First Posted: 1/7/2015
LIMA — Toledo is about 80 miles from Lima, a distance some women have been traveling for years to get fellowship and support from other women.
Now, those women can stay right here in Lima.
So Now Professional Network for Women is starting a chapter is Lima. Based in Toledo, the organization is a networking group for women that meets monthly.
“[It is] a mixture of inspiration, motivation and support,” said Deborah Spero, a So Now member working to start up the chapter in Lima.
Spero is from Findlay, but she has spent time in Lima and sees what she calls a “need” or “gap” that can be filled with So Now.
Since deciding to start the chapter and scheduling its first event, Spero said the feedback from women in Lima has been “overwhelming.”
“Women are so excited to come check it out,” she said.
The group’s first event will begin at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday at Sycamore Lake Winery, Columbus Grove.
Each meeting usually lasts about an hour and includes a guest speaker and some speed networking, in addition to dinner.
The first meeting of the Lima chapter will feature Jenn Wenzke, founder of So Now, speaking about her story and what to expect from being a So Now member.
“Our focus is completely on helping each other and empowering each other,” Wenzke said. “So Now is a great place for you to come.”
It’s also just for women. A concept Wenzke thinks is important so that women feel comfortable and can “let your hair down and just be yourself.”
And accordingly, the speakers sometimes focus on issues or topics central to being a woman, she said.
“We get speakers who have figured out how to juggle it all,” Wenzke said. “And not feel guilty. … Speakers we bring in are women who share their life and how they did it.”
Wenzke wants women to get the things their missing in life from the group.
“I think one thing women are missing is a connection and appreciation,” she said. “Whatever we do matters and that is fulfilled, I believe, when they come to the event.”
