Welcome to May’s edition of The Beat, where you can hear the “pulse” of what’s happening with the Heart of Birmingham Chapter of ABWA!
In this month’s edition:
May’s Speaker
Heart of Birmingham Chapter was thrilled to welcome Maria Sutej, founder of LaLure Style as our May Meeting Speaker. Ms. Sutej shared her experience leaving corporate america and starting her own fashion line. She addressed the journey of designing her company, seeking funding, and bringing a dream to reality. While she is housed in Atlanta, her representative, Sherrie Mauter, local to the Birmingham area also attended our meeting. In addition they brought along some of their clothing line, making for a fun-filled as well as informative meeting. The LaLure Style clothing line is geared toward the Professional Woman and in sizes that fit real women.
Heart of Birmingham Woman of the Year
Heart of Birmingham Chapter of ABWA is delighted to announce that they have elected Kristie Curtis as the chapter Woman of the Year. Kristie has been a long time member of Heart of Birmingham chapter, and in previous years, has served on the executive board. Kristie current works with the Birmingham Water Works Board, whose water system ranks 5th in the country for water quality. A master problem-solver, negotiator and facilitator, Heart of Birmingham is proud to count her in our membership.
Alabama Council Meeting Held in Birmingham
Our keynote speaker for the May 14, 2016 Alabama Council Meeting ABWA was Apryl Kelly. 
Apryl has a long history in credit review and serves as a Credit Officer with Bank South. Additionally she is an entrepreneur owning several businesses. As if this is not enough, her latest book is being published this month and is titled “52 Weeks to love your Money.” She is also a wife and mother of three. A native of Texas, she now resides in Birmingham.
Also at the meeting, Donna Alexander was named as our Alabama Council Woman of the Year for 2016 during the February 2016 meeting. She is shown here with me receiving her trophy during the May 14, 2016 Alabama Council Meeting.
June Meeting
The Heart of Birmingham Chapter of ABWA will meet next month, June 21, at 6:00 PM at the Tutwiler. Please set aside that evening and join us!
photo credit: Littmann Stethoscope via photopin (license)
We’ve been making some subtle, but hopefully helpful, changes in the information on our website. If you visit this link: Heart of Birmingham 2015-2016 Meetings, you can view the dates and locations for all scheduled meetings for the Heart of Birmingham Chapter of ABWA. Please visit this page to check for updates on planned activities and speakers, and to see examples of past meetings.