Gomes opens inaugural Women’s Leadership Summit

The purpose of the summit was to advance and celebrate the value of women in society.

Farrah-Marie Gomes, interim dean of the College of Continuing Education and Community Service (CCECS) at the University of Hawai‘i at Hilo, provided the welcome and opening remarks to 300 participants at the inaugural “Hawai‘i Island Women’s Leadership Summit: Advancing Women through Knowledge, Strength and Community” held on April 24 at the Hilton Waikoloa Village.

The purpose of the summit was to advance and celebrate the value of women in society, cultivate relationships for networking, and move the conversation forward to develop leaders locally.

This event was the first public offering of the Hawai‘i Island Women’s Leadership Forum, a group founded one year ago by leaders moved by their passion to support and encourage women on the island. The forum is currently organized under CCECS.

The keynote address was delivered by Kata Issari, vice president for the Hawai‘i Region of Joyful Heart Foundation.

Summit participants also had the opportunity to preview movie clips from Rise of the Wahine, a documentary scheduled to be released later this year.

A total of 20 workshop options for personal and professional development were provided. Twenty-eight vendors were also on-site to showcase products and services to meet women’s needs.

The group intends to coordinate follow-up events and activities based on the feedback from summit participants.

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-from the May issue of the Ka Lono Hanakahi