Gauteng Women in Insurance (GWII)…
Double digits, a decade, 10 years on, what an exciting milestone to reach!
It stemmed from a small gathering of four women bemoaning the fact that we don’t play golf, don’t cycle and very rarely make the effort to get out there and meet other women doing what we do, insurance. What followed was a breakfast meeting with Carla Jordan and the FAnews team (Rianet Whitehead and Michelle Schreuder-Rankin) and voila, the idea became a reality – with our first event at Emerald’s Offices, where we hosted 80 women. The noise of happy chatter was deafening to the extreme, the weather was perfect, and the eats were simply to die for. There we all were - 80 women who had received a word-of-mouth invite and decided to take up the challenge, leave work early and for once, do something for themselves!
It did not just stop at ‘for once’, in fact, there were many occasions thereafter. Annelot Schrijver (a Founding Member) became our first President and with that, came the task of finding a suitable name and brand that would align with our vision, speakers and events that would elevate our purpose and values which remain today:
- To belong to a dynamic, professional insurance industry association that promotes the personal and professional growth of women;
- To share your knowledge and expertise with industry peers and fellow members;
- To participate and build connections through networking at industry events;
- To cultivate professional self-confidence and personal friendships;
- To learn through speakers, workshops and articles designed to broaden your knowledge, enhance your position and meet professional needs; and
- To give back to the communities that we serve through our charity initiatives at our events.
So, let’s break this down a little…
Belong - we have a network that provides a safe environment for insurance women to network.
Share - we have heard the most interesting talks from many a different walk of life, from climbing Kili to losing one’s son and dedicating her life to helping others, from working with Madiba to learning how one should manage their finances.
Participate - Committee members will all talk of the hard work that goes behind finding sponsors and appropriate speakers for events, not to mention the tears and sweat that preparing that event brings - it’s not easy and my thanks go to all those ladies who have taken up this challenge to give back to the industry to which we belong.
Cultivate - it is our duty as mature women and to nurture our young peers to enhance our professionalism and confidence in the industry.
Learn - the Leaderwalks, inspired by Michelle Dee (Past Deputy President), is just one of those examples where learning is done in a fun but formal manner. Michelle’s legacy in this venture continues and it’s awesome to see that the Leaderwalks remain a regular feature in the events calendar.
Give back (to the community) - by giving, you receive and whilst writing this note, I am drawn back to one of the charities we supported - Handbag Project - The Jes Foord Foundation. We donated our old handbags, which included several care items, for victims of rape and/or assault.
We have not had a single event where we have not given back to the community, and it humbles me to think there is so much more we need to do to spread a little more joy in Gauteng.
So, with this all said, there are two more things that I would be remiss not to mention:
Marilyn Dullmaier (GWII Administrator), handling admin involving a group of women cannot be simple, thank you for always going the extra mile to assist us.
Michelle Schreuder-Rankin (GWII Secretary and Founding Member), I wish to congratulate you, Mich, for your 10 years on the Committee. You have seen Presidents and Committee Members come and go. You have been through all the highs and lows of organising successful events. You tirelessly and resiliently hunt down sponsors – and all of this behind the scenes. Thank you for your contribution to the growth of our amazing group of women. I am sure the legacy you have crafted will live on, not only at the cornerstone of GWII, but it will touch the lives of the future women too, who will become a part of what you have built.
Charlene Webster
Hamtern Financial Services