It’s an old storyline with a new twist: women helping women – this time, at a mentoring event sponsored by the Baltimore Business Journal (BBJ). Murthy Law Firm founder and president, Sheela Murthy, was among the successful, high-powered women executives and entrepreneurs who were on hand for the BBJ‘s 2014 Mentoring Monday event, held April 7, 2014, at the Grand Historic Venue (the old Tremont Hotel) in downtown Baltimore. Murthy was one of more than 40 business mentors who agreed to share their wisdom – personal and professional – with some 150 mentees, mostly mid- and upper-level managers, accomplished women in their own right.
For the mentees, it was an opportunity for some valuable face-time with some of Baltimore’s leading businesswomen: five minutes to get personalized, one-on-one career coaching and business advice from each mentor. For Murthy and her fellow mentors, it was a chance to give back to the community – to share hard-won lessons on building a business, achieving work / life balance, and fulfilling the goals of a lifetime. For everyone in attendance, it was an opportunity for stimulating conversation, networking, and camaraderie.
Murthy said, “I’ve been very fortunate to have strong women role models in my life, from a very early age, who taught me that I could achieve whatever I set my mind to. I want to give that confidence to other ambitious women who are working hard to get to the next level in their careers, and help them to learn from the experiences I’ve had as an immigrant woman entrepreneur. I can never repay all the generous people who helped me along the way, so I feel an obligation to ‘pay it forward,’ and help the next generation.”
That evening, Murthy attended another event to help Baltimore-area women and their families: a meeting of the Women’s Leadership Council (WLC) of the United Way of Central Maryland (UWCM), which discussed UWCM’s Family Stability Initiative. This path-breaking social services project is designed to prevent family homelessness and promote self-sufficiency, by providing temporary housing, as well as financial education, job training, and intensive case management services to families in crisis. Murthy said: “The burden of homelessness often falls especially heavily on women and children. Stabilizing families helps women, and makes a real and lasting difference for them!”
The common denominator for these events: Sheela Murthy’s commitment to empowering women and children, helping them to reach their full human potential.
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