In this issue: President's Letter WOY Recap Member Spotlight Articles of Interest Upcoming Events Jobs Membership News Sponsor Spotlight President's Letter Happy Holidays! As the year comes to a close, WWPR looks back on a great one! 2012 marked a number of milestones for the organization -- we launched our first affiliate chapter -- AWPR/Atlanta Women in Public Relations; we created a senior Advisory Council to lead us in a five year strategic plan; and we offered new types of events to explore the different sides of the communications field. We made these developments in order to provide the best professional development, education and networking opportunities to you, our members. WWPR's continued mission is to be a platform to help you succeed in your careers. In 2013, we are excited to announce a renewed focus on professional development events, mentoring opportunities, and networking -- but of course we want to hear from you and what you want and need! Let us know as we are here to serve you! The WWPR board can be reached at
info@wwpr.org. Some highlights to look for in 2013 include:
- Annual Meeting & Luncheon will feature keynote speaker Geoff Livingston, a leading social media voice, author, and marketing specialist. Livingston will guide attendees through a journey of lessons learned based on the influence of social change efforts and will examine the importance of staying up to speed on the next generation of media technology. Event will include the board vote, induction, seated lunch and custom dessert. Join us on Thursday, January 24 at Noon – more info and register here.
- On February 13th hear from AARP’s social media lead on how they manage and execute a robust social media campaign to baby boomers.
- On March 20th join us for a discussion on how PR professionals can get past counting impressions for measurement and begin to actually measure social change.
- April will bring to our members a new event – Minute Mentoring – a unique event where women are encouraged to lead and succeed by women who do.
- And get ready for our signature events Emerging Leaders Awards and Washington Women of the Year 2013 – both poised to be great events honoring our local industry!
Enjoy the holiday season and I look forward to connecting with you in 2013! Cheers, Tina
WWPR President
DC-Area PR Community Celebrates the Washington PR Woman of the Year The
23rd Annual Washington PR Woman of the Year luncheon was a day of celebration for the honorees and all attendees of this year's event. Two hundred fifty women and men came together to support PR Woman of the Year Stephenie Fu and honorees Debbi Jarvis and Gwen McKinney. The event had something for everyone, including pre-luncheon networking, a fundraising raffle for WWPR's pro-bono client Thrive DC, and a book signing with keynote speaker Charlotte Beers. These highlights, combined with an inspiring and diverse group of honorees, drew a record crowd of public relations professionals spanning a range of experience in the industry. The event was well attended by leaders in our industry and the entire audience was energized and inspired throughout the luncheon. Keynote speaker Charlotte Beers dazzled the crowd with her wisdom drawn from years at the helm of international advertising conglomerate Ogilvy & Mather Worldwide and as Under Secretary of State to Colin Powell, among other achievements. Her current focus on helping women be "leaderly" through realizing their own potential was an inspiration to all. She affirmed that this is the "year of the woman" in Washington, challenging the audience to "be ready" because we will all be tested in our leadership abilities. Following on Charlotte's heels was a presentation of the 2012 PR Woman of the Year finalists in a
moving video montage highlighting each woman's unique approach to her work. The 2011 WOY recipient, Heathere Evans-Keenan was on hand to announce the winner. She told the crowd that the WWPR award is a unique and esteemed honor that strengthened her confidence before announcing the 2012 PR Woman of the Year, Stephenie Fu. Stephenie, principal at SLF Strategies, glowingly remarked, "The fact that this award is from WWPR means everything. To have a network of women supporting each other is critical in this field." Fu went on to say that her career has been inspired by her passions and fueled by "the fire in her belly" that reminds her why she's worked so hard. Whether you were able to join us at this year's luncheon, or if you just want to see what you missed, you can view a highlights video of the event
here. We are excited that this year's WOY luncheon was a remarkable success and are already looking forward to next year. For those of you who attended, we would value your feedback to ensure next year's event is even better.
Please complete the online survey to be sure your voice is heard. Thanks to our guests and
sponsors for another great year and we look forward to seeing you in 2013.
Top Member Spotlight By Beth Stewart This month's Member Spotlight features WWPR's 2012 Washington PR Woman of the Year award winner Stephenie Fu of SLF Strategies. As a junior at American University, Stephenie Fu quickly hit the intern circuit, determined to find her place in the communications industry. Fu soon found her calling upon interning at a global agency. "[This] is where I fell in love (with PR) and knew where I wanted to be -- lots of variety of topics and work, high energy, with fun and crazy mixed in." After spending more than 20 years at global agencies, Fu embarked on her own by developing SLF Strategies. Serving as principal of her own business has given Fu the opportunity to place focus on her passions; social change issues, public health and nutrition. This passion is also evident in her pro bono work for Whitman-Walker Health where she provides marketing counsel with a focus on strategies and tools specifically with fundraising in mind. Fu's advice for those wanting to break into the communications field is to be ready to work hard and able to laugh at yourself at times. "Find the fire in your belly, your passion, and feed it," said Stephenie Fu.
Follow Stephenie Fu on Twitter Read more here on this year's Washington PR Woman of the Year.
Articles of Interest Upcoming Events WWPR Job Board Post a Job Membership News November New Members Hillary Stroud- National Air Traffic Controllers Association (NATCA)
Mary Crawford- Burson-Marsteller
Jamie Nolan- Solar Energy Industries Association
Cory Churches- Ten Ten Communications
Lisa Dale Jones- Speaking with Soul
Nancy McCormick-Pickett- American Chemical Society
Tara Meadows- Ogilvy Washington
Marie Dauenheimer- Medical Illustration Studio
Ashley Wolos- Ogilvy Washington
Devon Cohen- Edelman
Holly Wetzel- American Gaming Association
Randee Ulsh- Ogilvy
Irena Kellas- TAC
Laura Keiter- Media Matters of America
Danielle Hagen- Nahigian Strategies
November Renewals Heidi Schoenberger-Cobert- Cobert Communications Group
Patricia McNally- Freelance Consultant
Heathere Evans-Keenan- Keenan PR, Inc.
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