Public relations specialist educates and empowers women on financial fitness
Marcia worked for the Social Security Administration for more than 26 years. Her last position was as a public relations specialist in Seattle. She was responsible for women’s issues, giving her the opportunity to attend many financial conferences for women. During this time she became passionate about issues surrounding women and their money. As the years passed, her job included more and more administrative duties and less and less speaking. Marcia became very unhappy and dissatisfied with her job. It made her wonder what was wrong with her. She questioned how she could dislike the best job she’d ever had—a job with a good salary, excellent benefits, and a great office. So she kept going to work—miserable and unhappy.
In April of 2002 Marcia read a quote: “Our PURPOSE in life is to find our gift, perfect it and give it back to others.” (author unknown) She knew it was time for her to step outside her comfort zone and take the early retirement opportunity her employer was offering. When Marcia retired on August 3, 2002 she began living her dream to educate and empower women on financial fitness by founding Money Wi$e Women. Making the decision to retire early was the most powerful decision she’s ever made.
Marcia began hosting Money Wi$e Women Forums in November 2002. Today, she’s the President of Money Wi$e Women Educational Services, a non-profit organization. Marcia has hosted more than two dozen forums in the Puget Sound area of Washington State and Boise, Idaho educating more than 1,000 women. She’s been the featured speaker at numerous conferences and organizational meetings.
Marcia fulfilled another dream in September 2005 when she published her first book Becoming a Money Wi$e Woman: Getting Your Financial House in Order. For two years Marcia was a columnist for The Kitsap Sun, a newspaper that serves the Kitsap peninsula in Western Washington. She hosted her own radio show Let’s Talk About Money for a few months and she’s a regular guest on several morning television shows in the Seattle area. She’s a mentor for the Wi$e Up Women program for the U.S. Department of Labor, Women’s Bureau. She is a member of the National Speaker’s Association (NSA) and Vice-President of Membership for the NSA Northwest Chapter. Recently Marcia received the 2006 YWCA Women of Achievement award in Kitsap County.
Today Marcia is living her passion and purpose to educate and empower women like Jennifer.
“Your workshop this past Saturday was exactly what I needed to give me the courage to continue the fight through the blackberry patch of my financial problems and their effect on every part of my life. I made some phone calls this morning which I had been putting off for years. I have been so paralyzed with fear and shame that I have been stuck, unable to deal with even some of the simplest issues in my financial life. I hope that as I use the tools and the knowledge I am receiving now because of the Forum I attended, that I will begin to recover and move forward again and eventually have a story which will be of value to other women.”
What can we learn from Marcia?
When you identify your purpose in life, you become aligned and start to live an authentic life!
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