The Women's Current

‘It never occurs to a woman that she could possibly win and we’re seeing that changing now.’ – Patti Russo

Patti Russo is a nationally recognized leader focused on improving the quality of life for women.  An advocate for increasing the number of women in elected office Patti explains that it's not a job for everyone. 2020 marked the 100th anniversary of the 19th amendment – 100 years of women having the right to vote. And 2018 saw an increase in elected women. For Patti, there is much to talk about and this is a very timely time... So we talk about:

The start of her passion for women in politics

The vision 

1992 - the year of the women - really?

2017 and 'I'm not going to take it anymore'

A thick skin and so much more is necessary

#MeToo Movement

Are passion and a pulse enough?

The increase in younger women and women of color

Women's biggest hurdle

Golf, country club and the network

AIN'T NO STOPPING US NOW

Patti is the Executive Director, Campaign School at Yale University - a non-partisan, issue neutral political campaign training program for women interested in running for public office or campaign management. Based at Yale Law School, the program attracts women from both the United States and internationally.

Patti is also a member of the council of women’s health research at Yale and chairs its Philanthropy and Communications committee.

For over 25 years Patti has held numerous leadership positions in public, private and not for profit organizations centered on increasing the number of women in the political arena. Patti has held leadership positions on federal, state and local political campaigns.

While an undergraduate student at George Washington University, Patti served as an intern to US Congresswoman Bella Abzug – who inspires her to this day.

Michelle Moran - Learning how to cope and faking it till she made it.

Michelle went from living in her car with her 6 month old son, to becoming the pioneer of wearable skincare and a multi-million dollar business. In the middle, she bet it all. Michelle Moran, Founder & Creator of Skineez®, CEO of Legends & Heroes. Skineez® Skincarewear®, which uses patented microencapsulation technology to deliver natural cosmetic ingredients to the skin to firm, tone, and slim.

Twenty years ago she was couch surfing – yes – it’s a thing. Her friends had no idea that she was actually living in her car, a single mom with a six month old son. Learning how to cope and faking it till she made it. Michelle wanted to be a newscaster but was held back from that goal by her dyslexia. She knew she had to be the best that she possibly could be. For Michelle that meant making sure that having dyslexia did not hold her back from a life of giving back. Hiding her literacy issue, Michelle forged ahead. Starting with the creation of Legends and Heroes T-Shirts from her car to the invention of wearable skincare, Michelle has been giving back.  And so, even while living in her car, creating Legends and Heroes, Michelle donated part of her proceeds to the children in the inner cities. Did I happen to mention that Michelle’s son is on the autism spectrum?

Where there's a will, there's a way. Rose's son Abram is on the autism spectrum. For Rose Morris, the will to make sure that her son had a safe place to sleep, showed her the way. That way led to the creation of the Safety Sleeper. As a result of her will, parents of children with special needs are sleeping better knowing that their children are safe. Rose did not wait for someone else to solve her problem. Because of her drive, so many families are feeling more secure. Rose created Abram's Nation, a company that with The Safety Sleeper has served over 1500 families.

Recognition for what Rose and her company have created and continue to create,is ongoing. In 2010 Rose received the 40 under 40 award from Pittsburgh Magazine. Abram's Nation has been honored for contributing to the special needs community.  In addition to the Safety Sleeper, Rose Co-Founded Fund It Forward. Fund It Forward, is a non-profit Rose created to help families get adaptive equipment not covered by insurance. 2018 saw Rose appointed to the Western Pennsylvania District Export Council. The Pittsburgh Business Times honored Rose with the 2018 Women of Influence Award. And Abram's Nation was awarded the 2017 Exporter of the Year by the Small Business Association.

Rose has adapted and redirected life plans over the years. She has learned to focus on what is important, taking it one day at a time. Rose's mission is simple - providing practical products with real solutions for special needs problems. Rose's vision for Abram's Nation -to be devoted to special needs families around the world.

Find out how it all started and  more. A conversation with Rose Morris, Founder & President of Abram's Nation and Co-Founder of Fund It Forward. The beginning, the middle and what's next.

Finding the right fit with Jené Luciani A bra is a very personal item. And the right fit can make all the difference. So how do we demystify the experience of finding the right fit? I turned to the ‘Bra Guru’ Jené Luciani. Yes, the ‘Bra Guru’, author of The Bra Book: An Intimate Guide [...]

Theresa Carroll, is a successful business woman who balanced family and career. And she learned how to succeed in a male dominated business.Take a look at the top five women entrepreneurs in Greenwich, CT and you'll find Theresa's name.

Although a graduate of Western Michigan University, Theresa had grown up in an era where a woman's main job was to be good a wife. And so, that's what she set out to do. Two years after her first child was born, the National Organization for Women was founded. The following years saw more women entering the workforce and things were going to change. Itching to do something while her children were in school full time, Theresa made her debut into the world of entrepreneurship.

As a result, in 1991 Theresa became co-owner of Carrol & Calani, a casting company located in New York City. NYC was the ideal location because the commute allowed her to be home to make and enjoy dinner with her family.  Career and family balancing act.

Then Theresa found her passion in the hospitality space.  And with 1997 came the co-ownership and building of the award winning restaurant Thomas Henkelmann and the Homestead Inn.  Theresa applied her business expertise and acumen along with her insight into the international luxury hospitality market. Then she added those skills with her decades of interior design experience and the result was spectacular. Theresa had and continues to create, a modern showcase of elegance, warmth and sophistication.

‘Boy, it’s been an interesting time to be a woman because we’re groundbreaking.’

So how did this mother of seven become a successful business woman?

A successful mother and a successful business woman...here's some of what you'll hear:

Balancing career and family

Male aggression

Fighting to be listened to

Not being afraid to ask

Passion

Creating the Homestead Inn and Thomas Henkelmann

Being assertive, not aggressive

Reopening in the midst of the pandemic and what she has control over

Meet Persis ... She just turned 93!

She's taking her daily 2 mile walk!  Persis drives her new 2020 pearl white Subaru to wherever she wants to go, pops the hatchback, pulls out her walker and off she goes!

Persis is a woman who keeps busy. She defies the myths  - she's on social media, she texts and she Zooms. And yes - there's the 2 mile daily walks. These days she does divide them into two 1 mile walks, morning and afternoon. Her knee replacement less than two years ago slowed her down just a little. Or so she says.

We talked about how Covid has changed her life and how she makes sure to stay positive and engaged. Persis saw how so many single women in her retirement village appeared to be depressed during the three months that they were quarantined. She made it a point to reach out to them, to let them know that they were not alone.

To pass some of the time, Persis was on Facebook tracking down old friends and acquaintances. If they were no longer around, she found their relatives and delighted them with stories that she shared. In either case, they laughed, they cried and they connected. Persis keeps in touch with them, it's never a one-off. You'll hear how she tracked down one after a month long search. Because of her perseverance, she now has a new friend in Arizona.

Persis and her late husband Bill started Appplewild, an Independent elementary day school in Massachusetts. Persis taught in the Newtown Massachusetts public schools, the Chapin School in New York City and was the Director of Admissions at the Windsor School in Boston, A graduate of Vassar College, Persis is the proud mom of Liz, a physician in Maine, Bill, a venture capitalist in Florida and Tom, Director of Financial Operations at a NYC non-profit. And let's not forget that she is grandmother to seven.

Hear the rhythm. Feel the beat. Music has the ability to move you no matter what kind you listen to. On sunny days, rainy days, blue days, whether happy or sad, there is something to be said for hearing the rhythm and feeling the beat.

Debbie Shapiro Gravitte is a Broadway star, Tony Award winning actress, singer and dancer with both Grammy and Emmy nominations. Debbie is also a producer and Founder of the All-Female Production Company Group5Productions. And I am delighted to say, Debbie is my guest this week.

Debbie won her Tony for Jerome Robbin's Broadway and is one of Broadway's biggest personalities. She made her debut in the original cast of They're Playing Our Song and went on to appear in Perfectly Frank (Drama Desk Award Nomination), Blues in the Night, Ain't Broadway Grand, Zorba, Chicago and Les Miserables. Debbie has been in the Encore's series productions of 'The Boys From Syracuse', 'Tenderloin' and 'Carnival' at New York City's City Center.

She's performed her nightclub act worldwide, from New York's 54 Below to London's Pizza on the Park. Debbie is a favorite with Symphony audiences and has sung with over 175 Orchestras around the world. There's more. Debbie co-starred on the CBS series 'Trial and Error' and has starred in several PBS specials. Debbie also has four solo CD's to her credit. I almost forgot, you can find Debbie in the Bette Midler movie 'Isn't She Great'.

Daring to be different

For Martina Kwan, born in Hong Kong to a German mother and Chinese father, being different started right there. Martina was 8 years old when the sounds of war were surrounding her and her family in war torn Beirut, Lebanon. The next 2 years of her young life would be the defining years that have led Martina to living fearlessly.

Is it ever too late to try something new? Think again. At the age of 50 Martina took her hobby of race car driving up a notch, and became the world’s only Female Chinese/European race car driver. Did I mention that she is a three time champion? That’s 3-time champion in a male-dominated racing category in her Porsche 911.

By now you must know that this is not all that Martina has accomplished. She worked for some of the biggest finance and accounting firms, PricewaterhouseCoopers, KPMG. And she was Senior Management for the Ian Schrager properties. Not finished yet…Martina became an entrepreneur, winning Telly and Emmy awards for the first company she founded, So! Animation. A candid conversation about daring to be different. Daring to be different and how an Arabian horse changed a hobby into a champion.

2018 was an explosion of women running for office, approximately 256 women candidates. And at least 90 of those women were elected to the U.S. House of Representatives. Among those women was a 32 year old woman named Katie Hill.

When Katie Hill was asked about running for Congress in 2017, it wasn’t something that she had been contemplating. She had a successful career as …… and she had no prior experience with politics. But after the 2016 election, she decided, Why Not?

Katie was among the youngest members of the historic freshman class that flipped the house and the first openly bisexual member of Congress. But that’s not all. Katie was elected by her colleagues to be the Freshman Co-Representative of Leadership. A position that meant that Katie worked directly with Nancy Pelosi, Speaker of the House.

And then the world came crashing down. Scandal, nude photos and a relationship with a campaign staffer had her resigning from office. The photos had been taken by her now ex-husband without her consent and published in what can only be called, revenge. The relationship with a campaign staffer was poor judgement, as Katie has admitted.

Schools all over the country are scrambling to figure out how to open due to the pandemic. Several months have passed since schools closed and went to online teaching. For many students and parents it has been a difficult transition. Now think about all of the parents with special needs children and their children. Regina Skyer has spent her career advocating for the education of children with disabilities. And the pandemic has brought even more attention to their struggles.

When does a parent start to advocate for their child? What can a parent do? Are there actual resources? I turned to Regina Skyer, founder of Skyer Law, a special education law firm. Their sole purpose: advocating, mediating and litigating on behalf of children with special education needs.

Regina is a leading special education lawyer. After a fifteen-year career as a social worker and special education administrator, she entered the City University of New York Public Interest Law School for the sole purpose of working with special needs children and their families. Prior to opening her practice, Regina worked as a pro-bono volunteer attorney at Advocates for Children. In 2015 she published a resource for parents of preschool age children, How to Survive Turning 5: The handbook for NYC parents of special needs children.