Long Lasting Relationships Count

28 years ago at dusk in a beautiful Catholic church lit with candles, I walked down the aisle on my Italian grandparents 60th wedding anniversary with my grandmother, who had not left her house for years, in a wheelchair wearing a beautiful green dress to witness this special occasion. She had lost her husband, my grandfather, 8 months prior. Her effort to be at the church that night in a wheelchair for the first time was a gift from above. Relationships count and my grandmother always showed me the most love which was deeply demonstrated that evening.

As this early dawn begins after the wonderful week of being with powerful women from around Central New York, I am grateful for long lasting relationships. My 22 year dedication to women entrepreneurs and my 28 year marriage to a man who has never minded he shares my heart with women. When I say, “I love women,” he isn’t jealous because he knows my heart is big enough for everyone and he is fine with my passion to change the world for the gender I love.

As I mingled with women in the early hours of registration on Wednesday at the POWER event, the sun shone through floor to ceiling windows in the lobby intertwining with the energy of the women in the room. In the darker conference room, there was a brilliant, radiant light coming from the women gathered to unite, support, and collaborate with each other for one day. I said in my ending remarks, “I hope today we all ‘vow’ to support and collaborate with women entrepreneurs more no matter if they are 30 or 70, make millions or thousands, are white or black, straight or gay, Catholic or Jewish, been in business 1 year or 20. It doesn’t matter. Women TIES embraces everyone because we believe women must support women first and foremost in business, sports, equality and life to change the world.”

Women have a secret weapon in business – its compassion and love of female relationships. They can be strong mentoring relationships or therapeutic ones. The relationships can exist between women who are similar or different. We are willing to “tie or commit” ourselves in what’s best for not only ourselves, but for sister entrepreneurs, knowing the world, like my heart, has enough room for everyone.

As the weekend begins hopefully this post inspires you to cherish the relationships you have with women in business today, motivates you to search for new ones to develop tomorrow, and reminds you of the long lasting ones which have gotten you here today.