DNC convention offers‘elevating’ experience
for professional women

Women Impacting Public Policy is a national bipartisan public policy organization. This organization represents more than 505,000 women in business and women business owners nationwide.

The bipartisan nature of the group means that its representatives are at the GOP Convention this week just as they were at the Democratic National Convention last week.

One of WIPP’S immediate concerns is the imminent implementation of new rules and regulations of the Small Business Administration which directly and adversely affects the ability of women-owned businesses to obtain SBA loans.

We heard about WIPP’s concerns up close last week in Denver when we attended a luncheon to hear Susan Turnbull, among others, speak. She urged members to continue to be pro-active to assure that WIPP’s collective voice is heard.

We also heard the good news about the phenomenal growth of WIPP. We introduced ourselves to Laura Boyd of Oklahoma, a delegate to the convention and a founding member of WIPP.

We (the press) shared a table with two business owners from Denver and an attorney from New Jersey. It was obvious that they were smart, successful, informed and on top of the issues and that each of them had a good sense of humor. That’s a requirement for anyone attempting anything.

The Wednesday meeting and luncheon was held in the Pinnacle Room (pinnacle as in “lofty peak”) of the Grand Hyatt Hotel in the heart of Denver. As we waited for an elevator to take us down 34 floors, we continued to introduce ourselves. I explained to a professor of women’s studies at Colorado University in Boulder about the content of my Tribune column. “It’s Seinfeldian,” I explained. “It’s about nothing.”

“I like nothing,” she smiled.

As the six of us boarded the elevator car, I said that if there was such a thing as a “theme” to my columns, it would be an elevator theme. I told them that I loved to write elevator stories and asked if they had any.

“Well, what about all of the funny things you can do in an elevator?” Debra Brown asked. She is a chief operating officer of a Boulder business.

“Like what?” I asked.

“Like facing the back of the elevator instead of the front,” she replied.

“Let’s do it,” I challenged.

Immediately six to eight mature, brilliant and informed business women who sit at the table with Congress to impact public policy — or encourage others to — indulged me in a few seconds of silly fun as we collectively turned to face the back of the elevator car. There was only one person waiting on the first floor, and she looked only mildly puzzled. It didn’t matter.

“That’s the most fun I’ve ever had in an elevator,” Debra laughed.

We all agreed and laughed and said goodbye, (probably) never to meet again.

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