50th Anniversary Story

By: Sheri Cole

I would not have my career if not for WOMEN'S WAY! I started my professional journey at a WOMEN'S WAY member agency and from there moved over to become an employee at WOMEN'S WAY in the 1990s. It was there that I met my core professional network of friends, advisors, and mentors. I can't even begin to explain the importance that working at an organization that truly valued women's voices had on me. WOMEN'S WAY offered me the opportunity to step up and learn so many new skills – write a grant for the first time? sure! develop one of the organization's first websites? sure!

That was a time in my life when I had the opportunity to explore what I wanted to do with my professional life and received support to follow my path. When I left WOMEN'S WAY, it was the end of an era for me – and many of my colleagues – but I ended up going on to be hired as the first Executive Director for The Working Wardrobe, which received its first grant from the WOMEN'S WAY Discretionary Fund. That small seed grant to a start-up organization paved the way for the founding volunteers to bring their vision to scale. Over 25 years later, I am still at The Wardrobe, and it's thanks to WOMEN'S WAY that I have the skills needed to move our impact forward.

Photos courtesy of Sheri Cole

This story is a part of the WOMEN'S WAY 50th Anniversary Storytelling initiative. To learn more and submit your own story, please visit: womensway.org/WW50