The Frederick County Chamber of Commerce’s Women in Business Committee’s mission is to empower and develop women through education, networking, mentoring and partnerships and to promote opportunities for all women throughout Frederick County.
As such, Women in Business Committee members develop programs that provide opportunities for their peers to learn and network as well as share their expertise with each other and to address the unique issues of women in business.
S.H.E. Week is an extension of this mission and centers around the concept of Strength, Heart and Equality (S.H.E.).
S.H.E. Week 2021
The world as we knew it was forever changed at the onset of the pandemic. During this time of unprecedented upheaval, most of us have experienced some form of disruption in one or more aspects of our lives. Multiple studies have shown that Covid-19 has disproportionately affected women across the globe. Women’s experiences at home, their health, work and economic well-being have all been negatively affected.
As we find ourselves slowly moving forward into recovery, it is more important than ever to build an environment where we incite positive change, connection and sharing of wisdom. S.H.E. Week 2021 was designed by women for women to address these issues and empower participants with the community and insights needed not only to survive, but also thrive into the future!
Why S.H.E. Week
Though 101 years have passed since the Women’s Suffrage Movement successfully achieved the right for women to have a voice in politics we still see women fighting for equality in many spaces.
While the national and global societal reasons for why an event like this exists are apparent – women need empowerment and support in the workplace because they lack power and opportunity within it – it’s just as important to understand why this is important on a personal level.
What does S.H.E. Week mean to the women of Frederick?
Why is it important to the women who make up this community and our workforce?
Why do women and businesses make time to come together to create this award-winning week long event each year?
We wanted to know so we asked.
6 Women Share What S.H.E. Week Means to Them
Octavo Designs | S.H.E. Week Title Sponsor, S.H.E. Week Design Sponsor, S.H.E. Pitch Competition Funder
I’m a firm believer in women helping women and I love how S.H.E. Week has been embraced by the Frederick community. The Women In Business and S.H.E. Week committees along with the women in our community definitely epitomize Strength, Heart, and Equality. Looking forward to this week! – Sue Hough
Frederick County Chamber of Commerce | S.H.E. Week Host
Experiencing the first ever S.H.E. Week as a recent college graduate was what really cemented my desire to work here at the Chamber. Every day I feel so lucky that I get to dedicate so much of my professional life to working with the amazing women of our (Women in Business and S.H.E. Week) committees to create content that inspires and engages individuals throughout our entire community. I am incredibly passionate about education, empowerment and equality, and having a workplace that values all of those things (and gives our team the outlet to promote and move those efforts forward) is invaluable to me. – Kaitlyn Walsh, Frederick Chamber
Maryland Women’s Business Center | S.H.E. Week Support-Her Sponsor
What I am looking for most from S.H.E. Week is getting to meet all these fabulous women who are so inspiring to me and others! We can all grow and learn from each other this during this conference. The Frederick Chamber and the committee have done an amazing job putting this event together. Thank you to everyone who was involved. – Karen Kalantzis, S.H.E. Week Committee Member
S.H.E. Week Committee Member
I think it’s really important to be around like minded women who are not only women in business but might also be mothers who have been doing this much longer than I have. It gives me the opportunity to not be the smartest person in the room and to really learn from other women how they got to where they are to help me grow in my business. It’s also really nice to hear people’s struggles because people tend to focus on the highlight reel of business and in life so it’s really important to get to learn about the hardships that people faced and how they overcame them. – Danielle Rizzo, S.H.E. Week Committee Member
Frederick Lifestyle | Empower-Her Sponsor
As a business my growth has come so much through, not only the Chamber, but S.H.E. Week via the doors that have been open, the connections that have been made. I’ve found such a huge support system here. People really care about you as a person, about your business succeeding and about you feeling like you belong and are connected.
The beautiful thing about S.H.E. Week is that it brings that all together. It brings connection, it brings education, it brings new opportunities, it opens people’s eyes to what’s available in their community and gives you the chance to connect with women who care, who want to help move you forward. No matter where someone is at in their journey S.H.E. Week is valuable, personally and professionally. – Amber Smith, Co-Chair Women in Business Committee
The Frederick News-Post | Empower-Her Sponsor
It’s rally important for FNP to be involved as a sponsor of S.H.E. Week as part of the community sisterhood. Personally, as the mother of five daughters it’s rally important for us to show the next generation how far we’ve come and how far we still have to go. – Connie Hastings, FNP
Frederick Chamber Insights is a news outlet of the Frederick County Chamber of Commerce. For more information about membership, programs and initiatives, please visit our website.