The League of Women Voters of the Cape Cod Area hosted a 2nd International Women’s Day Breakfast on March 11th in partnership with seven community nonprofit organizations. The community partners and committee members who collectively planned the event included Amplify POC, Inc., Tara Vargas Wallace; Cape Cod Cape Verdean Museum and Cultural Center, Bre Rose-Brown; Cape Cod Commission On The Status of Women, Chinna Mapp and Amy Peters; Cape Cod Foundation’s Women and Girls Fund, Kate Kane and Andi Genser; International Business Relations, Natalia Frois; LWVCCA, Jeanne Morrison, Mary Utt, Sue Brock; League of Women Voters Falmouth, Meghan Hanawalt; Upper Cape Women’s Coalition, Penelope Duby. Special thanks to the planning committee and the LWVCCA Treasurer, Tova Soyt and Communications Chair, Richard Utt. Great teamwork!
The event was “terrific”! There were 250 attendees and 30 community resource tables representing local organizations who provide services and resources for women and their families.
Four of Cape Cod’s state legislators - Senator Julian Cyr, Representatives Kipp Diggs, Chris Flanagan and Hadley Luddy also attended.
All these participants plus our generous Community Sponsors - Cape Air, Cape Cod 5, The Cooperative Bank of Cape Cod, Eastern Bank, TD Bank, Women and Girls Fund of The Cape Cod Foundation, Rockland Trust, Cape Cod Community College Foundation, Ed Trust of the LWVCCA; the League of Women Voters Falmouth, and community donors, assured a very successful event. One sponsor’s CEO reported that they were “honored to sponsor the International Women’s Day Breakfast; if you missed it, you missed a morning of coalition building and positive energy”.
This year's theme was: Uniting Women, Empowering Equity: Building a Just Future Together. The program was packed with a diverse line up of impressive speakers, most receiving standing ovations for their remarks. The program kicked off with local poet and LWVCCA member Tamora Israel, who performed two original poems, "Listen" and "Strong Woman". The poems were very powerful and popular. Tamora’s poetry is currently featured in her live shows currently on tour across the Cape into 2026, and will be published in her upcoming book, Poetry From My Brain Parts.
The program reflected the theme and centered on the resilience and strength of women taking action. Tamora was followed by several speakers who shared their stories reflective of the theme from their perspectives and experiences. The speakers included, Anita Peters (Mother bear) who presented her documented maternal lineage from the 1500’s. She talked about the matriarchal structure of indigenous communities and the importance of the women’s role in keeping their communities together, choosing and cultivating chiefs and other leaders in the tribe. As well as the necessity of teaching children to prepare them for roles in the “outside world”. Following Anita was Danielle Hill, a local single mother of 19 who accredited herself with the initials after her name, M.O.M. as a badge of merit that many women in audience could relate to. She told how motherhood and life challenges helped her to become a successful independent working women. Despite overwhelming obstacles and unfavorable odds, she defined her own destiny and is making a difference in the community.
The next part of the program included a video of vignettes of six women representing local organizations that support women. The presenters all shared information about their organizations and nonpartisan actions being taken to make a difference in the lives of women in today’s political climate.
Senator Liz Miranda, 2nd Suffolk District. She too discussed her road to success in running for office and the importance of women’s ability to withstand and recover from challenges and difficulties to assume leadership in taking action. She strongly encouraged each one of us to not be bystanders, but become actively engaged. To speak up, find a place to make a difference and let your passion drive you. Newly elected State Representative Hadley Luddy, 4th District Barnstable, also shared her inspiring story of how motherhood and community engagement led to a successful run for office. She emphasized the importance of not only advocating for women’s needs but also working together to pass legislation fighting for women’s rights.
The speaking program culminated with a vibrant and insightful youth panel discussion on “Leading Change”. Facilitated by Kalyani Clarke, a recent college graduate and youth educator, the panel expressed their need for and importance of mentors, opportunities to succeed and support. The message of unity was interwoven throughout the youth panel discussion. Their message is summarized in the words of Dave Chappell, “Our power lies in each other. We should unite to strengthen that power and use it”. The program closed with group songs led by Jane Lowey, Director of Common Voice Choir. In the spirit of our theme, the lyrics focused on uniting us together, building collective strength and accelerating action to make transformative change. Thank you to all who participated. For those who missed the event, we hope to see you next year!
Reactions:….
“Rep. Luddy was very inspirational, sharing her story about how and why she decided to run for office.
“On the whole, the morning was filled with emotionally charged comments that should help to energize action in our local communities.”
“Senator Liz Miranda’s live, virtual message was enough to make me think of different ways to interact within my community, and the personal vignettes gave us all something concrete to think about.”
“The focus on action hopefully left attendees considering new avenues for engagement. With luck and determination, the momentum will carry forth into more local action.”
“I just wanted to let you know how much I appreciated TD's sponsorship for the IWDB. The event was terrific!”
“Congratulations to all the organizers of the International Women's Day Breakfast yesterday- it was a wonderful event! “
“Congrats on a wonderfully inspiring event!”
“Inspirational and needed to bring us together. It fosters collaborations, empowerment, opportunities for advancement and collective support for the population of women and girls on Cape Cod. We can have experiences that are transformative.”
“Thank you to you, Tara, and your committee for organizing another wonderful International Women's Day event. Everything went well and I got to see so many people.”
“Liz Miranda was a highlight !”
“My big take away from the panel of young people was to have hope for the next generation. They were each so articulate about wanting to make a difference and the people who inspired them to grow and become the best version of themselves…. “
