Kathryn Atwood

 

“A Very Dangerous Woman: Martha Wright and Women’s Rights”

 

By Sherry H. Penney and James D. Livingston

 ISBN 1-55849-446-4

University of Massachusetts Press

 

“No matter what a wife’s annoyances may have been during the day, her countenance must always be wreathed in smiles on the approach of her husband.”

– Martha Wright, excerpt from a satirical newspaper piece.

 

“Just get hold of life’s reverses & disappointments in a ridiculous point of view, & it helps along wonderfully – there is a great deal of fun, among all the annoyances, if one can only find it.”

– Martha Wright, excerpt from a letter to a relative.

 

The first women’s rights convention, held in July, 1848, in Seneca Falls, New York, was organized by five women, two of which have achieved nigh-sainthood in women’s rights history: Lucretia Mott and Elizabeth Cady Stanton.  Lesser known is Martha Wright, Lucretia Mott’s younger sister, also one of the Seneca Falls organizers, and the great-great-grandmother of author James D. Livingston.  Livingston and his wife Sherry H. Penney have sought to shed light on Wright’s life and work with the publication of their book, “A Very Dangerous Woman.”

 

Twenty-first century readers might find the book’s title highly ironic when encountering the self-effacing, thoroughly domestic, and humorous Martha Wright within the pages of “Dangerous Woman.”  But set within the framework of 19^th century America, Martha Wright — who not only promoted abolition and repeatedly provided hospitality to Frederick Douglass, but whose home was also part of the underground railroad; who not only promoted the idea of female suffrage but also the concept of fair divorce and wage laws — was indeed deemed quite dangerous.

 

During the numerous women’s conventions that followed Seneca Falls, Wright served in various capacities but her main contribution was that of writer and the copious inclusion of her lively personal letters in “Dangerous Woman” sheds light not only on her variegated personality, the numerous women’s rights and abolitionist conventions she took part in, but also on the characters of 19^th century luminaries who she encountered.  For instance, after a visit from Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Wright was charmed: “We all fell in love with Mrs. Stanton, the merry twinkle of her eye and her genuine hearty laugh.”

 

After the war, when Harriet Tubman was settled in Auburn, she and Wright became quite close and when Tubman missed a chance to see Wright’s visiting daughter Ellen (married to the son of William Lloyd Garrison, one of Tubman’s heroes) and her new baby, Wright notes that Tubman was “so disappointed that her eyes filled with tears.  She [had] never shed a tear in telling me of all her troubles.”

 

When she visited the Boston transcendentalists after the war (Bronson Alcott, father of the famed author, among them), she was unimpressed and wrote “Just between ourselves I think those radical meetings a great humbug.  Each essayist, in turn, trying to see how obscure he can make his meaning, by wrapping it, like a mummy, in spiced cloths, and then aping Emerson in the reading.”

 

Penney and Livingston spend a good deal of time on the civil war and its affect both on the women’s movement in general (the push to grant suffrage to freed male slaves basically shelved the women’s suffrage movement) and on Martha specifically.  Her tolerance of those with differing opinions and her peaceable nature is evident in her continued correspondence with her confederate relations from her first marriage, even when war was looming.  When one of these young relatives expressed his approval of the vicious attack on Senator Charles Sumner in retaliation for Sumner’s critical speech of a South Carolina senator, Martha reproved the young man thus: “I felt very sorry that you should justify the murderous attack on Sumner, & that you should be willing to endorse the sentiment, so unworthy an American citizen, that personal violence, under any circumstances, was allowable, for words uttered in debate . . . “

 

Yet, she signed off the correspondence thus: “I shall always be happy to hear from you & I trust that more mature reflection, & the generous impulses of youth, will lead you to judge wisely on this momentous question wh. is destined to shake the Union from centre to circumference.”

 

However, the war became close and personal when her own son joined the Union forces and it affected the generous nature of Quaker-born Wright: “I dread any misplaced ‘magnanimity’ towards the leaders of the Rebellion, & the murderers of our prisoners.  I would not have one hanged, but disfranchised & their land confiscated.”  Later she wrote even more pointedly, “I for one wd. rather the war wd. last till the South is depopulated.”

 

Her attitude says more about the war’s powerful influences than it does about Martha’s character because for the most part, Wright was a renowned peacemaker especially within the ranks of the sometimes divided woman’s movement.  Attempting to make peace between these warring factions she once quipped: “What’s the difference between a bird with one wing & a bird with two? A mere difference of a pinion.”  Indeed, her humor was such an intrinsic part of her nature that William Lloyd Garrison, writing an obituary after Wright’s death in 1875, said that “Beneath [Wright’s] habitual gravity there lurked a keen sense of the ludicrous, her wit and humor being always at command.”

 

“A Very Dangerous Woman,” like its subject, is intelligent but accessible, a long overdue biography on a very interesting – if occasionally, dangerous — woman.

 

 “Kathryn Atwood’s book reviews have appeared in numerous print and online journals and she is the author of the new young adult title, “Women Heroes of World War II: 26 Stories of Espionage, Sabotage, Resistance, and Rescue.” 

 

Bodywork

The Science of Yoga Nidra

Written Researched and taught by

Deanna Markesteyn LMT BA RYT

Advanced Bodywork 412-983-8688

 

Yoga Nidra, a Calming Yoga, is a powerful therapeutic tool empowering participants to heal past experiences and make healthy changes in their life.

‘Yoga’ means integration and ‘Nidra’ means sleep. Therefore Yoga Nidra is integrative sleep. The difference between sleep and Yoga Nidra is that the participant in Yoga Nidra is in a conscious state. The body reaches that state of bliss also known as delta sleep or deep sleep tapping into the “internal pharmacy” (Depak Chopra).  In the delta sleep state our bodies release reparative hormones. In this conscious state of sleep, Amrit Yoga Nidra, the participant has the ability to become the witness not choosing for or against what they are witnessing. In this state a person is naturally happy, there is no I like it, I do not like it. Emotions habits and past events can be released or changed without reinforcing present unhealthy nerve path ways.

Albert Einstein said “You can’t fix the problem with the mind that created the problem”. Yoga Nidra is a tool that helps people move out of the thinking mind into the feeling centers of the body, in psychological terms this would be known as moving from the conscious to the subconscious mind. Dr. Candace Pert refers to the physical body as the subconscious mind. In my twenty years of experience in the field of bodywork and massage therapy, I have found this to be true. The reason this is important when using Yoga Nidra for PTSD is that nerve pathways are constantly being regenerated and rewritten.  Yoga Nidra helps to regenerate and reprogram nerve pathways intentionally. The participate becomes active instead of reactive when faced with a life challenge or choice. Yoga Nidra helps to allow people to take action in life, instead of reactive responses that are driven by unconscious programing.

When nerve pathways are being reinforced the problem persists and can even get worse. The body does not know if the memory is from the past or in the present the body’s response, in a physiological way, acts as if the trauma is reoccurring. I like to use the example of being in love, when you are in love with someone you may relate a smell to that individual and if you smell that scent and the individual is nowhere in sight your body may feel a warm yummy response. Depak Chopra using the example of a young boy who was receiving chemo therapy the child was once exposed to the smell of the chemo ward without receiving chemo therapy his body remembered the side effects of the chemo therapy and he became physically ill as if he was receiving the chemo therapy.

Yoga Nidra is over 7000 years old; the ancient yogis developed this system without microscopes or studying cadavers. The terms used are often Sanskrit an ancient language. But there are several systems that correlate with the modern systems of the body we know today. For instance the chakra system correlates with the nervous system and the prana correlates with the endocrine system.

The first part of Yoga Nidra a Calming Yoga is the asana or poses this activity helps to relax and stimulate the biological systems helping to get the participates relaxed and releasing energy. This method also helps to balance the autonomic nervous system. When practicing Amrit Yoga you take the body into action and then relax the body, mimicking the way the parasympathetic and the sympathetic nervous systems operate in a healthy balance. This is an opportunity to practice letting go and feeling your body and getting out of the thinking centers and into the feeling centers. The asana or movements can be individualized according your ability to move.

The second part of  Amrit Yoga Nidra a Calming Yoga is a deep meditation. The meditation is a guided meditation. The facilitator uses techniques and tools like breathing, imagery, sound and vibration. The participant uses a mantra, an intention, in this deep conscious state. The intention aids the participant in reprograming the old patterns of thinking, acting and feeling.

I have personally experienced and witnessed incredible responses to Yoga Nidra. The least it can do is quiet mind, relax body, trigger the relaxation response and help participants to sleep deeply.

Classes at Marshall Municipal Building Tuesdays at 7:00 pm until March 29

http://www.twp.marshall.pa.us/page.asp?CID=113

  

Hello again!  For fifteen years, the Home Instead Senior Care^® franchise network has been devoted to providing seniors with the highest quality care in their own homes, and to arming families with the information they need to make the best decisions about caring for aging loved ones.

 

In this last article of a three-part series for the Women’s Independent Press, Home Instead Senior Care would like to remind you that caring for a senior includes being attentive to your loved-one’s surroundings.  What is more, getting rid of stuff is actually a two-step process: sorting and deciding, on the one hand, and disposing on the other.  For more information, please visit www.homeinstead.com.  Until next time…

 

Convincing seniors to de-clutter can be a challenge.  That’s according to University of Kansas Professor Dr. David Ekerdt, who is coordinating a “household moves” project to determine the role that possessions play in older people’s housing decisions.

The following are strategies if your loved one doesn’t want to let go from Katherine “Kit” Anderson, CPO-CD, president of the National Study Group on Chronic Disorganization (NSGCD), and Vickie Dellaquila, certified professional organizer and author of Don’t Toss My Memories in the Trash.

1. ARRANGE AND CHEER SMALL VICTORIES. Suppose you spend a short time helping your loved one clear off a table. Celebrate the accomplishment together.

2. CONDUCT AN “EXPERIMENT.” If your loved one has 150 empty margarine tub containers, suggest donating 15 of those to a school for a painting project. Allow some time to go by and ask how she felt giving those up. Chances are she won’t feel as awful as suspected.

3. GENTLY APPROACH THE IDEA OF HEALTH AND SAFETY. Remind your loved ones that too much clutter can actually keep them from being safe in their homes, which could jeopardize their ability to stay at home. They could trip over papers on the floor or lose bills and medications.

4. DRAFT AN AGREEMENT. Agree to box up unused clothing or tools. Carefully list what’s in the box and track that for six months. If your loved one does not use the items in that time, suggest they donate them to a charity.

5. CONSIDER THE CONTROL ISSUE. Clutter is all about control, but so is being the one to decide where stuff goes. Remind your loved ones if they don’t decide where something will go, someone else will.

If you, or any organization of which you are a part, is interested in learning more, please contact our office.  We would be happy to speak to your group free of charge about this subject, our services, and even employment opportunities. 

 

Sincerely,

 

Rebecca Champagne, Human Resource Coordinator

Home Instead Senior Care

1102 S Braddock Ave

Pittsburgh, PA 15218

Phone: (412) 731-0733

Rebecca.Champagne@HomeInstead.com

Women in Congress outperform men on some measures, Harris School study finds

January , 2011

By Sarah Galer

news.uchicago.edu

 Congresswomen consistently outperform their male counterparts on several measures of job performance, according to a recent study by University of Chicago scholar Christopher Berry.

The research comes as the 112th Congress is sworn in this month with 89 women, the first decline in female representation since 1978. The study authors argue that because women face difficult odds in reaching Congress – women account for fewer than one in six representatives – the ones who succeed are more capable on average than their male colleagues.

Women in Congress deliver more federal projects to their home districts than men do, even when controlling for such factors as party affiliation and ideology, according to the research by Berry, Assistant Professor in the Harris School of Public Policy Studies, and his former student Sarah Anzia, MPP ’07, now a doctoral student at Stanford University. Congresswomen also sponsor and co–sponsor more legislation than their male counterparts, the authors found. The study has recently been accepted for publication at the American Journal of Political Science.

The authors interpret their findings as a by–product of voter discrimination against female candidates. When women confront such bias, only the most talented, politically ambitious females will attempt to run for office, and voters will tend to elect the most highly capable women. Because of one or both of these factors, the women elected will on average be higher performing than their male colleagues.

 

“Women run for and are elected to public office at lower rates than men. This might be because women perceive themselves as less qualified to run than they actually are, or it might be because bias against women in the electorate produces a barrier to entry for them,” Berry said. “In either case, the central implication of sex–based political selection is that the women we observe in office will, on average, outperform the men.”

 

Since there is no direct way to measure legislator capability, the researchers measured performance in two ways. First, using Federal Assistance Award Data, a comprehensive compilation of federal domestic spending programs, the authors examined data from 1984 to 2004 showing the amount of federal program dollars that members of Congress brought to their home districts. The analysis encompassed discretionary spending, including most earmarks, but not entitlement programs or defense spending and other procurement programs.

 

Berry and Anzia found that congresswomen on average obtain 9 percent more in federal discretionary programs for their home districts—about $49 million per year—than congressmen, even when taking into account variables such as party affiliation, majority party status, seniority, electoral vulnerability, ideology, committee assignments, and district traits.

 

The authors also compared changes over time in spending within districts, to gauge how much a given district received when represented by a woman rather than a man. This method ensured that the estimated advantage for females was not simply a result of the types of districts they represent.

 

Second, the researchers examined the policymaking activities of women and men in Congress. They found that women sponsor and co–sponsor significantly more bills than men, and that bills sponsored by women get more co–sponsorship support from their colleagues. More generally, congresswomen score higher on various statistical measures of “network centrality,” meaning that they have stronger networks of collaboration than their male counterparts.

 

“Two fundamental jobs of congressional representatives are constituency service, which includes bringing home federal projects as well as other direct work with constituents, and legislating, which means writing bills and shepherding them through the lawmaking process,” said Berry. “The evidence shows that the women in Congress outperform the men on both levels.”

 

In what they dub “the Jackie (and Jill) Robinson Effect,” Berry and Anzia relate this “sex–based selection” to the experience of Jackie Robinson, the first African American to play Major League Baseball. It is not surprising that Robinson is widely considered to be one of the best players in the sport’s history, argue the authors, because he had to be the best in order to overcome the racial discrimination of the time.

 

Similarly, women running for Congress must be more motivated and more highly qualified than their male counterparts to win a seat. In fact, the worse the voter discrimination against women, the better women from those districts fare in Congress: the researchers found that congresswomen elected in more conservative districts, where they may face greater sex–based selection, achieve even larger advantages in spending than the average congresswomen.

 

“We emphasize that we are not arguing that women have more innate political talent than men, nor do we claim that all female candidates outperform their male counterparts,” Berry said. He pointed out that widows who enter Congress to fill their deceased husbands’ seats do not outperform congressmen, possibly because they bypassed the sex–based selection of elections.

 

“Our theory simply identifies a connection between the economics of discrimination and models of political agency: when sex discrimination is present among voters, women must be better than their male counterparts to be elected,” Berry said.

 

By Sarah Galer

 

 

 FYI

 

-          The Diversity Business Resource Center will be holding its first networking event in February.  Details will be available on our website under the Events tab in the near future.  Look for these quarterly opportunities to meet new potential clients, customers and partners.

 

Don’t forget that on the second Wednesday of every month, a representative from the Allegheny County MWDBE Department comes to the DBRC to counsel clients about the Unified Certification Program.  If you are interested in a 1/2 hour time slot between 9 am and 12 pm, please call our office at 412-322-3272.

 

If you have not heard, the Women Owned Small Business contracting program goes into effect 2/4/11, and will be implemented by the US Small Business Administration. 

Pennsylvania Women Work can help you change your life in the new year with “New Choices” 

• Downtown Orientation & First Class • Tuesday, February 1, 2011, Park Building, Third Floor • 355 Fifth Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA, Introduction to Computers Class • Wednesday, February 2, 2011,Park Building,Third Floor • 355 Fifth Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA
• Bethel Park • Wednesday, February 23, 2011, Bethel Park High School, 301 Church Road, Bethel Park, PA 15102,
• Beaver • Orientation & First Class • February 22, 2011, Community College of Beaver County, Main Campus • 1 Campus Drive, Monaca, PA 15061
• Washington • Thursday, February 24, 2011, Place to be determined

For more information about the free classes offered in the “New Choices” program, contact Lynda Broze at 412.281.9240

 

February 3 – Chatham - Faculty Lecture Series & Faculty Sherry will feature Dr. Lou Martin, assistant professor of history, presenting “The Deindustrialization of Appalachia and Poverty Knowledge in the 1960s.”  -  4:00 p.m. - Mellon Board Room – visit Chatham’s website for additional information

 

-February 4 - Planning for National Wear Red Day? -Wear RED on National Wear Red Day, to support awareness, research, education and community programs to benefit women. These funds help women by offering educational programs, advancing women’s understanding about their risk for heart disease and providing tools and motivation to help women reduce their risk to protect their health.

 

February 6 - Cheer on the Pittsburgh Steelers and benefit the

Squirrel Hill Community Food Pantry! - Who doesn’t love a Super Bowl party? Especially when our Pittsburgh Steelers are playing! Your Super Bowl Party can have an even deeper meaning when you also make it a ”soup-er” day for the http://www.sqfoodpantry.org/

February 9 - Employer Workshop - Creating a Successful Internship Program 1-4pm - Keystone Simulation and Education Center - 612 Frankfort Road. Monaca, PA 15061 - Cost: $35 – contact Michael Baltzer at 412.258.2675 to register and with any questions - www.theregionalinternshipcenter.org

 

 

Brown Bag Lunch

February 9 - 12:00 – 1:00pm

 

Speaker, Scot Teachout, Peak Performance Management.

Topic: No Pressure Selling - Understand practical ways to build a successful, sustainable sales culture in your business. Know how to handle lost opportunities; slipping margins; complacency; and market share.  Know how to analyze a successful sales and prospecting strategy.  Learn the top five things you should do to propel business sales

- Volunteers of America of Pennsylvania

1650 Main Street

Pittsburgh

FREE

RSVP: 412.782.5344 or volunteersofamerica@voapa.org

February 10 – BizMix at Heinz History Center – 5:30 – 7:30 PM - Reservations are $35 for Business Times subscribers ($45 for nonsubscribers) and include hors d’oeuvres and two drinks. The event will be held in the first floor Grand Hall - Heinz History Center - This is also a great opportunity to meet and visit with Business Times editors, reporters and staff in an informal setting. Visit http://www2.bizjournals.com/pittsburgh/event/34421?mp=1 to register

February 11- Pittsburgh Professional Women February Workshop: 

Should Your Business Be Certified? -1-3 PM - The Greentree Radisson - Members $29,  Non Members $39 - Register Online www.PittsburghProfessionalWomen.com

February 11 - Benefit Dinner at Eleven Contemporary Kitchen – 6:30 PM - big Burrito Group and the Food Bank invite you to a very special dining experience at Eleven Contemporary Kitchen in the Strip District! - Join Food Bank CEO Joyce Rothermel for an intimate 5-course dinner for 35 patrons in the Smallman dining room beginning - A special tasting menu with paired wines has been created by Eleven Chef Derek Stevens and big Burrito Executive Chef Bill Fuller. Don’t miss this unique opportunity to help the Food Bank while you enjoy an unforgettable culinary experience! Price: $150 per person, plus server gratuities.  big Burrito donates the food and wine, so the entire price goes to the Food Bank! Space is limited! Call 412-460-3663, ext 291 for more details

 

February 11 - Women Business Leaders Breakfast Series - Speaker: Kate Dewey, Principal, Dewey & Kaye – A McCrory & McDowell Company - Topic: “Non-Negotiable Management Practices Nonprofits Must Adopt to Thrive in 2011 and Beyond” - Time: 7:30 -9:00 am - James Laughlin Music Center, Chatham University, Shadyside Campus - Cost: $25 - Register Online: www.chatham.edu/cwe

 

February 12- NeighborWorks Western Pennsylvania will host a free First Time Homebuyers Workshop from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 12 at the Beechview Carnegie Library, 1910 Broadway Ave. Classes are taught by certified instructors with presentations by respected real estate professionals such as loan officers, real estate agents, insurance representatives and others. The classes meet or exceed the minimum standards of Fannie Mae, the Pennsylvania Housing Finance Agency and the Allegheny County/City of Pittsburgh Economic Development Departments and Urban Redevelopment Authorities - To register, call (412) 281-1100, ext. 121. Lunch will be provided.

 

 

-          YMCA Small Business Startup Training Classes

 

           February 15 - 6pm -9pm - CCAC North Shore Student Service Center

        

           February 16 - 11am - 2pm - YWCA 305 Wood Street Pittsburgh

 

This 12 week - 36 hour step-by-step program is designed for women who what to start a microenterprise (small business) and don’t know where to begin. Offered in cooperation with Community College of Allegheny County (CCAC), this course helps entrepreneurs hone the skills needed to create, manage, and grow a successful business. Microenterprise is defined as a business with five or fewer employees  and less than $35,000  in start-up capital. Offering day and evening classes!

 

Class Schedule:

 

Tuesday Evenings: 6pm - 9pm

February 15, 2011 - May 3, 2011

CCAC North Shore

 

Wednesday Afternoons: 11am - 2pm 

February 16, 2011 - May 4, 2011

YWCA Greater Pittsburgh

 

Cost: $199 (includes program curriculum and materials)
Payment plan available

 

Call for additional info 412. 255. 6749

 

February 16 - Business Etiquette: Enhance Your Professionalism and Advance Your Career – 4-5 PM  - Do you ever wonder what ever happened to common courtesy in the workplace?  This session will coach you on common etiquette mistakes and what to do better to advance your own career and those of your team - To register for this and other free coaching webinars, go to www.PittsburghCoaches.org.  Site updates regularly.

 

February 17 – Executive Women’s Council of Greater Pittsburgh Presents Transform your Business: Leverage the Power of Mobile Technology – 5:30 – 7:30 – Bistro to Go – 415 East Ohio Street – Preeti Gupte, VP of Global Business Development – ewcpgh@aol.com - Fees: Member: $20, Nonmember $30

 

Disability Resource Breakfast

February 17 - 8:30 – 9:30 AM

 

Speaker: Shannon Austin, Office of Vocational Rehabilitation

 Topic: Disclosure of a Disability or Criminal Record:  Is there a right choice? - Disclosure of a hidden disability or criminal record can make or break success on the job.  Learn the legal requirements for disclosure and the accommodations available for those who do.  Join us to learn how to choose what’s right for you

- Volunteers of America of Pennsylvania

1650 Main Street

Pittsburgh

FREE

RSVP: 412.782.5344 or volunteersofamerica@voapa.org

 

 

-February 17-26 – Attack Theater - The 25^th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee - Presented by the CMU School of Drama – for more details visit http://www.newhazletttheater.org/event/?event_id=453

 

February 18 - Women’s Power Lunch - 1:30pm – 3:00pm - Hyde Park Steakhouse, North Shore, Pittsburgh - Join us for interactive networking while eating lunch at one of Pittsburgh’s finest restaurants.- Valet parking is available for $5.00 to make your day easier - Please rsvp by Wednesday, Feb. 16th to Suzanne Froehlich if you wish to

Attend - suzannef@zoominternet.net or call 724-452-5152

February 20 - Coming in Hot - A play about women in the military, horror, humor, fear, cultural clashes! with award winning  theatre/film artist Jeanmarie Simpson - 3pm - Eddy Theatre  -Chatham University - Sponsored by Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom  -412-661-7149 - Iraq Veterans Against the War , Chatham University

February 25 – Pasta by Police With Love – Benefits Nicole Cleland, whose life was changed by a tragic car accident in early December, when a drunk driver hit her vehicle, killed her 7 year old child and unborn child – Brookline Blvd – United Presbyterian Church – 1036 Brookline Blvd – 4-8 – Price $7 for adults, $5 children – 50/50 and door prizes – Call Officer Christine Luffey at 412- 488-8425 for more details

 

February 26 – Women Etcetera! – Sponsor Lifestyle Health Group – “Wise Women Learn About Care: Giving It to Those We Love, Getting the Right Care for Others” – Donaldsons Crossroads, 3909 Washington Road, McMurray – 11-2 PM - $10 Members, $15 Guests – email Suzanne@womenetcetera.com with any questions

 

March 2 - CELEBRATE  the great women of Pittsburgh and SHARE with Cribs for Kids, our charity of choice. 

Questions? Call JoAnn R. Forrester, Celebrate & Share Co-Founder, at

412-440-6969 or Bonnie DiCarlo, Celebrate & Share Co-Founder at

412-480-5247

 

Sat. March 5th   Zonta’s 8th Annual Best of Chefs at Glass Slipper Ball –Four Points Sheraton- Grazing, Sipping, Dancing to Dr. Zoot! Over 30 top chefs compete for awards while showcasing signature hors d’oeuvres and desserts plus libation sampling.  Live Auction with some fabulous trips to Paris, Capri and Africa! Proceeds to benefit education for single moms as well as Girls Hope. For more info contact www. ZontaThreeRiversNorth.com or call 724-935-6100

 

March 5 - Seventh Annual “Laughter Is The Best Medicine” Comedy Benefit for our Pediatric Brain Tumor Fund - 8 PM - Radisson Hotel in Greentree - Comic Matt Wohlfarth(aka Buzz Nutley) and our favorite emcee, PJ DiLeo - Tickets are now available, and are only $20 in advance and $25 at the door. You can also reserve a table(10 seats/tickets) in advance for $200 – Order tickets:  http://www.samuelj.org , or by mailing your payment, along with a stamped, self-addressed envelope to Samuel J Foundation, P.O. Box 75, Oakdale, PA  15071.  Payment for reserved tables must be received by February 26 – Call  (724)693-9901 for more information

 

March 25, Gannon University, SBDC presents  

Women In Leadership Development (W.I.L.D.)

at the Bayfront Convention Center, Erie, PA 16507

Toll-free: (877) 258-6648 for more information

 

 

FYI

 

 

- January and February is Panera Operation Dough Nation

If you are planning a business lunch or coffee/lunch with a friend at any of the 26 Panera Bread cafés, for the months of January and February when stopping by your local Panera, donate your spare change in the “Share the Bread” Operation Dough Nation containers at the registers to benefit Magee

 

- Thursdays, January 27– March 10 - 6:00pm Meal, 6:30-7:30pm class meeting

First United Methodist Church of Pittsburgh invites you to join us in CLAIMING THE PROMISE, An 8 week Bible study exploring same gender love in relationship to Christian scripture. 

For people who make more than $58,000 or who are comfortable preparing their own tax return, there is Free File Fillable Forms. It also must be accessed through There is no software assistance with Free File Fillable Forms. It does basic math calculations. It does not support state income tax returns. It is perfect for the true do-it-yourself taxpayer who has preferred paper tax returns in the past. It also has free e-filing. here.

.

 

 

 

 

Save the Date!

 

Celebrate and Share, March 2, 2011,Call JoAnn R. Forrester, 412-440-6969 or Bonnie DiCarlo, 412-480-5247

**March 5, 2011,Seventh Annual “Laughter Is The Best Medicine” Comedy Benefit for our Pediatric Brain Tumor Fund, Call  (724)693-9901 for more information  

**Zonta’s 8th Annual Best of Chefs at Glass Slipper Ball - Sat. March 5th - Four Points Sheraton- . For more info contact www. ZontaThreeRiversNorth.com or call 724-935-6100

 **March 25, 2011, Gannon University SBDC Presents,  Women In Leadership Development (W.I.L.D.) Bayfront Convention Center, Erie, PA 16507Toll-free: (877) 258-6648 for more information

 

March 2- Waynesburg University and RIC Internship Fair - Email Trisha Hyatt thyatt@coropittsburgh.org for more info!

 

March 25 – 2^nd Annual Branching Out Luncheon Women’s Group of America Forest Foundation – 11:45 AM – 1:30 PM - William Penn Hotel, 530 William Penn Place – Individual Tickets $40, Table of Tickets $300 – Contact Laura Tuel at 202-459-1403 or ltuel@forestfoundation.org

 

March 27- March 28 - 3rd Annual PHAN Conference
Making Health Care Work for All Pennsylvanians - Radisson Hotel Harrisburg-Hershey - 1150 Camp Hill Bypass, Camp Hill PA 17011 - Shuttle vans will be available from Amtrak and the Airport - Conference Registration: $35 (includes reception, breakfast & lunch). Hotel rooms: $99, with free parking

May 8 - Registration Now Open For 19th Annual Komen Pittsburgh Race for the Cure - With the holidays behind us, it is time to focus on our Race for the Cure. This year’s Race will be held on Mother’s Day, in Schenley Park in Oakland. Register now at www.komenpittsburgh.org to take advantage of online fundraising and more.=

May 25 – 29^th Annual  “A Tribute to Women Leadership Awards Luncheon”  - 12-1:30 PM – Westin Hotel – 1000 Penn Avenue Pittsburgh – visit www.ywcapgh.org for more info – Nominations being accepted now - Deadline: 2/11  - visit website for the nomination form 

Today’s water crisis is not an issue of scarcity, but of access. More people in the world own cell phones than have access to a toilet. And as cities and slums grow at increasing rates, the situation worsens. Every day, lack of access to clean water and sanitation kills thousands, leaving others with reduced quality of life.

Glass ceilings aside, millions of women are prohibited from accomplishing little more than survival. Not because of a lack of ambition, or ability, but because of a lack of water. Millions of women and children in the developing world spend untold hours daily, collecting water from distant, often polluted sources, then return to their villages carrying their filled 40 pound jerry cans on their backs. And though women are responsible for the majority of food production in their villages, their productivity is severely limited by this constant struggle.

But the real tragedy is that the problem is so easy to solve. For just $25 www.water.org can provide clean, sustainable drinking water for one person for life, bringing opportunity, hope and possibilities to lives without them.

Women

• In just one day, more than 200 million hours of women’s time is consumed for the most basic of human needs — collecting water for domestic use.
• This lost productivity is greater than the combined number of hours worked in a week by employees at Wal*Mart, United Parcel Service, McDonald’s, IBM, Target, and Kroger, according to Gary White, co-founder of Water.org.

 

• Millions of women and children spend several hours a day collecting water from distant, often polluted sources.
• A study by the International Water and Sanitation Centre (IRC) of community water and sanitation projects in 88 communities found that projects designed and run with the full participation of women are more sustainable and effective than those that do not. This supports an earlier World Bank study that found that women’s participation was strongly associated with water and sanitation project effectiveness.  

• 884 million people lack access to safe water supplies; approximately one in eight people.

 

• 3.575 million people die each year from water-related disease.  
• The water and sanitation crisis claims more lives through disease than any war claims through guns.  
• Poor people living in the slums often pay 5-10 times more per liter of water than wealthy people living in the same city.  
• An American taking a five-minute shower uses more water than a typical person in a developing country slum uses in a whole day.

• Diarrhea remains in the second leading cause of death among children under five globally. Nearly one in five child deaths – about 1.5 million each year – is due to diarrhea. It kills more young children than AIDS, malaria and measles combined.  
• Every 20 seconds, a child dies from a water-related disease.  
• Diarrhea is more prevalent in the developing world due, in large part, to the lack of safe drinking water, sanitation and hygiene, as well as poorer overall health and nutritional status.

 

• Children in poor environments often carry 1,000 parasitic worms in their bodies at any time.
• In the developing world, 24,000 children under the age of five die every day from preventable causes like diarrhea contracted from unclean water.  
• 1.4 million children die as a result of diarrhea each year.  

Disease

• At any given time, half of the world’s hospital beds are occupied by patients suffering from diseases associated with lack of access to safe drinking water, inadequate sanitation and poor hygiene.  
• The majority of the illness in the world is caused by fecal matter.
• Almost one-tenth of the global disease burden could be prevented by improving water supply, sanitation, hygiene and management of water resources. Such improvements reduce child mortality and improve health and nutritional status in a sustainable way.

 

• 88% of cases of diarrhea worldwide are attributable to unsafe water, inadequate sanitation or insufficient hygiene. (9)
• 90% of all deaths caused by diarrheal diseases are children under 5 years of age, mostly in developing countries. (8)
• It is estimated that improved sanitation facilities could reduce diarrhea-related deaths in young children by more than one-third. If hygiene promotion is added, such as teaching proper hand washing, deaths could be reduced by two thirds. It would also help accelerate economic and social development in countries where sanitation is a major cause of lost work and school days because of illness. (6)

 

 

 

 

What Can You Do?

Join us as we combat the water crisis and work for the day when women are free from the all consuming search for water, making it possible for them to lead productive lives of hope and dignity in a world where everyone in the world can take a safe drink of water.

• Sign up to receive our monthly newsletter with our latest stories, projects, and ways you can help.
• Bring someone clean water for life: Donate.
• Get involved in your school, your community or go online and spread the word.
• Check out the Give Yourself section below for more ideas.

Water isn’t just a world crisis, it’s a women’s crisis. We can change the world, and we can do it one woman at a time if we have to.

Give Your Voice

We know you want to help, but we also know cash might not be that easy to come by. That doesn’t mean there’s nothing you can do.

You’re an influential person. No really. Whether your network includes thousands of dedicated followers or just a few close friends and family members, people listen to you. And getting our message out is worth plenty. While we can’t pay you to use your sway, we can make it easy and effective. We’ve created some social networking resources – avatars, signatures and the like — for you to use wherever and whenever you want, each with it’s own assigned virtual value. Using them is almost like making a cash donation, and best of all, they’ll make a difference. So use them everywhere and often.

Put your Facebook, Twitter or blog power to work for women around the world. If enough people spread the word, we figure that’s a donation worth millions in saved advertising dollars; money we can put to work providing water.

On the other hand, if you do happen to find a little something between the couch cushions, we happily accept cash donations

January /February Newsletter

 

January 20 - Volunteers of America of Pennsylvania Disability Resource Breakfast - 8:30 – 9:30 AM - Dr. Ron Gilardi, JD, PhD, Adjunct professor at La Roche College - Topic: The Hostile Work Environment: How to deal with Harassment - 1650 Main Street Pittsburgh – FREE - RSVP: 412.782.5344 or volunteersofamerica@voapa.org

January 21 – Pittsburgh Women’s Power Lunch - 1:30 to 3:30 p.m - Sonoma Grille, 947 Penn Avenue, Downtown - $28.00 cash at the door - RSVP must be received by end of business Wednesday,  Jan. 19^th - Attention all new ladies: Bring a friend or two with you and be prepared to tell us about your business and how we can help you.  Bring at least 50 cards, brochures or flyers with you. share with the group - RSVP Suzannef@zoominternet.net or Call 724-452-5152 - www.womenspowerlunch.com

 

January 25 ­– The Institute for Entrepreneurial Excellence and our new Center for Women in Business invite you to connect with dynamic women entrepreneurs – Duquesne Club – Coacktails & Hors d’oeuvres - $30 / person (cash bar) – Register by ieeregistration@katz.pitt.edu – 412-624-2271

January 27 – Announcing a new Meetup for Downtown Women’s Club - Pittsburgh! - Please join us for lunch and network with local business women. Resident CPA, Marlene Will will enlighten us on What the Tax Changes mean for you and your business - The Getaway Café - 3049 Sussex Avenue Pittsburgh - 12: 00 PM - www.getawaycafe.com – Call 412 343-1333 for more information - RSVP to this Meetup: http://www.meetup.com/DWCPittsburgh/calendar/15948287/

January 27  - Executive Women’s Council of Greater Pittsburgh – Motivating Generation X & Y - Dr. Jan Ferri-Reed, Best-selling author and keynote speaker -  Sheraton Station Square Hotel - 11:15 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. - EWC Member: $30, Guest: $40 – please register by email: ewcpgh@aol.com

 

February 11 - Pittsburgh Professional Women Workshop:  Should Your Business Be Certified? - from 1-3pm - The Greentree Radisson - Members $29  Non Members $39 - Professional Men and Women Welcome - Registration includes Lunch and Workshop - Prices increase to $35/$49 on Friday, February 4^th - To Register visit www.PittsburghProfessionalWomen.com

 

 

 

 FYI

 

-          The Diversity Business Resource Center will be holding its first networking event in February.  Details will be available on our website under the Events tab in the near future.  Look for these quarterly opportunities to meet new potential clients, customers and partners.

 

Don’t forget that on the second Wednesday of every month, a representative from the Allegheny County MWDBE Department comes to the DBRC to counsel clients about the Unified Certification Program.  If you are interested in a 1/2 hour time slot between 9 am and 12 pm, please call our office at 412-322-3272.

 

If you have not heard, the Women Owned Small Business contracting program goes into effect 2/4/11, and will be implemented by the US Small Business Administration. 

 

-          February 4 - Planning for National Wear Red Day? -Wear RED on National Wear Red Day, to support awareness, research, education and community programs to benefit women. These funds help women by offering educational programs, advancing women’s understanding about their risk for heart disease and providing tools and motivation to help women reduce their risk to protect their health.

 

-          YMCA Small Business Startup Training Classes

 

           February 15 - 6pm -9pm - CCAC North Shore Student Service Center

        

           February 16 - 11am - 2pm - YWCA 305 Wood Street Pittsburgh

 

This 12 week - 36 hour step-by-step program is designed for women who what to start a microenterprise (small business) and don’t know where to begin. Offered in cooperation with Community College of Allegheny County (CCAC), this course helps entrepreneurs hone the skills needed to create, manage, and grow a successful business. Microenterprise is defined as a business with five or fewer employees  and less than $35,000  in start-up capital. Offering day and evening classes!

 

Class Schedule:

 

Tuesday Evenings: 6pm - 9pm

February 15, 2011 - May 3, 2011

CCAC North Shore

 

Wednesday Afternoons: 11am - 2pm 

February 16, 2011 - May 4, 2011

YWCA Greater Pittsburgh

 

Cost: $199 (includes program curriculum and materials)
Payment plan available

 

Call for additional info 412. 255. 6749

 

 

-          February 20 - Coming in Hot -A play about women in the military, horror, humor, fear, cultural clashes! with award winning  theatre/film artist Jeanmarie Simpson – 3 pm - Eddy Theatre  -Chatham University sponsored by Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom - Chatham University - 412-661-7149

 

-           Pennsylvania Women Work can help you change your life in the new year with “New Choices” 

• Downtown Orientation & First Class • Tuesday, February 1, 2011, Park Building, Third Floor • 355 Fifth Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA, Introduction to Computers Class • Wednesday, February 2, 2011,Park Building,Third Floor • 355 Fifth Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA
• Bethel Park • Wednesday, February 23, 2011, Bethel Park High School, 301 Church Road, Bethel Park, PA 15102,
• Beaver • Orientation & First Class • February 22, 2011, Community College of Beaver County, Main Campus • 1 Campus Drive, Monaca, PA 15061
• Washington • Thursday, February 24, 2011, Place to be determined

For more information about the free classes offered in the “New Choices” program, contact Lynda Broze at 412.281.9240.

 

SAVE THE DATE

4^th Annual W.I.L.D. Conference at the Erie Bayfront Convention Center on March 25^th, 2011

 

Zonta’s 8th Annual Best of Chefs at Glass Slipper Ball – Sat. March 5th – Four Points Sheraton- Grazing, Sipping, Dancing to Dr. Zoot! Over 30 top chefs compete for awards while showcasing signature hors d’oeuvres and desserts plus libation sampling.  Live Auction with some fabulous trips to Paris, Capri and Africa! Proceeds to benefit education for single moms as well as Girls Hope. For more info contact www. ZontaThreeRiversNorth.com or call 724-935-6100

Hello again!  For fifteen years, the Home Instead Senior Care^® franchise network has been devoted to providing seniors with the highest quality care in their own homes, and to arming families with the information they need to make the best decisions about caring for aging loved ones.

 

In this second article of a three-part series for the Women’s Independent Press, Home Instead Senior Care would like to remind you that caring for a senior includes being attentive to your loved-one’s surroundings.   The following excerpt is from the Home Instead Senior Care^® network and Vickie Dellaquila, certified professional organizer and author of Don’t Toss My Memories in the Trash. For more information, please visit www.homeinstead.com.  Until next time…

 

1. THE SENTIMENTAL ATTACHMENT. The beloved prom dress represents the history and memories of the event; it’s not the dress itself. Save only a piece of the dress to make a quilt or display in a shadow box. Scrapbooking and converting photos to DVDs are other ways to save treasured keepsakes without all the extra mess.

2. THE SENSE OF LOYALTY. Older adults who’ve received gifts from family and friends may be reluctant to part with them. Encourage your loved one to give unused gifts back to the giver or grandchildren.

3. THE NEED TO CONSERVE. Seniors are the original green people. Appeal to a senior’s desire to help others. “You went through the Great Depression, now it’s time for you to let go and help someone else.” Counter a senior’s inclination to conserve by appealing to their desire to give back.

4. THE FATIGUE. A home with a lifetime of memories can easily become too much for an older adult to handle. Help seniors manage clutter by establishing online bill paying. Also, get your senior off junk mail lists, which can put them at risk for identity theft, and buy them a shredder.

5. THE CHANGE IN HEALTH. Seniors who have suffered a brain trauma or stroke, who are wheelchair bound or who are experiencing dementia may no longer be able to manage household duties, which could contribute to clutter. If you see a health change, encourage your senior to visit his or her doctor and consider a professional organizer and caregiver to help your loved one.

6. THE FEAR. Seniors often fear what will happen if they give up their stuff, like the older adult who saved three generations of bank statements. Use logic and information to help seniors understand it’s O.K. to let go.

7. THE DREAM OF THE FUTURE. Those clothes in the closet don’t fit anymore, but your loved one is sure that some day she’ll lose enough weight to get into them. Ask seniors to fill a box with clothing they don’t wear much and make a list of the items in the box. Agree that if they have not gone back to the box in six months to wear the item, they will donate that to charity.

8. THE LOVE OF SHOPPING. Today’s seniors have more money than any other previous generation of older adults and they love to shop. Clutter can become so bad seniors can’t find things and they repurchase items they already have, contributing to the clutter cycle. Try to convince seniors to cut back and to say “no” to free stuff.

9. THE HISTORY AND MEMORIES. Keepsakes represent history and memories. Encourage seniors to take old photos to a family reunion and share with several generations. Let seniors know they can contribute to the history of their time and leave a lasting legacy by donating to museums and historical societies, a theater and library, or churches and synagogues.

10. THE LONELINESS. Stuff can become a misplaced companion. Loneliness may also lead to depression, which makes it difficult for seniors to get organized. Consider the services of a professional organizer and caregiver. For more information, go to the National Association of Professional Organizers at www.napo.net, or visit www.homeinstead.com.

 

Other experts contributing to these tips include Katherine “Kit” Anderson, CPO-CD, president of the National Study Group on Chronic Disorganization; University of Kansas Professor Dr. David Ekerdt, who is coordinating a “household moves” project to determine the role that possessions play in older people’s housing decisions; and University of New Mexico Researcher Dr. Catherine Roster.

 

If you, or any organization of which you are a part, is interested in learning more, please contact our office.  We would be happy to speak to your group free of charge about this subject, our services, and even employment opportunities. 

 

Sincerely,

 

Rebecca Champagne, Human Resource Coordinator

Home Instead Senior Care

1102 S Braddock Ave

Pittsburgh, PA 15218

Phone: (412) 731-0733

Rebecca.Champagne@HomeInstead.com

By Bonnie Hassan

 

As we move into 2011, many of us think about the changes we’d like to make in our lives in the upcoming year.  Some of us made New Year’s resolutions, and many more of us passed on this tradition because we knew from past experiences that we just don’t keep them, no matter how much we’d like to, no matter how much we promise ourselves that this time will be different. 

 

I’d like to invite you to move into the new year in a different way, by adopting an ‘attitude of  gratitude’ at the beginning and end of each day.  Angeles Arrien, a cultural anthropologist, author and educator, says this about the power of gratitude:

 

            “The practice of offering gratitude bestows many benefits.  It dissolves negative feelings.  Anger, arrogance, and jealousy melt in its embrace.  Fear and defensiveness dissolve.  Gratitude diminishes barriers to love and evokes happiness, which is itself a powerfully healing and beneficial emotion.  It establishes a foundation for the challenging work of forgiveness in relationships when we have experienced betrayal, loss, broken promises, deceptions and disappointments.  Gratitude keeps alive what has meaning for us and fosters our capacity to apologize and forgive.”

 

2011 will bring changes to all of us.  That is a certainty, because change is a constant and is needed if we are to grow and evolve.  Some of those changes will be immediately positive and easily recognized as such, and others will present themselves as challenges that may seem to suck the life right out of us. 

 

If I’ve learned anything in my journey in this lifetime it’s that there is always a blessing, gift or opportunity presented in every challenge, if I’m willing to look for it. Sometimes those are easily discernable, but most times I have to look deeply within myself at the changes that have occurred within and around me as a result of that challenge, to be able to see the positive outcome that the challenge provided.  And yes, I’ll  admit that sometimes I’m unable to see the positive because I’m so caught up in the ’suckiness’ of the moment. It’s only as time passes and I look back and see where that challenge took me, that I’m able to recognize the blessing, gift or opportunity.  But each time I look, I can see the positives that were generated by the challenge.

 

And so I start each day with a prayer of gratitude for all that the Universe will bring to me that day, trusting that each encounter, each experience, each moment, offers me an opportunity to grow, to evolve, to live, in an even bigger, more positive way.  And each evening, just before sleep,  I spend a few moments looking back over the day’s events to find the blessings, gifts and opportunities that have been given to me  in the experiences that have come to me.  I offer up a brief prayer of gratitude for each of them, and begin my night’s sleep with positive thoughts and a positive outlook, knowing and trusting that on some level, in some way, I have been blessed, and I am grateful.  I know that like attracts like, and what I send out will come back to me.  So I choose, very deliberately, to put out good energy so that good will come back.

 

Gratitude opens the door to love - loving yourself and loving others.  Express your gratitude to the Universe for all that it brings to you each day, and to all who have contributed to the life that you have, because when that door opens, miraculous changes can occur in ways beyond your imagination and expectations.

Women’s Law Project

Pittsburgh Public Schools’ Title IX Audit: Girls Have Fewer Athletic Opportunities, Inferior Facilities, Equipment, Coaching, Publicity

A recently released audit of the nine high schools in the Pittsburgh Public Schools system has revealed a stark pattern of gender inequality in athletic programming for female students. 

The audit, released on April 7, 2010, was the work of Peg Pennepacker, an independent auditor with High School Title IX Consulting Services.  The audit was conducted at the request of the Women’s Law Project following complaints from parents and student athletes that girls were being treated unfairly.

 

The audit revealed that not a single high school is offering girls a fair share of athletic opportunities.  In order to give girls the same access to athletic opportunities that boys have, the school district has to create 784 new athletic opportunities for girls. 

The auditor noted numerous “moderate disparities” in the treatment of female athletes in areas including facilities and locker rooms, scheduling of practices and competitions, number of competitions, coaching, equipment and supplies, training, and publicity.  Among the findings:

 

•The boys’ locker room at Oliver High School holds 55 lockers, but the girls’ locker room holds only 43 lockers—along with all the equipment for the girls’ basketball and volleyball teams. 

•Brashear High School provides the coaches of football, boys’ basketball and baseball with office space, but there is no office space for the coaches of girls’ teams.

•At Langley High School, football and wrestling are given necessary protective gear, but the girls’ volleyball team does not have enough knee pads to go around.

•All high school football teams and six of the nine wrestling teams are supplied with protective gear, but none of the girls’ teams are: instead, they must buy their own.

•The girls’ basketball coach at Perry High School notes that many girls’ games are played without an athletic trainer on site, a problem the auditor characterized as “a serious liability concern.”

•The girls’ varsity, JV and middle school basketball teams at Brashear practice in the auxiliary gym, which is not regulation size, while the boys’ teams practice in the main gym.

•At Schenley High School, while the baseball team has access to the main gymnasium for practice during inclement weather, there is no indoor practice space for the girls’ softball team.

•Girls are unwelcome in the weight rooms at several schools.  One female student-athlete reported that the Oliver weight room is “for boys only.”  Female athletes at Schenley and Westinghouse said they would like more time in the weight room.

•The Westinghouse High School boys’ track team practices at better facilities (Schenley Oval or Oliver) than the girls’ track team, which uses a “poor to average quality” facility behind the high school at which hurdles are not available for the girls’ practices. 

•A Carrick female tennis player said that “sometimes our team doesn’t get a practice bus. We can’t walk to our courts,” which are 2.5 miles from the school.

•The varsity football teams of all nine high schools compete at Cupples Stadium, a “premiere facility” to which no girls’ team has equivalent access.  Football competitions are scheduled at the most convenient and desirable times; no girls’ sport receives equivalent treatment.

The attitude reflected in the audit’s findings can be summed up in a quote from an unidentified Westinghouse coach:  in Pittsburgh, “girls’ sports are not that important.” 

The audit, which left many questions unanswered (for example, the audit apparently did not examine or analyze the schools’ athletic budgets), is an important first step in addressing systemic sex-based discrimination in the Pittsburgh Public Schools.  We applaud the school district for taking this critical first step, and challenge the school board and PPS leadership to take prompt and decisive corrective action.