OWL’s Spring Event
Held Monday, April 7, 2008

During the 2008 ASCRS Symposium & Congress in Chicago’s ‘windy city’, OWL once again enjoyed a terrific turn out for its members-only lounge, the Sanctuary and the Monday Program/Networking reception.

Personal shopper and fashion consultant Linda Jordan offered her expertise with tips for boosting confidence and dressing your best at any professional event. She also offered suggestions on how to create a life changing alteration based on your interests, aspirations, and budget, as well as how to select the best clothes for your body type. “Personal style is what you want to portray to the rest of the world. It is developed by knowing who you are and what makes you comfortable,” Linda noted.

The Sanctuary was again a great hit with OWL members. Comfortable furniture, beverages and snacks, foot massagers, a chair massage therapist, and a manicurist are a few of the benefits offered in this relaxing members only oasis on the exhibit floor. The Sanctuary is open to all women members attending the ASCRS and/or AAO conventions (look for us in Atlanta in November). Non-members may access the Sanctuary by purchasing a day pass for $20.

If you had an opportunity to drop in at the Sanctuary, please share your experience with other women who might want to learn more about OWL and take advantage of all we have to offer.

Also in Chicago, OWL launched its collaboration with Dress for Success (DFS), a national organization that helps disadvantaged women succeed in the workplace by providing professional attire and mentoring support. Prior to each OWL event (held during ASCRS and AAO), we will be coordinating a clothing/accessories drive with the local affiliation of DFS. OWL will notify members of the local affiliate’s specific needs, and ask that members consider packing an extra item or two as a donation item for DFS. For more information about DFS, please visit www.dressforsuccess.org.

Thanks go out to all the members of the Events Committee for their hard work, and to our many members for their continued support of OWL’s mission to "promote professional development, networking opportunities and personal growth for women in ophthalmology."

We’re friends, sisters,  brand-new managers, wives, CEOs and surgeons.

We’re on our way up the career ladder or, if we're already there, we lend a helping hand.

Some of us are dedicated to watching bottom lines; some of us want to work harder at coloring outside of the lines. 

Some of us are raising puppies; many of us are raising children.

We're writers, strategists, editors, good listeners, marketing gurus, volunteers, apartment-dwellers, lawyers, chefs, scientists, marathon winners, sailers, sports car drivers, artists, scholars, photographers, band-aid dispensers and candy-bag fillers. 

In all of history, there has never been a group quite like us. 

Many of us work overtime to balance the professional and the personal.

 “I have yet to hear a man ask for advice on how to combine marriage and a career.”
        ~Gloria Steinem

Our skills are deeply rooted in our lives, and are in constant use in and out of the office.

Yet we are committed to a common goal: bring women in our industry together, and do what women do best: give our time and energy when we can, help each other by providing nurturing and mentorship when needed. 

And, most important, we enjoy camaraderie, new friendships, and share knowledge and information that helps us grow in unexpected ways.