The Power of a Woman
By Anne Kelemen

The Working Women’s Survival Show was a wonderful event for women to come together. It was held at the America’s Center in St. Louis, Missouri. I was so impressed with the way that the entire event was put together. There were over 600 exhibits that included clothes, merchandise, services, food, games, and free gifts. The objective of the Working Women’s Survival Show was to provide working women with a day of pampering and encouragement.

One of the fabulous guest speakers that the show had was Kathy Najimy. We know her best from Sister Act, “Veronica’s Closet”, and Rat Race. The show had been a great experience the entire weekend and was about to get better. It was just about time for Kathy Najimy to take the stage. There was so much excitement in the crowd for the main speaker. Every chair was filled and the whispering of voices could be heard from the huge crowd that had gathered behind the seating area. Everyone had come to the center stage to hear the humorous story of Kathy Najimy’s life experiences.

As soon as Kathy Najimy was introduced as her royal highness, which she wished to be addressed, we all knew that we were in for a treat. A loud thunder of applause finally silenced so that Kathy could begin speaking her story. Kathy came to this show with a message for all women to hear. That message was, “there is nothing on this earth sexier than a working woman.” Kathy grew up in a middle-income family and has worked for everything that she has. She started as a telegram bunny deliverer, where she got to meet her idol Bette Midler.

In 1975 she moved to San Diego to do what she loved to do, act. She followed the advise of “do what you love and pay the rent.” In San Diego, she had small acting roles in a theater program. In her spare time she would take several trips to Los Angeles to try to get on game shows to make some extra money. Another career path she tried was as a long distance operator where she really got to try out her acting with different amusing voices while answering phones. From San Diego she moved to New York to make her dream come true. As it turned out, Kathy Najimy has accomplished so much not only as an actress but also as an activist for AIDS. She believes in the power of women. If women ran the world it would be a better place. There would be equal pay for equal work, less abuse, more achievements, and “peace, peace, peace.” Women would heal the world. We would be able to do what we loved and not be treated without the respect that we deserve.

Today, working women and the struggles they go through every day just to make a living for themselves inspires Kathy Najimy. Women are told that size matters and are praised for being a size zero. Women are agonizing over not having the perfect body. That is where Kathy Najimy draws the line and urges women to take back their lives and helps women learn to live comfortably in their bodies. I have taken so much from her speech to heart and for that I will be a stronger woman. We as women, have the power to design our lives. It is important that we all find happiness and make our dreams come true. Everything that we do does matter. Kathy Najimy is a great role model to all women with her actions and strong voice of “you can do anything.”

I felt honored to be included in this event with Cheryl Anderson and Susan Barone from Uniquely Me. They feel events like this are an important "grass roots" way to get the word out about what they are doing with all their "Websites for Curvy Women". We all got the opportunity to talk to customers and get fabulous feedback on what you do and do not want.

In addition, the management from Hawksley & Wight and Austin Reed Suits came to the show, to work with and meet these wonderful women. They worked one on one with many women. We all learned about the the quality of the Hawksley & Wight Suits and what makes them different than the others out there.


Susan Barone also gave a workshop on "Creating a Confident Wardrobe - the 3'F's of Fashion".Those three F's were Fit, Fabric and Fun. She talked about starting with a base wardrobe , like your favorite pant and jacket from Hawksley & Wight and then building this core wardrobe over time by adding mix and match skirts and patterns to extend your base."Always buy clothing that fits. Don't look at the size in the label. Just look in the mirror and see if it fits and ask yourself if it makes you feel good" said Susan. Susan suggested having one great day to dinner dress and one fabulous social ocassion dress in your closet for when "you don't have anything to wear".By buying a core wardrobe in quality fabrics and adding dresses in novelty prints or fabulous silky textures, you will also feel better in what you are wearing. Having these key items in your closet that "really fit", will help you always feel confident and know you look great. She then talked about adding a little "fun" to your wardrobe with sexy lingerie and a bathing suit that doesn't look like your grandmothers suit.

We all got the opportunity to model in this show. And we even picked a few last minute models. One of our models was actually a member from Uniquely Me and she had come to the show to meet both Cheryl and Susan. I think she was a little surprised when she was waiting to meet Susan and the first thing out of Susan's mouth was "You are beautiful.Would you like to model in our fashion show?"

Overall, it was kind of like "girls night out" except it lasted for an entire weekend.



Find "Wardrobe Workshop Fashions" at these links:

Hawksley & Wight Suits

Day to Evening Dresses

Social Ocassion Dresses

Lingerie for Curvy Women

Swimwear Selections