It started with a question I couldn't stop asking:

Where are the women? The folks like me?

 In so many spaces I worked - at board tables, in leadership roles, in community planning - there was always someone who knew a guy to fill a need. There seemed to be this elusive circle of trust, a built-in secret network. But it rarely included women. It almost never included gender-diverse people. And it definitely wasn’t built for us.

I watched how these networks worked: how they passed opportunities along, vouched for one another, made space for each other. That wasn’t a bad thing in itself. But it left a lot of people standing on the outside, wondering how to get in. I eventually decided: maybe I don’t want in. Maybe we build something else.

Blazing Willows is that something else.

It’s a place where we can show up as ourselves. Where we don’t have to perform or translate. Where the conversation doesn’t get derailed by people who want to be told that “not all men…” Where we can focus on connection, creativity, and supporting one another without second-guessing our presence.

There’s no secret handshake here. Just open doors.

Who this space is for

Blazing Willows is a space for women and gender-diverse professionals who have often felt left out of traditional networks—the proverbial "old boys' clubs." While we appreciate allies, this community is reserved for those who have experienced exclusion, providing a safe environment for open and honest conversations without the need to justify or defend their experiences.