FROM THE EDITOR
by Patti Samar
A few years ago, supporters in the community began giving me money to purchase additional tickets for student attendance at the Blue Water Woman of the Year Awards.
I looked around the community and realized there really wasn’t another nonprofit that was helping women, girls and members of the LGBTQ community, and so, late last year, I decided to establish such a nonprofit in order to allow the community to support the purchase of student tickets to the Blue Water Woman of the Year Awards, and also, perhaps, to support other programming that could be inspiring to women, girls and LGBTQ members in our community.
And so, I am very, very, very proud to introduce to you, and to the community, the launch of my new nonprofit, aptly called, “SheShip”…
The tag line under the logo reads: “Education/Enrichment/Equality for Women/Girls/LGBTQ Community.”
The mission statement of the nonprofit is:
To provide women, girls and members of the LGBTQ community with:
- Educational opportunities related to women’s issues and related to LGBTQ issues
- Assistance with removal of barriers to education
- Assistance with other causes that relate to the female experience/LGBTQ experience
So why the name SheShip? What does that mean?
I chose the term “She” because I wanted the pronoun to be female, but not age-related. For example, “girl” implies young gal, and “woman” implies adult.
“She” is ageless.
And I chose the word “ship” for a number of reasons. First, I was thinking of “friendship”…and the way women, in particular, cherish their female friendships. When you have friendship, you are not alone. You have a group of supporters.
And, because I am a sailor, “ship” for me also means crew…it takes a crew, working together, to make the ship sail, and I think that’s how many women move through life…we rely upon our friendships to help us through the rough seas, and we raise our wine glasses and toast one another during times of smooth sailing.
And though SheShip is definitely a term that implies female, it was important to me to include the LGBTQ community under the umbrella of this nonprofit.
As a business owner and the publisher of a magazine that honors women, I want ALL Blue Water Area women to feel open and included under the umbrella of this magazine. The 2018 fall issue of the magazine, for the first time ever, featured an openly gay woman…and I want women from all walks to life to know that their stories can be told on the pages of this publication. Blue Water Woman is open and inclusive.
To officially launch SheShip, I am planning a special event this fall. I will announce the details in the coming months on social media, and I hope you will consider supporting the organization and its mission to educate, enhance and enrich the lives of women, girls and the LGBTQ community in the Blue Water Area.
I want to give a shout-out and very special thank you to those who helped me launch SheShip: Attorney Janal Mossett of the Kelly Law Firm, who put together all of the official paperwork, and to SheShip board members: Kathy Swantek of St. Clair, Pamela Wall of Algonac, and my husband, Dale Hemmila of Port Huron.
Many thanks to all of you who advertise, read and generally support Blue Water Woman, the stories it shares, and the inclusion it aspires to achieve.
Peace,
Patti Samar
Editor/Publisher
Blue Water Woman
