Women supported each other during a conference held at Colorado Mesa University (CMU).
The third annual “Take the Leap” Women’s Conference was a full-day event held by the Fruita Area Chamber of Commerce (FCC). This was sponsored by CMU, Timberline Bank and Family Health West.
The event included networking activities, breakout sessions, a keynote speaker and a panel discussion made up of CMU leadership.
“The purpose of this conference is to motivate and bring women together and also bring in really inspirational women and allow them to share their stories and share their knowledge with other professional women within our community,” FCC Marketing and Events Coordinator Giselle Genova said.
The conference takes place during Women’s History Month in March and focuses on helping women around the community learn to market themselves and their businesses. According to an article by SCORE, 75% of women-owned businesses are less than 15 years old, which sets them at a disadvantage.
“It’s been proven that women-led businesses are often more successful and financially sound. We’re moving into a generation where a lot of businesses are going to be run by women and that’s why these events are so important. We are able to find out what other women are doing and support them as best as we can,” Alpine Bank employee Jennifer Holly said.
Women were not considered to be working members of society for most of history, so it is important to set them up with tools to succeed.
“We’re always on the back burner as women. For example, moms spend their time planning everybody else’s events and things. This [conference] is for us to focus on what we need to do to better ourselves. It’s super important, especially for college students and for everybody in between,” FCC Community Development Director Hillary Daniels said.
One of the goals of the conference is to involve younger women in important conversations and provide opportunities that older generations may not have had. At every conference, there are sponsored tables for CMU students to attend for free.
The community of Grand Junction and Fruita came together to help women succeed and to encourage them to support each other in their endeavors.
“We’re not just employees or business owners, we are moms, friends, daughters and sisters. We’re all these things and more,” Reverent Rhythms employee Tamra Cunningham said.
