February 14, 2023– The community is invited to celebrate International Women’s Day 2023 in the first of its kind collaborative event series with Pass the Torch for Women Foundation and athLEDA Foundation. Both organizations are excited to present an event that will leave guests feeling inspired, empowered and energized to honor this year’s theme: “Embracing Equity”. Attendees will come together with fellow community members, hear from influential guest speakers, be entertained by live musical performances, and more.
Pass the Torch for Women Foundation’s Executive Director, Samantha Burke, shares, “As an organization, we are dedicated to creating experiences in our city that invite the community to build meaningful, long lasting relationships in an environment that welcomes all stories and backgrounds. In partnership with athLEDA Foundation, the International Women’s Day event series will be nothing short of inspiring and we are excited to showcase how we can lift the mission of an adjacent nonprofit and operate out of abundance. This is an event the city will be talking about for the remainder of 2023 and beyond.”
The International Women’s Day celebration begins with the first event in the series – an evening reception hosted at Maven Space on Monday, March 6th. The evening will include entertainment from DJ French Conntxn and attendees will enjoy the company of community leaders and peers. The reception will kick off the week and will lead into the annual breakfast, where the conversation will expand on how community members can embrace equity and drive change.
Tracey Hathaway, athLEDA’s Chief Academic and Athletic Officer shares, “As a Black woman who has been part of leading the innovation of STEM mentorship across the NCAA landscape for young women athletes of Color, I am honored to stand with Pass the Torch for Women. Within our foundations, we must embrace equity within our communities of Color by expanding our collective reach-not as two but as a single driving force focused on the impact of equity together.”
On March 8th, an inspiring keynote speaker and panel will spotlight the theme of “Embracing Equity”. At the start of the event, attendees will enjoy live music and have the opportunity to support local artist, Shaunt’e Lewis. The keynote speaker, Alfreeda Goff, is the former Senior Associate Commissioner and Chief Championships Administrator at the Horizon League and a recent inductee to the Pennsylvania Sports Hall of Fame.
The panel emcee, Karrah Herring, is the Chief Equity, Inclusion & Opportunity Officer for the State of Indiana. Panelists include a variety of inspirational women including Josette Robinson (Senior Community Leadership Officer at Central Indiana Community Foundation), Tiffany Hanson (Director of Supplier Diversity & Business Growth at Morales Group), Angel Henry (award winning author & speaker), and Pippa Mann (seven time Indianapolis 500 competitor, coach, and Shift Up Now Leader).
The registration site is live to secure tickets for the International Women’s Day event series. If you plan to join the Foundation in March, please visit this website to secure your ticket. If you are interested in being an event sponsor, please take a look at the sponsorship package and reach out to Samantha Burke at samantha@passthetorchforwomen.org.
About Pass the Torch for Women Foundation (PTTFW): With their peers being in the minority within top decision-making levels, how do women create the connections that allow them to grow as leaders? How do they gain the skills and support to move up the ranks? The Pass the Torch for Women Foundation is addressing this issue in a unique and powerful way. We are creating a community of women and men committed to supporting women throughout their career lifecycles, from college students to emerging leaders to top executives. This community comes together to provide mentoring, networking and professional development to help women reach their full potential.
