Founding Moms Provide Education, Support for "Mompreneurs"

By Jay Hipps, Hacienda Network Staff Writer

Starting and running a business can be difficult tasks, and doing so while raising a family can present its own unique challenges. That's part of the thinking behind the Founding Moms, a Chicago-based organization with chapters worldwide, including an East Bay/Tri-Valley group that began meeting in November, 2014.

The group is a collective of offline meetups and online resources where mom entrepreneurs can exchange, connect and learn from one another. Any mother who owns a business, wants to own one, is working on a creative venture, or wants to be around other business women in the area can participate.

The local chapter holds regular meetings on the second Friday of each month from 11:45 am to 1:30 pm at Redcoats British Pub and Restaurant in downtown Pleasanton. "Each of our meetings is focused on a particular topic that moms want strength and support on, so it could be something like how to maintain your health and your family's health while you're growing your business or social networking," says Kelly Wolf, who along with Mai Vu and Claudia Castillo comprise the Tri-Valley chapter's leaders or "Mompreneurs."

Past meetings have addressed a wide variety of subjects, including "Your Hot 'What Do You Do?' Statement," "Wealth Without Worry! Get Aligned with Your Money Energy," "How to Set Up Your Business so the IRS will NOT Audit You," "Balancing Mommyhood & Mommy-preneur: It Takes a Village," and "What Your Feet are Saying About Your Business: Just in Time for Barefoot Season."

"We have a lot of connections in the Tri-Valley with brilliant entrepreneurs and coaches, to bring in their knowledge," says Vu. "That's why I think this group is so useful and so powerful for mom entrepreneurs."

Another interesting aspect of the group is that many of the speakers come from within the East Bay/Tri-Valley chapter itself. "You don't just come and sit and listen, you come and be part of this community and be part of the leadership and be known in the community and be featured," says Vu. "We will find opportunities for you to speak, we will find opportunities for you to showcase your business so that you get practice in speaking, you get practice in getting clients, and you get valuable advice and support in growing yourself and your business."

This month, the chapter is one of the sponsors of a special event, Summer LoveFest 2015. Founding Moms Wolf, Vu, and Castillo, along with other expert Bay Area speakers, will talk about loving your relationships, your career, your food, your money, your community, and your purpose. Summer LoveFest 2015 takes place on Sunday, July 19 from 11 am to 5 pm at the Mission Plaza Shopping Center, 1991 Santa Rita Road, and inside Curves for Women at the same location. Proceeds will go to support the Tri-Valley Young Performer Academy.

For more information on the East Bay/Tri-Valley chapter of Founding Moms or to purchase Summer LoveFest 2015 tickets, access www.meetup.com/FoundingMoms-EastBay. The site for the umbrella organization is at foundingmoms.com.

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