{Disclosure: This post is sponsored by Mirum Shopper. Opinions are 100% my own.}
Leadership, inspiring, for the love of basketball. Just a few things that come to mind when we got the opportunity to attend the Minnesota Lynx game and participate in the We Are Women event sponsored by Dove.
Even though I have three young boys, I felt it was an opportunity to be able to introduce them to women sports and let them experience their first basketball game at the Target Center.
First, we got to enjoy (mostly me) getting to listen to an amazing panel of women leaders in Minnesota today. The panel was moderated by Lynx Director of Business Operations Carley Knox and Dove Self-Esteem educator Dre Brown.
On the panel sat:
-WNBA President: Lisa Borders
-Anne Bancroft: explorer and founder of the Anne Bancroft Foundation
-Group Executive VP and COO of Land O’Lakes: Beth Ford
-Rachel Blount: Minneapolis Star Tribune Sports Reporter
-Target Senior VP Merchandising Transformation and Operations: Christina Hennington
We got to hear about their journey to get where they were today as leaders including the challenges they face as women and mothers. It was so inspiring to hear their stories and really connect with how it is to be a leader in some of their cases, a male dominated space.
One of the highlights that really resonated with me was the journey of Rachel Blount in the sports reporting world and the struggles she had when she first started. Being a woman sports reporter was rare and the male dominated sports world didn’t know what to do with her. They didn’t allow her into the locker rooms and did not give her the good interviews. It was great to hear how she persevered and now is one of the top sports reporters out there shedding light and gaining traction in the women sports world. It was really interesting to hear there were similarities in all their perspectives on how women were perceived in their fields and how much harder they had to work to be recognized, but they all stayed strong and are so passionate about what they do, it’s no wonder they are as successful and inspirational as they are today.
After the panel, there were two opportunities before we got to enjoy the game. For the younger girls in attendance, they were able to attend a Dove Self-Esteem project workshop. These workshops are held nationwide to build confidence and educate young girls their full potential. All of this is included in their #SpeakBeautiful campaign – where they encourage women and girls to realize how online words can play a role in your confidence and self-esteem level. Their goal is to build self esteem in 20 million girls by 2020, since 52% of girls think negativity they see online damages their confidence.* (*2016 Dove Study, learn more on Dove.com/Selfesteem).
The 2nd opportunity was to walk across the street to Kieran’s to enjoy a drink, food, and connecting with attendees and the panelists that were able to join us. With kids and hubby in tow, we of course chose Kieran’s because I like to network and of course, kids were super hungry and food is a must! I got the opportunity to talk further with Anne Bancroft from the panel. She grew up in Minnesota, traveled the world as an explorer and now focuses on her foundation that provides grants to young girls to help them achieve their dreams. What a great way to give back to the community and continue to provide resources to girls in Minnesota to not give up on who they want to be. AMAZING!
After we were stuffed (and I had a couple of ciders) we headed back to watch the Lynx game. Everyone received a voucher to get our very own Sylvia Fowles bobble head (Quincy was pumped!) and headed down to the Lynx Party Zone to enjoy more fun and games sponsored by the #SpeakBeautiful campaign. Photobooth fun, popcorn, and the boys enjoyed getting to dunk basketballs (with Dad’s help). We also received these beautiful #SpeakBeautiful bracelets – which are to remind us to speak beautifully to others on social media with every time we look down at it.
The whole day was such a great experience and was so happy to get to share with my family. It’s such an important cause to ensure our youth understand that they are special and can do whatever they want to do if they put their mind to it. Never give up on your dreams and this whole day made it even more clear how we should focus on our children and their futures and teach them to be confident in themselves, to realize their words have power, and to never give up.
And at the end of the night it was Lynx for the win! Let’s go for another WNBA title, ladies!
Head over to Target now to get your very own #SpeakBeautiful bracelet! You can get one FREE at Target with the purchase of 3 Dove items!
