As a young mother of four, Christina Andrews’ husband left her with no money, no house and no job.

Yet she built up a number of technology based businesses, raised four high achieving kids and even started an online university to help single parents. She inspires other women to overcome challenges.

This is her story:

Meet Christina Andrews

A Modern Greek Triumph over Tragedy

Paralysis, Pins and Needles

I was born in Greece and lived my life like most other normal children, until the age of five when I became paralyzed. I simply woke up one morning and couldn’t walk.

I spent the next few months in hospital undergoing a battery of tests; no-one knew what the cause of my paralysis was. I was given hundreds of injections.

Tonic

When not being pricked like a human pin cushion, I encouraged the other sick kids to get better so that we could all play together. The nurses saw me as a ‘tonic’ for the other kids and would wheel me all over the children’s wards spreading good humour and encouragement with my natural ebullience.

Home

I was eventually allowed to go home and had a nurse that would visit me daily to give me injections and check up on me.

I eventually started to walk again and ran around a lot; I had a lot of time to make up!

I started school and loved it. I was an “A” student who would do everything right. I was a “goody-goody”.

Filthy Rich Australia

When I was 8 years old, my dad’s cousin who lived in Australia, told him that he was ‘filthy’ rich and that he should be in Australia not in Greece. Dad had also heard that you could find money everywhere; so we packed up everything and came to Australia.

Reality Bites

Once we arrived, needless to say, life wasn’t quite what they expected; money wasn’t everywhere. We were forced to rent one bedroom in a house where we all lived and slept together. We shared the kitchen, the lounge, the bathroom and the yard with the owners.

Mum went from being a happy housewife in our Greek village to working long hours in an assembly line factory. Dad went from having a good government office job to also working in a soulless factory.

Understandably, this was a shock to their system and it took a long time to recover.

In the first two years we kept moving houses and schools. There was no stability and we all pined for our ‘good, simple life’ back in Greece.

Finally we moved to a house in Prahran and to a new school, the first where we stayed for more than three months! None of us could speak any English and so needed to attend special classes. There was a stigma being a ‘Wog’ – a ‘new’ Australian, with our funny accents and strange food.

Star Student

In spite of all this I adapted well and thrived at school, becoming house captain in grade six – a huge achievement, given my inauspicious start to Australia. However hardship was never far away.

In my fourth grade year, my father had an accident at the factory and was unable to work and earn an income. We lived on my mother’s salary – a paltry $28 a week. The years passed and through scrimping and saving we were able to buy a small house close to the beach in Melbourne. By now I am in my teens and an early maturing, attractive Greek girl and a worry for my overly protective Greek father.

Marriage at 18

I joined various clubs including a dancing club, where I met my future husband at the age of 15. I married Paul at 18 so that I could move out of home as my father was very strict. I really wanted to go clubbing like my other friends did.

It was expected of me to marry at a young age so that I didn’t remain ‘on the shelf’.

I went to University as a married woman and in my final year of my teaching degree I fell pregnant with my first child. I was also teaching and working on weekends at the same time. Like many migrant families we were keen to start a business and make some real money.

Business Birth

In December 1983, we bought our first business, a video library. I worked seven days a week and always took Peita, my baby, to work.

I hired a school girl for a couple of hours a day to take Peita for a walk and to give me a break.

My husband, who worked as an engineer, would relieve me from the shop at seven at night so I could go home and put our baby to bed.

I did this for six months and decided to ask my mum to stop her work so she could look after the baby. It was a full life, but we were building a business and were becoming very good at it.

Booming Business

Over the next few years we opened another five stores and had two more children.

Things were great at that time. Both my husband and I where running the businesses and the money was rolling in. Unfortunately we didn’t have the training nor the wisdom to make our money work for us, though we thought it would never run out.

In fact things were going so well that we sold our business to an overseas company and my husband became the managing director of that subsidiary company.

Now the ‘real’ money would roll in, or so we thought. A rude shock awaited that would change my life forever.

Boom ‘Crash’

In the early 1990’s we had the economic ‘crash’. One of the banking organizations in Perth, Australia went under, and took down the American company we had sold our video stores to.

Although we had ‘sold’ our business for millions of dollars, we hadn’t received all our money, so we tried to take our stores back but to no avail; the authorities went after my husband as the director of this new company – the other director was in the United States and unreachable.

We lost absolutely everything; we went from being multi-millionaires to having nothing to our name overnight. In fact the sheriff and I became best friends at the time, that’s how often he visited my house looking for assets to reclaim.

During this stressful time I became pregnant (on the pill) to our fourth child.

This was exciting and painful at the same time as we didn’t have enough food nor money to survive, let alone support another child.

But then Dean arrived, the only boy among three girls. We have always been eternally grateful.

By now though we were desperate for income to support our family of six. I went back to teaching and my husband tried a couple of failed attempts at other businesses, because by this time my husband felt like a failure and wasn’t able to get things working as he used to. It also didn’t help that our so called ‘friends’ deserted us.

From Good to Bad to Worse

When we had money in abundance – the mansion, fast cars and so on, our house was like a railway station at peak hour; people were in and out constantly; we were always very generous entertainers. When we lost everything there were only a couple of people who encouraged and supported us. It was enough to cause a nervous breakdown, which I had. There seemed no way out.

But, with the grace of God I found the strength to be able to get up and continue with life.

A Ray of Light and my Strengths Shine Through

I started work in the telecommunications industry and quickly realized there was huge potential for developing a business. I was proved correct and the business which I started then remains highly successful today.

During this time I recognized that I had potential but that it was untapped, so I embarked on a steep personal development trajectory, attending any course I felt would improve me. I was determined to change my life, no matter what it took.

I also met a business associate who took me under his wing and believed in me and my ability and drove me towards my pasion at all times.

The message I received loud and clear was that it doesn’t matter how many times you fall, what matters is how many times you got back up.

Still Challenges despite Success

Life was still not easy. We had lost millions of dollars and I had the wind taken out of my sails and yet despite all odds I got back up and kept going regardless of what everyone thought. I also became confident in my abilities and became very astute at business.

My husband at this stage went to work overseas and has lived there for the majority of the time. I was left to bring up four children on my own, which I did and ran two businesses on my own. My husband and I eventually separated, though he remains in their life.

My life has since been balancing family and business. It’s been tough, but rewarding.

The setbacks have made me more resilient.

No Excuses

What is your excuse? Who knocked the wind out of your sails? Have you had the guts to get up and go one more time? Or are you allowing your circumstances to keep you where you are? What are you afraid of? Failure? But what if you succeed? How will you ever know?

It’s a Risk. Take it!

Did I have to take risks? You bet! I risked my children growing up and being ‘drop outs’ in society. I risked loosing the money I didn’t have. I could have kept going with teaching and receiving a salary, but that wasn’t good enough for me. I’ve always believed that my children and I deserve the best that life has to offer. I didn’t want to live a mediocre life. I didn’t want to just get through week to week or month to month. I took a chance. I have the most beautiful and well balanced children you could ever meet. I have extremely successful businesses and I am always adding new adventures and businesses to my bow.

Goal Driven & Passionate

Through my many challenges I learnt some very valuable skills. One of them is to write down my goals and date them. To this day at the beginning of every year I write down my goals and get great enjoyment through out the year going back and ticking off each one that I have achieved, even though at the time I wrote them, they seemed impossible.

I still have goals, dreams and aspirations of what I want to do next and what I want to achieve. I am still planning and taking risks on a daily basis, but I would rather be alive and feel the passion and the adrenalin of what I love to do than wallow in my circumstances and become complacent.

My children and I have a great life. We travel together, explore different places and cultures, spend as much time as we can together as a family but at the same time we are all individuals each one of us pursuing our own dreams and aspirations.

Your Gift

What better gift can you give your children than to teach them by example to follow their dreams and not allow circumstances get in the way?

My suggestion to you is that you find some one who you can look up to, hold on to their coat tails and go for it. If you have a burning desire and a passion to do something in your life don’t let anybody steal your dream. Definitely do not allow your circumstances keep you stuck where you are at the moment. “Get off your butt and do something”. Make something of your life! Let the fire burn in your eyes and let your passion drive you.

To create wealth all you need is a WHY. The reason cannot be money; it has to be what money will get for you.

So, find a purpose, a passion and drive and you will have a winning formula. Never ever forget to keep getting up if you get knocked down.

Enjoy the journey!

Patty Leonard & Romeo

1. Tell us a little bit about yourself and what you do professionally. I am an entrepreneur. I started my first business when I was 25 years old and have since started 3 very successful home video distribution companies. My businesses always specialized in “alternative methods of distribution”i.e., direct to consumer versus retail. Prior to starting my first business, I had no prior experience (nor or the money evidence that I could get a business off the ground). Just a good idea and a lot of passion, stamina and persistence. Three essential qualities for any successful entrepreneur.

2. What do you enjoy most about your profession and why did you choose it in the first place? I enjoy the creative thinking required when carving out new methods of distribution. Actually, the business chose me. I was an executive secretary and during a conversation I was having with a couple of printers I knew, heard them say that they had used their life savings to produce a video on how to train a bird dog! Their wives had just found out about it accidentally and boy were they in big trouble….and they said that they had to figure out how to get some of their money back but could not for the life of them figure out how to sell the video. So I told them I would do a little investigating. That very investigation led me to the idea of providing other video producers of special interest videos a method of getting their videos into customers hand. That was the beginning of my first business. Of course I had to write a business plan (I figured that out too on my own at the local colleges business library) and then I had to go out and raise the money to actually start the business ($500,000 27 years ago!) and I did.

3. Tell us about the organizations your company supports and why? Today I have a very different company and we support organizations that somehow benefit families and/or their children. I decided about 3 years ago that I wanted to find a way to give back. And so I came up with the concept of Family Values Cinema and figured out a way that with the help of key influencers from these family organizations, we might be able to build a wonderful family member base while at the same time contribute to the referring organization for every new member they referred to us for as long as they remained members. A sort of “passive fundraiser”.

4. What is the biggest risk you ever took professionally and/or the biggest obstacle you have overcome? The biggest risk was walking out of a board meeting in New York City about 20 years ago after disagreeing with the Chairman of the Board on the direction we should take. He made some inflammatory remarks about my heritage and gender and I simply said “you can have my share of the business, just let me out of my contract” He laughed thinking where I was possibly going to go with no money. Well I had done it once and I could do it again. I left New York during that same trip with 2 new contracts and enough money to start up my next business….

5. From where do you draw inspiration? I am not certain where I draw inspiration from. I have been blessed. Ideas flow easily for me. What distinguishes me is my drive and my desire to succeed. Who have been your role models, mentors, etc? Simply stated “Two men and a lady”. My uncle, who was like a father to me. My father, who passed away when I was seven years old, and my mother, a real beauty from Mexico City. I inherited the best of all of them!

6. How is the current economic situation affecting your company/organization? Unlike my other two companies, I self-financed this startup. As we all know, credit lines are being reduced and in our own little world of subscription based businesses, we find some of our member families are having to cancel their memberships to cut back. It is forcing us to be even more creative. I am up for the challenge!

7. What one thing would you like to learn this year? To remember to trust my initial instincts. They are usually spot on.

8. Where do you see yourself in 5 years? Running a fabulous B&B in the Big Sur Highlands.

9. What do you do for fun/relaxation/entertainment? Believe it or not, I love going to the movies and eating popcorn. I also really enjoy taking day and overnite road trips with my husband Kevin. Just love to explore little towns I do not know.

10. Is there anything else you would like to share with our readers? Trust the power of prayer and the love of family.

For more information, visit: www.familyvaluescinema.com

Frances Alexander started Women Welcome Women (as it was known then) in 1984. Her idea to encourage international friendship by enabling women to visit one another in their own homes was publicised in Women of Europe, a magazine of the then EEC. Enquiries soon flooded in and Frances started circulating an up-to-date membership list, which 5W has continued to do as it has grown.

Frances left school to become a nurse and then a midwife. Wanting to break away from health service constraints, she took a teaching course before marrying. When her children were small she started a private nursing agency. This was to be a formative time in her life. She interviewed 600 women in four years, many were qualified nurses who felt apprehensive about returning to work after taking time off to have their children. A bout of meningitis forced the sale of the agency and then there was a nine-year spell of teaching – for the last years as girls’ careers adviser. Part-time teaching then overlapped with setting up Women Welcome Women.

Frances has travelled throughout Europe, across North & South America and to Australia, staying all the time with 5W members. Her work for friendship among women all over the world led to her nomination for the 1996 Woman of Europe Award. In October 2001, Frances travelled across the USA, meeting members experiencing the traumatic aftermath of September 11th. In June/July 2002 she travelled in southern Russia, building on those links of friendship and understanding. Frances has now retired from the 5W office, but continues in her role as 5W Ambassador.

Her philosophy of international friendship permeates 5W, now a Company Limited by Guarantee operating as a non-profit Trust. There is also an ethos of increasing women’s self-confidence. “Planning to spend a weekend with a member in a nearby country and carrying through that plan, making new friendships, noticing differences of interest in the lifestyles in the foreign country are great ways of gaining self-confidence and becoming articulate,” says Frances.

There has been another thread to Frances’s life during the past 25 years: Liberal Democrat politics. She was elected to her local District Council in 1991; following the elections in May 1995 she became chair of their Strategic Policy Board. Her first agenda had items about links with Europe and the Third World. In 1997, she became Chairman of Wycombe District Council and dedicated her year to promote Local Agenda 21 – think globally, act locally! 1998-99 saw her in the 700-year-old role of Mayor of High Wycombe.

Frances has also been Chairman of Governors of a First School in High Wycombe – the first in the UK to institute the Parents as (First) Teachers programme, originating in the USA. PA(F)T recognises that the parent is the child’s first and most influential teacher and helps the parent to be the best teacher he/she can be.

Frances is also passionate about environmental issues and, in 1997, she convened a meeting of local environmental groups to consider an environmental project, which would help to meet local needs. The Environment Centre on Holywell Mead in High Wycombe was opened in 2002 and Frances is now one of the Centre trustees. This has become a focal point for the community to investigate local environmental issues.

Asked why she has been involved in all these things, Frances replies: “I like to see things happen!”

For more information about 5W visit Women Welcome Women World Wide

Meet GINA ROBISON-BILLUPS Founder of The National Association For Moms In Business in Henderson, NV

Gina and Her Daughters

Tell us a little bit about yourself and what you do professionally. I am the founder/ceo/mom-in-chief of The National Association For Moms In Business.- the only association representing the interests of entrepreneurial, executive and CEO moms. I am a remarried mother of two teenage girls. I started the organization about six years ago when I had my own business and wanted to do seminars for moms in business. I figured I’d join the organization that represents them. It took me a year and a half to finally admit that there was no such organization. I realized that in all these decades if moms hadn’t come together to do this for themselves, then someone had to step up, and it might as well be me or we may go another 100 years without representation. The tide has changed slowly for moms in business, but there is still a bias inthe workplace towards moms whether it be in getting that executive position or getting a contract for new business. Moms have felt that they sometimes have had to deny having children in order to keep their job, get a job, or advance their careers. I knew it was an uphill challenge when a business owner told me once that what I did sounded like an excuse for women to get together to chat, and because they pass mascara across the table (“sales”) they can call it “business”. That fired me up, and I knew what my mission was…empowering moms to be successful and to break down the misconception that hiring a woman with children is a bad business idea.

I have also started Moms Making a Million – an educational program dedicated to helping one million moms create a plan by 2015 to have a million dollars in personal net worth. It started on the premise that if women were paid equal to men for equal work, then we would reduce poverty by 50% in the U.S alone! I knew that if I wanted to make lasting change, then I would have to start with moms. When you lift one mom up from poverty, she in turn, lifts up generations of young women and her entire community. I may not have the power to affect what women are paid by business, but I do have the power to help them do better with the money they receive.

What do you enjoy most about your profession and why did you choose it in the first place? I enjoy making a difference in women’s lives. Giving them an opportunity to have that “Aha!” moment about the business or career. I also really enjoy making a difference legislatively and being the voice on Capitol Hill for moms in business. I really don’t think I chose this. It chose me. When I realized that no one in all these decades of working mothers had started an association for us, what else was I supposed to do. This is the one time when that classic mom phrase, “If I don’t do it, nobody will”, was a positive thing.

Tell us about the organizations your company supports and why? Through The National Association For Moms In Business, I have had the privelege to support various organizations. We have partnerships with CARE, Women Impacting Public Policy and MomsRising. I have also had the pleasure of raising money and awareness through our Create Your Dreams Awards for The Susan G. Komen Foundation, Shade Tree – Home for Abused Women and Children, and The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. I also volunteer when I can for my children’s schools which is the most rewarding of all. I started a Safety Committee two years ago at my youngest daughter’s school to help protect the children from cars. Nine children had been hit by cars in two years. I volunteered every morning to direct traffic from 7am to 8am – 5 days a week. Not one child was hit that year. That’s my proudest achievement. Nothing starts your day on a more positive note than knowing, that day, you saved a child from being hurt.

What is the biggest risk you ever took professionally and/or the biggest obstacle you have overcome? The biggest professional risk was the first Create Your Dreams Awards – it’s the national awards honoring the achievements of working mothers and we give two business grants. With a team of only two other amazing women, I put together my dream of honoring women in only about 8 weeks. It was a $70,000 risk and we didn’t have that in the bank. It was the first gala at the Wynn Resort in Las Vegas too! I was terrified.

The biggest obstacle I have had to overcome was being diagnosed with very aggressive breast cancer last year. I have worked through chemo and surgery and chemo again. I went through six weeks of radiation therapy. I am happy to report that I have successfully overcome the cancer! It’s changed my life and how I work. It’s actually been a wonderful gift and blessing for both me and for my work with The National Association For Moms In Business.

From where do you draw inspiration? Who have been your role models, mentors, etc? I draw inspiration from our members – every day women. When they share their successes, it inspires me. Nothing inspires me more than a mom who tells me how something I did helped her business grow. I am also blessed to have some amazing mentors and role models in business too. Barbara Kasoff, CEO and co-founder of Women Impacting Public Policy is one of those many women. She also started an organization from the ground up and knows the challenges.

How is the current economic situation affecting your company/organization? As if the economy wasn’t enough, I also had the issue of breast cancer when the economy was at its worse. I literally didn’t have the strength to hit the pavement and create more business, so I had to make changes internally. Looking at my business practices through another lens was life changing. Our organization has grown substantially, and I am doing it with less work. I was really forced to dig even deeper into the idea of how to be more effective and less busy. In the past years, I was struggling to expand. Now, due to the changes that the economy forced me to make, we are expanding to seven more states by the end of 2009.

What one thing would you like to learn this year? — Just one thing? — How to sell national sponsorships better.

Where do you see yourself in 5 years? Training someone to take on the day-to-day management of the organization, and learning how to create a clinic to treat children and adults with scoliosis..

What do you do for fun/relaxation/entertainment? golf, hot yoga, walking my dog, dinner with family and friends, traveling.

Is there anything else you would like to share with our readers? There is something good in everything.

For more information, visit: www.MIBN.org

BUILDING BRIDGES, FACILITATING NEW PERSPECTIVES

Better English My English is very German.

Here are some Art Awards Christina Seibold has received:

Why are you putting on the Total Woman Breakthrough Forum at a time like this?
More than ever, women need to position themselves now for what is going to happen in the future. If you start thinking what you want to do and how you will do it when the turnaround is in full swing, it will be too late. You need to be ahead of the game and position yourself now, so when everyone sees the light at the end of the tunnel, you are already on the upward move with determination, power and knowledge. It is our desire to help women get their game plan in place now.

What’s the idea behind this women’s forum?
It’s largely a reflection of my own quest to be the total woman I am destined to be. I realized that only if I nurture and develop all aspects of life, I can be that and do that.

Why is this not your regular women’s conference?
Women are tired of the same old “talking to you” conferences. This is a time to be heard and interact with other women who have transformed their lives and want to share the keys that helped them. And the best way to discover the power and potential within in through interaction with other women.

What can participants expect?
Exclusively for women, by women, this forum is a powerful catalyst to transform women’s lives. Two days can change the course of your future forever and transport you into the happy, successful life of your dreams as a total woman. No more feeling fragmented, stuck, and discouraged. The time has come to break through.

The forum takes place right at the beach in Hollywood Beach/Florida. Why did you choose this particular location for your event? 
We wanted to create an atmosphere of warm hospitality and relaxation for a distinguished get-away experience, as it is so important to sometimes step away and leave it all behind to make new discoveries and gain new ground.

For those women, who would like to take advantage of the special conference room rate of $145/night, please call the Marriott directly at 1-866-306-5453.

As far as other interactive and fun program points are concerned, what else is going on during the forum?
There will be facilitated networking sessions to help the women really connect, build relationships and enlarge their network. The sessions will be run by an experienced coach who will guide the women. We will also have two panel discussions where we take audience questions to provide answers from women to women, from heart to heart on “Wealth & Security” and “Health & Wellness”.

Great fun is the free mini spa on site to stop by for a hand or lip treatment, an aromatherapy wrap or a chair massage. The live Heart Art Studio will be there also with inspirational heart art.

Not to forget a hands-on novelty make-up presentation and fun style show where we learn to put together a wardrobe.

Can you tell me what the Exhibit Hall is about?
The Exhibit Hall is a place where we will have a select number of exhibitors to help women in their quest. There only will be a limited number of exhibitors, because this is more about connecting and building a relationship than it is about swapping brochures and business cards. It’s a place where the women can exchange ideas and learn from each other.

If you offer services that are geared towards women and would like to be part of this, please feel free to email elvira@impactcreationevents.com.

Why a black and white gala dinner?
It’s time to celebrate! This conference is about new breakthroughs, new insights and new friendships. That’s why we decided to set a special time aside to go all out and have a ball in grand style. It’s a great way to round out this fantastic conference experience and to top it off with a bang. Enjoy delectable culinary creations, create unforgettable memories with old and new friends and have one great night of splendid fun. And what’s the best thing about this is that the gala dinner is included in the conference registration.
 
Is there anything you would like to share with other women?
This whole forum came together by women talking with each other, by women connecting and by women sharing their passion and expertise. There is incredible power that comes from this. Don’t miss out. Tap into this and be part of it. Join us on May 13 and May 14 at the Marriott Hotel in Hollywood.

Heidi Richards Mooney will be speaking at the Total Woman Breakthrough Forum ~ Her topic: Tap Into Social Media

Learn more about the Total Woman Breakthrough Forum at http://www.totalwoman.us/Heidi.php (get special pricing when you use this link)

Listen to the Kandee G Radio program where Kandee interviews some of the guest experts: http://www.megaupload.com/?d=CKQ80AEN

Hope to see you there!

MARY MCALEESE, President of Ireland

On 11th November, 1997, Mary McAleese was inaugurated as the eighth President of Ireland, and second female elected to that position. Mary McAleese was re-elected on Friday 1st October 2004 being the only validly-nominated candidate. She is a barrister and former Professor of Law. Born on June 27th 1951 in Belfast, she is the first President to come from Northern Ireland. She is married, since 1976, to Dr. Martin McAleese, an accountant and dentist. They have three children, Emma, born 1982 and twins Justin and SaraMai, born 1985.

The eldest of nine children, President McAleese grew up in Northern Ireland through the violent times that have come to be known as ‘The Troubles’. Her family was one of many adversely affected by the conflict. She graduated in Law from the Queen’s University of Belfast in 1973 and was called to the Northern Ireland Bar in 1974. In 1975, she was appointed Reid Professor of Criminal Law, Criminology and Penology at Trinity College Dublin and in 1987, she returned to her Alma Mater, Queen’s, to become Director of the Institute of Professional Legal Studies. In 1994, she became the first female Pro-Vice Chancellor of the Queen’s University of Belfast.

President McAleese is an experienced broadcaster, having worked as a current affairs journalist and presenter in radio and television with Radio Telefís Éireann. She has a longstanding interest in many issues concerned with justice, equality, social inclusion, anti-sectarianism and reconciliation. The theme of her Presidency is ‘Building Bridges’

MARY ROBINSON, 1st Female President of Ireland – 1990 ~ 1997

President Robinson was born Mary Bourke to two physicians in County Mayo in northwestern Ireland, the only daughter among five children.

Born on 21 May, 1944, in Ballina, County Mayo, Mary Robinson is a barrister by profession and was appointed Reid Professor of Criminal Law in Trinity College Dublin when she was 25 years of age. With her husband, Nicholas (married 1970) she founded the Irish Centre for European Law in 1988.

Born in Ballina, County Mayo, Ireland on May 21, 1944, Mary Robinson was educated at Trinity College, Dublin, where she received a Master of Arts degree in 1970. She also earned a Barrister-at-Law degree from the King’s Inns, Dublin, and a Master of Laws degree from Harvard University.

At the age of 25, Mrs. Robinson was appointed Reid Professor of Constitutional and Criminal Law at Trinity College, where she also served as lecturer in European community law. With her husband Nicholas, Mrs. Robinson founded the Irish Centre for European Law in 1988. From 1969 to 1989, Mary Robinson was a member of Seanad Ãireann, the Upper House of Parliament. She has also served on the Dublin City Council and the International Commission of Jurists.

In December 1990, Mrs. Robinson was inaugurated as the seventh president of Ireland. not only was she the first woman president of Ireland, she was, at the time, one of only three female heads of state in the world. As president, she represented her country internationally, developing a new sense of Ireland’s economic, political, and cultural ties to other countries and cultures. Linking the history of the Great Irish Hunger to today’s nutrition, poverty, and policy issues, she articulated a special relationship between Ireland and developing countries.

The Robinson presidency was characterized by inclusiveness and a concerted effort to use the office not only to improve the situations of marginalized groups within Ireland but also to draw attention to global crises. Mrs. Robinson was the first head of state to visit famine-stricken Somalia in 1992 and also the first to go to Rwanda in the aftermath of the genocide there.

In recognition of her efforts in Somalia, Mrs. Robinson received the Special CARE Humanitarian Award in 1993.
She resigned the presidency on Sept. 12, 1997, 11 weeks short of her full 7 year term, to accept the position of United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights. In September 1997. Mary Robinson is universally acknowledged as the most successful President in the history of the State. She elevated what was a figurehead role into a means of highlighting the needs of the disadvantaged and of raising Ireland’s international profile. She opened the doors of Áras an Uachtaráin (The Presidential Residence) to people from all walks of life and created a special emphasis on Ireland’s “Diaspora“. the many thousands of Irish people living abroad.

 ANNIE MOORE, First Immigrant to be processed through Ellis Island

Annie Moore was the first immigrant to be processed through the newly opened Ellis Island. She was born in Cork City on January 1, 1877, and left from the Deepwater Quay for New York, on December 20, 1891. Accompanying her on the SS Nevada (Guion Line) were two brothers, Phillip, age 7, and Anthony, age 11. They arrived at Ellis Island on New Year’s Day 1892 – her 15th birthday! We are told that she received an elaborate ceremony and a $10 gold piece. They had left to join their parents in Brooklyn, New York, who had emigrated two years previously with their eldest child, Tom.

Annie Moore who arrived in steerage and inaugurated Ellis Island initially joined her parents, who had arrived several years earlier, apparently in a five-story brick tenement at 32 Monroe Street in Manhattan. Records indicate that Annie Moore later moved to, among other places, a nearby apartment on New Chambers Street — near the Newsboys’ Lodging House and the Third Avenue El on the Bowery. The area now includes the Alfred E. Smith Houses, a public project constructed in the early 1950’s and named for the governor who grew up nearby, and the Knickerbocker Village complex of rental apartments built in the 1930’s. According to the latest research, Annie’s father was a longshoreman. She married a bakery clerk. They had at least 11 children. Five survived to adulthood and three had children of their own. She died of heart failure in 1924 at 47. Her brother Anthony, who arrived with Annie and Philip on the Nevada, died in his 20’s in the Bronx and was temporarily buried in potter’s field.

On February 8, 1993 President of Ireland, Mary Robinson, unveiled a bronze featuring Annie, Phillip and Anthony at the Deepwater Quay, Cobh. The work was commissioned by the Irish American Cultural Institute and the Cobh Heritage Trust. The sculptor was Jeanne Rynhart, of Bantry, Co Cork, Ireland. Later in the same year, President Robinson unveiled a statue of Annie Moore at Ellis Island.

MAUREEN O’HARA ~ Actress

Maureen Fitzsimons was born the second of six children to Charles and Marguerite Fitzsimons on August 17, 1920 near Dublin, Ireland. Though tomboyish as a youngster, she eventually developed an interest in acting and as a teenager auditioned for the Abbey Theatre School. After Alfred Hitchcock gave her a role in JAMAICA INN (1939) with Charles Laughton, the English actor claimed to “discover” her. Laughton had gone to America in 1931 and signed a movie contract with RKO Pictures where he was about to star as Quasimodo in THE HUNCHBACK OF NOTRE DAME (1939). He brought Maureen back to the states with him to play his Esmeralda in the film and changed her name to O’Hara. HUNCHBACK became her American film debut, RKO signed her, and she never looked back.

In 1950, John Ford first paired O’Hara with a co-star for his film RIO GRANDE who would change the direction of her career– John Wayne. The two became fast friends and went on to make four more films together, the most notable being Ford’s THE QUIET MAN (1952) as well as the western comedy MCLINTOCK! (1963), and O’Hara became known as the leading lady who gave Wayne his sex appeal. Her characters were frequently cantankerous to say the least, and whether she won Wayne or he won her in the end, it was always a good show.

In real life, O’Hara was married twice and had a daughter named Bronwyn (after Anna Lee’s character in HOW GREEN WAS MY VALLEY) before she met and married aviator Charles Blair in 1968. After two more films, O’Hara retired from the big screen in 1971 to be a full-time wife and mother and after Blair was killed in a plane crash in 1978, she continued to manage his commuter airline business, Antilles Air Boats, in the U.S. Virgin Islands.

In 1991, O’Hara made a brief return to the screen as John Candy’s mother in ONLY THE LONELY and starred in a TV movie called “The Christmas Box” in 1995 as well as another TV movie, “Cab to Canada,” which aired on CBS in 1998. Aside from these occasional roles, she is currently living out her retirement between homes in St. Croix, New York, Los Angeles and her native Ireland.

(Source: Famous Irish Women)

Can you name some other famous Irish Women?  Feel free to leave your nominations in the comments section!

Tell us a little bit about yourself and what you do professionally.
I’m married; I have two daughters and seven beautiful grandchildren.  I love action movies, good food and good books.  Ballroom dancing is one of my favorite pastimes.  I’ve recently taken up golf and I find that to be very relaxing.  I try to take care of my health by eating right and exercising on a regular basis.  I have to say potato chips and chocolate chip cookies are my weakness.  I love life, meeting new people and just having fun.

I am the founder of Grace and Charm Success System, which includes over 30 unique training programs designed to improve organizational and personal behavior, business and social graces and effective team building. I also host Success with Grace and Charm radio show and has been a guest on over 100 other television and radio programs. It airs every Tuesday at 2pm est. on Blog Talk Radio.

What do you enjoy most about your profession and why did you choose it in the first place?
I consider myself a serial entrepreneur.  I love the excitement of creating and seeing the end product.  My most recent venture is Grace and Charm.  Grace and Charm is an etiquette and personal development company.  As a coach, I help my clients create an image of greatness so that others can see the greatness behind it.

I remember my very first formal event, which was my prom.  After prom everyone went to dinner.  When I walked into the restaurant ant sat down I knew immediately I was out of my element. I was so self conscious that I could not even eat my food.  After that experience, I swore I would never be in that position again.  That situation was the motivation for me to become an Etiquette and Image Coach.  I really want to help others gain the confidence and self assurance needed to succeed in their business as well as their personal life.

Tell us about the organizations your company supports and why?
“My Dreams Do Come True” is a non-profit, grass roots organization, in which I function as the CEO. We provide prom dresses for girls whose family may be experiencing financial difficulty.  Every girl should be able to attend her prom.

I also created and developed a personal development program for girls, called Ideal Girl Global.  Ideal Girl Global is a personal development program consisting of etiquette, image and leadership training for girls 8-18 years old to equip them to succeed in today’s competitive market place.

Why did you choose them?

Because of my experiences growing up with a lack of social skills and limited monetary resources, I wanted to provide a service within my community to help young girls learn proper social skills, as well as experience those exciting social events young girls dream about. I remember how embarrassed I was when put into certain social circles and I want to make sure that young ladies of today have a place they can go to learn these skills, regardless of their background or economic status.

How do you support them? For instance, do you volunteer, donate products and services, money? Do you serve in a leadership capacity within the organization?
I do most of the leg work on my own and with my own resources most of the time. But I do partner with various local organizations n my area and coordinate drives for the prom dresses, conduct workshops and ask for in kind gifts depending on the group needs.

How has your support impacted the organization?  You/your company?
Both of these programs are supported by Grace and Charm. We strive to serve as role models and mentors to the young ladies, emphasizing the importance of education and the development of proper social skills necessary to compete in today’s global economy.  Knowing that I have young women from these programs looking to me for guidance and direction, it makes me work even harder to ensure I practice what I preach to them in my personal and professional life.

What is the biggest risk you ever took professionally and/or the biggest obstacle you have overcome?
The biggest risk I took is when I decided to leave General Motors, “my good job.”  My decision to start a business was one of the best life decisions I’ve made, I have no regrets.

From where do you draw inspiration? Who have been your role models, mentors, etc?
What keeps me going is my faith in God.  I do not want to leave this world without making a difference.  It is also very important that I leave a legacy for my grandchildren.  I want them to be able to look at my life and draw inspiration.

I have had many role models and mentors.  But if I had to name anyone, it would be the men and women we don’t hear about, the men and women who do not make the news, but overcome hardships and obstacle we can only image.

How is the current economic situation affecting your company/organization?
I’m in the process of reinventing myself and my business model.  I can’t say I’m not affected; however I don’t pay a lot of attention to the doom and gloom of the media. If I did that I would not be here. I believe this is the best time to start a business, the opportunities are endless.

What one thing would you like to learn this year?
The one thing I would like to really get a handle on is social networking- the how, the why, and the when.  I also have to add Belly Dancing.

Where do you see yourself in 5 years?
I am a life time student, so I’m ever learning.  In five years I would like my businesses to be on auto pilot as much as possible.   I want to travel and give back to my community.

Is there anything else you would like to share with our readers?
Stay away from the dream stealers; they come as friends, family, and co workers.

Which, if any social networking sites do you belong to?

Facebook.:  http://www.facebook.com/graceandcharm

Twitter:  http://www.tweeter.com/graceandcharm2

Linked IN:  http://www.linkedin.com/in/graceandcharm

For more information, visit: http://www.graceandcharm.com

 
Tell us a little bit about yourself and what you do professionally.
I am a 48 yr old woman, nurse, business owner and senior advocate.  I have cared and advocated for seniors since I was 17 years old.  For the last 7 years I have owned a Visiting Angels franchise in Ann Arbor, Michigan. www.visitingangels.com/annarbor
 
What do you enjoy most about your profession and why did you choose it in the first place?
I love seniors!  I feel honored and privileged to meet, spend time with and help seniors and their families.  For a better explanation of why I chose what I do, I invite you to go to this site http://www.alzheimersreadingroom.com/2009/07/visiting-angels-angil-tarach-rn.html and click on the “Love Letters” link.  It is a guest blog I wrote for Great Places Inc. describing an experience I had while working in a nursing home at 17 yrs old.  This job at 17 set in motion a lifelong passion caring and advocating for seniors.

Tell us about the organizations your company supports and why? 
There are several we support in a variety of ways, so I’ll just tell you about a few.  The Alzheimer’s Association, the American Red Cross Family Caregiving Program, Private Duty Homecare Association, and local senior centers, groups, and associations.  Someone is afflicted with Alzheimer’s disease every 70 seconds.  This devastating illness not only affects the person, by taking their life, but affects their families in profound ways.  Research and support are necessary, and we feel this is a great cause.  The Red Cross Family Caregiving Program is a wonderful program for the nearly 50 million Americans providing care for a loves one.  We support the PDHCA because of the advocacy to help people stay in their homes, where they prefer to be over a nursing home.  We support organizations in our community that provide senior resources, socialization, and advocacy.

What is the biggest risk you ever took professionally and/or the biggest obstacle you have overcome?
The biggest risk was walking out of a job as an Infection Control Coordinator for the State of Michigan to open my agency.  The biggest obstacle has been a personal health crisis I faced a year after opening my agency.  I am chronically sick with Sjogren’s Syndrome, and Chronic Fatigue Immune Deficiency Syndrome.
 
From where do you draw inspiration? Who have been your role models, mentors, etc?
My inspiration comes from being able to help seniors and their families, as well as seeing and hearing about seniors receiving poor treatment and care.  One role model was a boss I worked for as a hospice nurse, named Ingrid Deininger.  That was the absolute best company I ever worked for a nurse.  Ingrid really cared about her patients and staff, and hired the same kind of caring people.  Ingrid would do whatever it took to help patients, and created a very caring, cooperative, and supportive work environment.  It felt like a family of people that always put the patient’s care and well being ahead of anything else.   I have formed my own agency in that same manner.  It has never been about having a business and making money for me.  It has been about providing the best care available to help out senior clients and families.  My agency is directed with care, dignity, respect, relationships, and as much independence as the client can possibly have in mind, first and foremost.

How is the current economic situation affecting your company/organization? 
Michigan has been hit hard economically and we are no exception.  It saddens me to get calls from people who need care and can’t afford it.  We have managed to continue our mission, even in trying times.

What one thing would you like to learn this year?
How to better organize myself and my time.

Where do you see yourself in 5 years?
Traveling the country and speaking on my book, “Behind the Old Face” and the national training program that is based on the book.  I anticipate better care and treatment of our seniors because my book and training program has changed minds and hearts towards seniors, their lives and their care.
 
What do you do for fun/relaxation/entertainment?
I spend time with family and friends.  I have 2 adorable grandchildren that I really enjoy.  My fiancé’ and I spend time relaxing in the pool, going to concerts, sporting events, having people over for dinner.  I love to travel, and particularly love spending time in the Caribbean, relaxing on a beach and snorkeling.

Is there anything else you would like to share with our readers? 
There are a lot of things I could share so limiting it is difficult.  The things that come to mind are follow your passion, and don’t give up, no matter what challenges you face, or what anyone says.  Know if someone did it before you, you can do it too. 

The other is that God willing we will all grow old.  We will either care for an aging relative or we will know someone who is.  Our seniors are amazing people with decades of service, contributions, struggles, and accomplishments.  They deserve enormous respect, and excellent care.  You only have to think about yourself or parent(s), and how you would want to be treated to provide wonderful treatment and care of our elderly.  Seniors face incredible challenges as they age.  It is not easy to lose independence, physical or mental health.  Do not look at an elderly person as the person they currently are, but look Behind the Old Face, recognize the person they have been, and provide the same dignity as if you were in their shoes.

The majority of unpaid family caregivers are women.  This can be an incredibly difficult journey.  Do not think you can do it all or have to.  Do not feel guilty for what you can’t do.  You must take care of yourself to provide care for someone else.  Get help early and often, so you have time for yourself.  It will make an incredible difference in how you feel, and how the person you care for feels, and journey will be much better.

Which, if any social networking sites do you belong to ?
LinkedIn- http://www.linkedin.com/in/angiltarachrn
Facebook- http://www.facebook.com/VisitingAngelsAnnArbor
Twitter- http://twitter.com/AngilTarachRN
My Blogs- Ann Arbor News http://www.annarbor.com/cgi-bin/mt/mt-cp.cgi?__mode=view&blog_id=1&id=1022 Wellsphere – http://www.wellsphere.com/angil-tarach-rn-gcm-profile/144235   National Senior Living Provider’s Network- http://nslpn.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=author#Angil 

For more information, visit: www.visitingangels.com/annarbor