Eastern Maine, and Spruce Run/Womancare Alliance.
    They meet on the first Thursday of each month, with the exception of July, at the Penquis office in Dover-Foxcroft from 9-11 a.m.
    “I feel it doesn’t cost to belong, it pays to belong to the Resource Exchange.
    “Membership allows me to share information about services Womancare offers with other providers and interested community members. The meetings offer a great opportunity to network with members from other agencies who have common goals.
    “In the process, I’ve learned we have a lot of resources available right here in the Piscataquis region,” said member and current president, Art Jette of Spruce Run/Womancare Alliance.
    If you would like more information about the group, you may visit our website at www.resourceexchange-me.org or call Art Jette at 564-8165.
    When all is said and done, the organizers are hoping that this event will provide localized and meaningful skill development annually without the high cost and travel expenses associated with other one-day conferences of this caliber.
    They also want to highlight all the unique and wonderful things going on in the Piscataquis region, like the Women of Worth Conference.
    Already, registrations from as far away as Pittsfield, Moscow, Bangor and beyond have been received, but to make the day complete, they are asking that interested people register as soon as possible.
    For more information about the conference, contact Sheree at 974-2440 or sabrown@penquis.org.

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    ENJOYING THE CONFERENCE — Here are some of the participants at last year’s Women of Worth Conference. Pictured, front row, from left, Denise Buzzelli and Lauraine Piquette. Back row: Michell McMahon and Monica Applebee (hidden).