Who could have known that Maia Chapter’s 41st anniversary would take place at a time where face masks and social distancing, as well as mass demonstrations against racial injustice, would not only dominate the news, but also our lives?
With the arrival of COVID-19 things changed quickly and drastically in mid-March. A stay-at-home order grounded most of us for almost 90 days – some continuing to work from home, others furloughed or laid off. We have been reminded of our own mortality with so many people in southeast Michigan contracting the Corona-virus and too many succumbing to it.
We are very grateful that our members have thus far remained well.
In uncertain times like these, when we are separated from loved ones, unable to work or pursue our interests as we normally do, it becomes clear what is truly important – health, faith, family, friends, work and so much more.
We are glad that we only had to cancel our March meeting and then we were able to pivot from in-person meetings to virtual meetings starting in April. Many thanks to Mary C. and Sharon W., who volunteered to host the Zoom-meetings.
Fortunately, our speakers agreed to take on the challenge of presenting at a virtual meeting, so we were able to keep the educational benefits of membership going strong and invite many guests and members from other chapters, allowing us to expand our networks and learn new skills.
Unfortunately, we had to reschedule our April 25th Women Together event to September 12th. Because of the continued uncertainty related to the virus, we are exploring various options for this fundraiser.
Maia Chapter always has been, and continues to be, a place for all women who are interested in continued learning and friendship across race, religion, nationality, and social class – we are proud of the Maia sisterhood! This year we welcomed Kati B., Lisa H., Samantha N., Janine A., Lisa B., LaDonna B., Wendy Z. and Cristina S. into our chapter. Despite all of our recruiting success, we remain at less than 30 members and thus will not qualify for the Best Practices Award. However, we continue to fulfill the other rigorous national requirements and thus hope to attain the level of Striving for Best Practices.
We would not be where we are today without all of you who contributed their time and expertise in so many ways to the chapter. Hats off to our committee chairs who served as leaders throughout the year: Professional Development – Mary C., Membership – Meghan J., Newsletter – Karen M., Publicity & Fundraising – Della C. and Stephanie R., Woman of the Year & Top Ten - Lisa B. and Delores M., Audit – Barbara A., and Nominating Committee – Meghan J. Thank you so much!
We are also thankful to our award winners who contributed to the chapter in many and varied ways. Congratulations to our 2020 Protégé – Wiebke H-S, Woman of the Year – Sharon W. and Top Ten Candidate – Janene T.!
As your 2019-2020 Maia Executive Team, we are thankful for your confidence and support and hope that we have met your expectations. We are always eager for your input, so please let us know your feedback and ideas.
Since Mary S. has served as Maia Chapter’s President for the last 2 years, she will move off the board. Thank you so much for your leadership, Mary!
Janene T., Sharon W., and Wiebke H-S, are willing to continue on in some capacity on the Board but that will be decided by our member vote at the July meeting. At the same time, we are in search of new additions to our Executive Team to keep things fresh and get new ideas.
Please consider how you can best contribute to Maia Chapter through a board or committee chair position. Many hands make light work!
We look forward to being with you all at our July 21st picnic meeting at a local park. Meeting outdoors, with masks, socially distanced, and with individually boxed meals will allow us to stay safe while we reconnect. Those of you who attended the special parking lot meeting a few weeks ago know how fun it was to see everyone! Plus, we will accomplish some vital chapter business in electing our new officers for the coming year.
Stay safe and be well!
Your Maia Chapter Executive Team 2019-2020
Mary Shindell, President
Janene Ternes, Vice President
Sharon Walker, Treasurer
Wiebke Hagendorf-Schroeter, Secretary
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