Dear HWNT Members and Friends,

I am so delighted to inform you that the Hispanic Women’s Network of Texas, Fort Worth Chapter, Latinas in Progress (LIP) Education Series had its first session, College 101 this past Saturday October 3^rd at UTA.  I wanted to share with you the success of LIP College 101 Module and congratulate the many individuals who made it happen!

First of all, Admissions Counselor, Adam Pitts and Vice President of UTA, Dr. Frank Lamas did a wonderful job hosting us and accommodating all our students, parents and volunteers.  Many thanks for providing not only the facility but for graciously speaking to our students about the opportunities at UTA and the importance of pursuing higher education.  Did I mention that they also provided breakfast, an all you can eat lunch at the Connections Café, and an afternoon snack!  WOW!

Additionally, thanks to Dr. Catalina Garcia for the great delivery of her “I measure up!” presentation.  As always, she inspired many students, volunteers, and members.  We greatly appreciate her words of encouragement!

A special thanks to our very own Dr. Tangie Cuascud Vega for sharing her life story and speaking to the students about how to overcome the challenges and adversity they may encounter on their way to college and journey towards success. Thanks to her Telemundo interviewed 2 Latinas In Progress students on how Dr. Tangie impacted their lives. Stay tuned for her segment as a Hispana Heroina!

Another special thanks to our very own Susie Soto-Olmos and Belinda Ramos from TCCD Northwest Campus for addressing the importance of financial aid and for guiding our students through the FAFSA/TAFSA process.  Also, we are so grateful that Charim Guadarrama, FWISD Student Engagement & Completion, addressed Senate Bill 1528 and the DREAM Act.  Many of our students had great questions and they benefited from learning about their options.

Furthermore, thanks to Dr. Danna Diaz and FWISD Student Engagement and Completion for extending their resources.  Not only did we have great volunteers, we were also able to have a professional translator and translating devices for our Spanish speaking parents!  This has been the most high tech session we’ve ever had!  Thanks also to Erica Marez for the icebreaker activity for our students, what a great way to get the session going so early in the morning!

I’d also like to thank our members who were present, Christina Elbitar, Judy Perez, Diane Salazar, Diana Pitman, and Anna Alvarado.  They all contributed to the success of College 101!

Lastly, I hope that you can join me in congratulating two of our newly appointed LIP Interns, Maria Alonso, senior Trimble Tech HS, and Daisy Castro, senior, Northside HS.  These returning LIP students did a wonderful job on their first day of the internship!  What a great way to enhance their resume and to give back to HWNT.  We are so proud of you guys!

I hope that you can join us at our next session, Latinas in Power Module at UNT on November 14^th (more details to follow soon).  We are still accepting Madrinas so if you would like to make a difference in a young Latina’s life I encourage each of you to step up and be a mentor!  It’s extremely rewarding!

Till next time,

Victoria Ruiz

Education Chair

HWNT - Fort Worth Chapter

Mobile: 817.913.8819

fw-education@hwnt.org

www.hwnt.org

Mil Gracias! Thanks a Million!

HWNT Celebrates Latina Art 2009

“Bare your Sole”

Your support made it possible for 80 girls to begin our Latinas In Progress Education Series on October 3rd. Our members are dedicated to educating, mentoring, and inspiring young Latinas to complete a higher education. You made it all possible!

HWNT FW Chapter filled the walls and halls of La Galeria de la Rosa with Fabulous donated art, high heel shoes, and lots of VIP’s. Gina Puente-Brancato, our most gracious Honorary Chair, challenged the crowd to help raise funds for our Latinas In Progress Education Series by encouraging guests to purchase art, silent auction items, and vote on their favorite high heel shoe. It also helped that there was an abundance of wine donated from her wineries. Jane Avila’s esapadrille won the contest the night of the Art Show and contributed $47 in cash to add to our educational series. Beautiful shoes do add value! Ultimately, each Latinas In Progress student will receive one of the High Heel Inspirational shoes that were on display in the hallway.

Our Curator, Jerrel Sustaita set us up for success as many could not resist taking home the beautiful pieces of art donated by our many artists. Jacqueline Falcon, our Featured Latina Artist awed the crowd with her spectacular piece entitled “Rebel In Purple”.

The real stars of the evening were all of our Latinas In Progress students. They were true pros as they were interviewed by our very own Judy Perez, and Pat Alva-Green. They are no longer shy high school students, but outgoing and well spoken Latinas In Progress graduates!

Aurora Bleu made their debut at the Art Show. Who would have known it was their first performance? Stephanie Garcia’s rendition of “At Last” will never be forgotten. The groups jazzy, bluesy soul definitely fit our theme.

The show was a success due to our chairs, Diane Salazar, Diana Pittman and the Latina Art Show committee. Their leadership and countless volunteer hours were immeasurable.

Thank you to all of our sponsors for making our event possible. Because of everyone’s support 80 Latina Girls began their journey to a college education on October 3, 2009.

Thank you Doctorate Partners

A VIP SNEAK PEEK at a piece from

the upcoming Latina Art Show

Vivid

Vivid and Hasta La Luna

11x 16

By Julie Alzaitoun

Vivid reminds her of the colorful beauty of Mexico. Color, art, and culture are always celebrated even in remote villages.

Hasta La Luna was shot on Puerto Vallarta’s malecon. It represents the confidence in our children to shoot for the moon with the right support and education.

Hasta La Luna

www.julianastudios.com

Artist Biography: My passion for photography began in the late 90’s when I moved to Mexico! I lived in an awesome fishing village known as Puerto Vallarta! Back then it was not as popular of a tourist area as it is today. I lived there for 2 years teaching scuba diving. That was the life…hanging out at the beach …learning spanish..and doing what I LOVE most of all..SCUBA DIVING! I took so many photographs of the people and town of Vallarta…it became a real passion for me. The lifestyle there was so completely different from the states. I felt like I wanted to capture every moment and memory on film! When I moved back to the states I continued my passion for photography by photographing the most memorable day in a persons life! Whether its a graduating senior awaiting their new life, a bride’s wedding day or the birth of a new baby…I want to be there to document it for you!!!

Visit her new studio in Roanoke, Texas.

Many thanks to Julie Alzaitoun for donating two pieces to help HWNT mentor and provide scholarships for our Latinas In Progress students.

Be there and Get Your Bid On!

Free Admission

Refreshments are provided

Saturday, September 26, 2009 6:00pm to 9:00 pm

Galeria de la Rosa

1442 North Main Street

Fort Worth, Texas 76164

817-624-8333

For more information contact:

Christina Elbitar, Chair HWNT FW

fw-chair@hwnt.org or 817-723-5356

HWNT Celebrates Latina Art 2009

A VIP SNEAK PEEK at a piece from

the upcoming Latina Art Show

My Soul in a Basket

7 x 9.5 framed

By Ellie Ivanova

Roses carry a rich symbolism as images - they stand for love and
heartache, beauty and thorny resilience. In this small basket, some
roses are fresh while others have faded, just like a person’s soul is
in a constant renewal of memories, emotions and motivations: some
stay, others go away. Instead of expressing sadness for what we have
lost, the intention behind this image is to inspire hope and desire to
move ahead and grow.

http://parasolphotography.smugmug.com.

Artist Biography: Ellie Ivanova lives in Texas now, but she is deeply connected with Latin America, where she has lived and worked.  Her literary articles have appeared in various scholarly journals. She also writes art critique and cultural analysis for local and international art and culture magazines. She currently works on an teacher-training project for bilingual education.

As a photographer, she is interested in the visual representation of cultural space and its people. Her art has been shown at the Fort Worth Community Art Center, Laura Moore Gallery and Berry Street Art Gallery in Fort Worth. It is part of the art collection of the
Independent Bank in McKinney, TX.

Many thanks to Ellie Ivanova for donating this piece to help HWNT mentor and provide scholarships for our Latinas In Progress students.

Be there and Get Your Bid On!

Saturday, September 26, 2009 6:00pm to 9:00 pm

Galeria de la Rosa

1442 North Main Street

Fort Worth, Texas 76164

817-624-8333

For more information contact:

Christina Elbitar, Chair HWNT FW

fw-chair@hwnt.org or 817-723-5356

Yes, we decorated High Heels to display at HWNT Celebrates Latina Art.  Rebecca Aguilar stopped by and decorated two shoes with us.  She also wrote this amazing story and created a fabulous video. THANK YOU REBECCA!!! HWNT FORT WORTH LOVES YOU!

http://www.pegasusnews.com/news/2009/sep/14/fort-worth-latina-group-using-art-help-local-hispa/

A VIP SNEAK PEEK at a piece from

the upcoming Latina Art Show

Calm before Storm

24 x 36 on canvas

By Hatziel Flores

This piece reflects the self preparation that one has to endure to be strong for the troubles that we face day by day, choosing to take it head on with bravery. The bee hive shapes represent Hard work and the power to Rebuild for a brand new clean start.

Artist Biography: His journey began at the age of 4, while playing under the dining table, his mother presented him with a piece of paper and a pencil. Astonished by what can be created with those two means, his interest began to grow. At the age of 14, bored by what was taught in art school, he started to look for another outlet of creativity. He was introduced into the Hip Hop culture and started to get involved with Graffiti. This became an extremely important element for him. Graffiti has helped him express himself through his art in a more freely. He became acquainted with different kinds of art mediums and started to evolve his visions. Today he incorporates Urban Techniques to a Surreal art form, giving him a finished product of an edgy Modern Surrealism. Up until this day there are no limit to his visions.
Many thanks to Hatziel Flores an artist from Dallas for donating this piece to help HWNT mentor and provide scholarships to our Latinas In Progress students.

Be there and Get Your Bid On!

Saturday, September 26, 2009 6:00pm to 9:00 pm

Galeria de la Rosa

1442 North Main Street

Fort Worth, Texas 76164

817-624-8333

For more information contact:

Christina Elbitar, Chair HWNT FW

fw-chair@hwnt.org or 817-723-5356

HWNT_FW Goes Uptown

by Pat Alva-Green Vice Chair for PR and Communications

On Friday, September 4^th, the Social-List non-profit organization held their monthly mixer at Aura Uptown. The featured non-profit organization was the Fabulous HWNT Fort Worth Chapter. Several of the HWNT members;  Pat Alva-Green, Nancy Galvan, Dolores Lukach, Diane Salazar and Victoria Ruiz mixed and mingled with over 100 attendees. An area was beautifully setup to showcase the organization, promote the upcoming Latina Art Show, recruit members, sponsors and art donations.

The Social List organization gave Pat Alva-Green, PR Vice Chair, the opportunity to speak to all the attendees about the great work HWNT is doing.  M Strategies, a corporate partner, provided the opportunity for HWNT-FW to be the featured non-profit organization and also facilitated key introductions with the media, potential sponsors and members.

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HWNT Celebrates Latina Art 2009

“Bare Your Sole”

Landscape In Motion

11 x 14 framed 8×10 image

By Lynn Hausner

Purchase this amazing mixed media hand colored, hand printed signed original collograph print at HWNT Celebrates Latina Art 2009. The printing plate was handmade out of found materials including sandpaper, rice paper, tape, and egg shells. The plate was then coated to withstand the pressure of an etching press, hand inked and hand printed on an artist’s etching press. A small edition of artists proofs were pulled from this plate and hand colored using various media. This particular print is hand-colored with colored pencils.

Lynn P. Hausner received a Bachelors of Fine Arts in Printmaking from Daemon College in Buffalo New York. Prior to moving to Dallas, she lived and worked in Buffalo, where she was part of a communal art studio. She held weekly printmaking classes and showed her artwork in the studio’s gallery. Lynn currently resides in Plano, Texas.

Many thanks to Lynn P. Hausner for donating this piece to help HWNT mentor and provide scholarships to our Latinas In Progress students.

Be there and Get Your Bid On!

Saturday, September 26, 2009 6:00pm to 9:00 pm

Galeria de la Rosa

1442 North Main Street

Fort Worth, Texas 76164

817-624-8333

For more information contact:

Christina Elbitar, Chair HWNT FW

fw-chair@hwnt.org or 817-723-5356

A panel of Wise Women

HWNT Mindshare: Empowering Leaders through Experience

By Pat Alva Green, VIce Chair for PR and Communications

Fort Worth Chapter Recap

7/29/09

What do you get when you add five talented women, public servants, a board who believes anything is possible and an incredible implementation team…MAGIC! From the moment you set foot into the Luella Baker Martin Pavilion you could feel the energy building. As each member, guest and panelist arrived the energy grew stronger and stronger. The implementation team added the final touches to an amazing venue. The many guests and members enjoyed good cheer, good food and good company. The panelists, now family, were honest, insightful, and encouraging. We all left taller, inspired and empowered! We learned that anything is possible, education is crucial, a great support system is necessary, passion and compassion is key and that the door is open for us to step through to what aligns with our passion.

HWNT Hermanas, Christina Elbitar and Mary Ann Kellam a Dallas Diva

A big thank you and a big hug to the PR committee who made this come together. Your gifts, talents and committment is appreciated and acknowledged. You are amazing:
- Lucie Allen
- Gloria Diaz
- Christina Elbitar
- Sue Ann Martinez
- Val Martinez-Ebers
- Estela Martinez-Stuart
- M Strategies
- Judy Perez
- Diana Pittman

This was a historic event that raised the awareness, clout and influence of the fabulous HWNT-FW off the charts! As the song goes “Ain’t No Stopping Now”!

Here is a link from one of the bloggers that attended our event: http://xxcommunicator.blogspot.com/2009/07/about-tonights-mindshare.html

Pat Alva Green shares how our panelists BREAK THE GLASS CEILING!