The article below can be viewed in Richmond Free Press:
The Go Red for Women Luncheon promises to offer a spectacular sight in Richmond: A sea of women wearing red.
Their attire will accentuate a good, eye-catching purpose: To show that women, in a display of togetherness, can make a difference in improving women’s heart health.
The 2012 Go Red for Women Luncheon is a benefit to raise awareness and much-needed funds for cardiovascular research by the American Heart Association. It will be held next month at The Jefferson hotel.
Marilyn H. West, a prominent Richmond businesswoman, is this year’s Go Red volunteer chair. She enthusiastically accepts the challenge of making the heart-healthy luncheon a total success. What drives Mrs. West to be involved in this benefit?
“I am committed to promoting wellness and healthy lifestyles in women,” she says. One in three women die from heart disease.
For that reason, Mrs. West, 67, willingly is making the time to lead this event despite her already busy schedule. She is chairwoman and CEO of her own company, M.H. West & Co., Inc. a management, planning and education consulting firm she launched 21 years ago.
Mrs. West also sees benefits in volunteering. For her, it “keeps me current and up-to-date on trends and issues” in professional, trade and nonprofit groups.
She also enjoys being involved in Richmond efforts “toward growth and positive change.”
Known for her energy and resourcefulness, Mrs. West is using her skills and business experience to help Go Red for Women build on its past fundraising success.
Last year, Richmond donors raised $350,000 through the Go Red movement, ranking the Richmond region No. 10 in the country among Go Red programs.
Mrs. West says this year she hopes to boost that amount to $500,000, which would move the region to No. 5 among such programs.
She says the group is making strides in expanding and adding sponsors, such as the VCU Health System and Virginia State University.
But she also is seeking to develop emerging leadership, expand the volunteer pipeline to advance causes like Go Red and recognize the “good work of small businesses and ordinary people who are making a difference.”
A close-up of this week’s Personality, Marilyn H. West:
Place of birth:
McKeesport,Pa.
Current home:
Richmond.
Alma maters:
Waynesburg College (now University), bachelor’s degree; University of Pittsburgh, master’s degree.
Family:
Husband, Edward G. West; two adult children, Meaghan B. West and Brennan E. West.
How I find time to support Go Red:
Set priorities, manage time, work efficiently, start my day very early and avoid thinking about the time of day it will end.
Luncheon’s No. 1 challenge:
To sustain the commitment and interest of our supporters to engage in behaviors that promote healthy hearts for themselves and their network of employees, family members, colleagues and friends. Another challenge is to make sure that we reach out and touch all segments of the community, especially trying to reach children and youths at the earliest possible age.
When planning began:
Planning on my clock for Go Red began unofficially when I became vice chair and officially on the day of the February 2011 luncheon, where it was announced that I would chair the 2011-12 campaign. I am honored to do so with a group of very committed, competent and talented women who are diverse in their views and experiences.
How I’ll feel when the luncheon is over:
It won’t be over for me. I have been involved with the Go Red movement in central Virginia since its inception. I will continue a role with the upcoming leadership as immediate past chair and will continue to share knowledge and resources as appropriate.
How I got involved with the AHA and Go Red:
Mary Ann Graf of the Bon Secours Richmond Health System invited me to become involved.
Advice to aspiring young people interested in business:
Among other things, create and market a quality product; stay in touch and continue to identify approaches to promote customer satisfaction; employ and surround yourself with talent and with individuals who can complement your skills; give back and get involved; smell the roses and maintain a healthy lifestyle.
How volunteering helps my business:
I look at the volunteer experience as my continuing education.
Key to business success:
Never become satisfied with where you are. Keep customers and staff satisfied.
The three words that best describe me:
Strategic, resourceful and persistent.
Leadership is:
The vehicle that drives success, growth and change in individuals and organizations.
If I had more time, I would:
Trace my roots and connect with individuals who may be strangers but actually relatives.
Friends like me because:
I am committed, dependable, honest, humorous and willing to share what I know.
My hero:
My husband, who has been a thought partner for more than one-half of my life and who has overcome health problems through a positive attitude and willingness to make lifestyle changes to promote wellness and health status.
What I do to unwind:
Go fishing, play tennis or bridge or volunteer.
Hobby:
Creating digital art.
What really turns me on:
The strategies used by an “underdog” (individual or organization) to achieve success under adverse circumstances.
What I like most about Richmond:
Persistence to leverage its people and other resources toward growth and positive change.
The least:
Resurrecting ideas that have failed more than once.
What Richmond needs most:
To develop further emerging leadership; expand the volunteer pipeline to advance causes such as Go Red; promote the region’s resources and progress; and recognize, to a greater extent, the good work of small businesses and ordinary people who are making a difference.
Nobody knows:
I am in conditioning mode to return to playing tennis competitively, but as a senior.
If I’ve learned one thing in life, it is:
To be prepared, learn from positive and negative experiences and share your talent and resources with others.
Next goal:
Keep a healthy heart, maintain energy levels and sustain my business for another decade.
