I had the pleasure and opportunity to attend this year's Women's Business Enterprise National Council's "Salute" in Washington DC, on March 19th. Those of you who have attended, know what a truly exciting experience this can be. It was an honor to be invited to the White House, where the Top Corporations of the year were recognized, among those were local members, TXU, JPMorgan Chase, SBC, UPS, and PepsiCo. In addition, we had our first Women's Enterprise Leadership Forum meeting of the year. Billie Bryant with CESCO, Inc., who is the Council's other Forum representative and has been very actively involved with the Forum, was my gracious guide. The mission of the Forum is to promote, translate and advocate the needs, issues and benefits of women's business enterprises and to facilitate corporate and supplier business opportunities for WBE members of WBENC. The Women’s Enterprise Leadership Forum is comprised of Task Forces which include Membership, Marketing/Communications, Government, Mentoring, Business Development, Strategic Alliance, and Top Corporations. It is such an honor to be representing the Southwest Council because several of our programs, like Done Deals, are being introduced on a national level.

In reference to our local Council, we have developed new opportunities for WBE positions. When the Call for Service notice goes out this summer, we will ask for nominations for the open Corporate and WBE positions within the Board of Directors, the WBE Ambassador, and the WBENC Forum Representative-At-Large. There will be position descriptions and terms listed on the WBCS website, as well as a Nominee Information form to be completed. I encourage you to seriously consider nominating yourself or a fellow WBE member to one of the positions.

And most important, don't forget the WBENC National Conference and Business Fair will be held in New York City, June 24 – 26th. This is a wonderful opportunity to meet with Fortune 500 companies from across the nation. Our Council has a great incentive for WBEs who register to attend or exhibit – a chance to win a complete registration package or Distinctive Breakfast sponsorship at our 2004 Round Up. If you would like further information, visit www.wbenc.org/WIB2003.

Please feel free to contact me with any questions, concerns or suggestions you have at ambassador@wbcsouthwest.org. I will be more than pleased to work with you so that you can get the most out of your membership in the WBCS.