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Of all the counties
in this state, it seems that here in Charleston, Dorchester and
Berkeley counties, we have more than our fair share of women
with the courage and determination to manage their own
destinies.
Is it because we
have few large corporations and a service-based economy that it
necessitates a creative mindset when it comes to earning a
living?
Or perhaps the
women of the Lowcountry just have more of that independent
streak reflective of the South Carolinians who came before them.
The reason
doesn't really matter. Here is where you will find the
enterprising women of South Carolina.
You only need to
look at the number of women-owned businesses that have taken
root in our area. Last year alone, some 17,000 women-owned
businesses in the tri-county area generated close to $2 billion
in sales.
These two
statistics say a lot, but they don't tell the whole story, not
by a long shot. The statistics are the economic result. The real
story is in how the Lowcountry came to benefit from that result
— one woman at a time.
At the Center for
Women, the state's leading non-profit dedicated to helping women
develop and fulfill their life goals, we see women from all
walks of life, from every age group and in every economic
situation.
But there is one
"statistic" about the women who come to us that stands
out from all the others: They all share an overriding desire and
determination to know more, to do more and to be more.
There was Laura,
who came for counseling and went on to start her own business.
And Daphne, who
left a dead-end job and went back to school for a graduate
degree.
Beth, a
stay-at-home mom who needed a job after years away from the
workforce and found one by networking at a center program.
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Each came to the
center not for a hand out but a hand up — for networking and
counseling, for advice and guidance and yes, for just some good
old-fashioned woman talk.
These are just a
handful of the stories. In 2006, the center touched the lives of
over 4,700 women through workshops on how to improve their
businesses, programs on achieving greater emotional, financial
and personal health, support groups, individual counseling
sessions, legal clinics and networking events and by providing
referrals to collaborative agencies for specific crisis
situations.
Little wonder
that demand for the services offered by the Center for Women has
burgeoned right along with the economic impact of women-owned
businesses.
Since 2001,
attendance at our events and conferences alone grew fourfold to
over 2,100 attendees in 2006, and we saw a tenfold increase in
individual counseling sessions.
Last year, our
staff recruited volunteers who tirelessly racked up over 800
volunteer hours, helping us keep our operating costs down and
our program and fund-raising expenditures at 94 percent of
budget.
In fact, the
demand for our services has been so great that the center
outgrew its location on Savannah Highway and recently moved into
new offices at 129 Cannon Street in downtown Charleston.
Here is where you
will find the enterprising women of South Carolina — at the
Center for Women, founded by enterprising women to help women
succeed every day and a Lowcountry success story in its own
right.
Feel free
to visit us at our new location at 129 Cannon Street or visit
our Web site at www.c4women.org,
and see for yourself what "can
do" women can do.
Susan Romaine
Board President
Center for Women
129 Cannon St.
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