ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Tuesday, July 9, 1996 TAG: 9607090077
SECTION: BUSINESS PAGE: B-8 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: ALMENA HUGHES STAFF WRITER
WITH ONLY ONE BLACK member, the Valley Network for businesswomen hopes to diversify its membership by featuring minority women.
The speakers for an upcoming meeting of Valley Network Business and Professional Women have all the qualities its members expect. They are "strong, dynamic, active professionals with good leadership and organizational skills," said president Judy Morris.
They also have an additional quality that Morris would like to see more often among the group's membership: They're black.
"Any group needs to show the diversity in the community, needs to know what its needs are and what its experiences have been," Morris said, explaining why the currently almost all-white Valley Network BPW will on July 16 feature high-profile black women talking about their particular career challenges. The organization, whose meetings are always open to all guests, hopes this program will help it attract more minority members.
Speakers will include Marilyn Curtis, corporate secretary of Hamlar-Curtis Funeral Home, and Audrey Wheaton, director of Northwest Child Care Center. Both began their careers during the early 1950s, before many workplaces were integrated.
And both will share tales of obstacles such as finding work in the field for which they were trained and securing money for a business venture.
But their stories will hardly all be about hardships. In many ways, race can be advantageous, Curtis said, not because of equity legislation but because when you're competent and qualified, standing out in a crowd can attract favorable attention and opportunities. Among her own experiences were being the first black president of the William Fleming Parent-Teacher Association and receiving a call to serve on one of former Gov. Douglas Wilder's state economic development program committees.
Of course, it helps to be in touch with people who know where the opportunities are, and that's where organizations such as Valley Network BPW come in. Part of a national nonprofit, nonpartisan organization, the 10-year-old local chapter offers chances for its members to establish alliances among themselves. It also gives scholarships to women who are returning to college, annually honors a young career woman, presents informational and self-development programs and seminars, and endorses state legislative platforms.
The group meets at noon on the third Tuesday of each month at the Holiday Inn-Tanglewood. Dues are $80 per year; optional lunches cost $10 each month.
The local chapter's approximately 30 members include executive secretaries, health care professionals, corporate directors and various entrepreneurs. Wheaton, who recently rejoined Valley Network BPW, is its only black member.
"I'm not sure why that is," Wheaton said. "It's a good way to meet people and network. I get ideas for the center, ideas for speakers. We need each other."
"It's important to work together with all races to try to bring harmony," Curtis agreed, although she said that her professional networking memberships are mostly in organizations related to the funeral business.
"But there are still some problems of acceptance, and people are not always sure that all arms are outstretched to black women," she said, though not in specific reference to Valley Network BPW.
Morris had one more possible explanation for low minority participation. She and program coordinator Evelyn Bradshaw couldn't easily find their targeted audience to invite them to the upcoming meeting.
Neither the Roanoke Chamber of Commerce nor the Small Business Administration has listings of minority businesswomen. The Council of Community Service's "Civics Directory" lists professional women's organizations but does not note their race.
Yet, Curtis said, "there are many minority-owned businesses and minority businesswomen out there," including doctors, dentists and various entrepreneurs, plus many minority professionals hidden within large corporations.
Wheaton suggested that the most effective search method probably is word of mouth.
To reserve a place at the luncheon, call Susan Kilmer before noon Friday at 989-4584.
LENGTH: Medium: 87 lines ILLUSTRATION: PHOTO: ROGER HART Staff Audrey Wheaton (left) and Marilynby CNBCurtis (right) will be on a panel next week, discussing challenges
faced by black businesswomen. Judy Morris (center) is president of
Valley Network Business and Professional Women, sponsor of the
event. color.