Connecticut, Here We Come!
I joined Tide Risers in 2017 because the premise was intriguing: meet inspiring women, build new skills through targeted sessions, and develop new relationships. I also believed deeply in Lara’s leadership and ability to build a special community of women.
Jamie Renwick
Tide Risers has given me so much more than I expected. People talk about the value of being pushed outside of your comfort zone, and I’m here to attest that -- while sometimes uncomfortable -- it is how you truly grow. Over the last 11 months, Tide Risers has helped me experience discomfort (AKA growth) on more than one occasion, including:
● Leading a ‘Fundraising with Joy’ session: I developed a presentation that I now use in my consulting practice and shared these tips and tricks with a subset of Tide Risers. In my professional life I have asked someone for multiple millions of dollars but still I fear public speaking. The opportunity to practice presenting to a group helped build my confidence, and I felt as if the information I shared empowered women to become more effective at growing their respective organizations.
● Participating in a Tide Risers session focusing on race and identity: You can’t tell from reading this, but I have a thick southern accent. Reflecting deeply on race and identity helped me realize the role my accent plays in carrying some major personal baggage, and I was pushed to reflect on how my accent is related to my own leadership. The beauty of this community is how comfortable I feel discussing things that are so uncomfortable. I ended up speaking on a 'Future of Female Leadership' panel alongside three other successful women, which helped me develop confidence in my relationship to these issues, my past experiences, and how I interact and relate when I’m out in the world.
Jamie leading Tide Risers' 'Fundraising With Joy' workshop
This August, I moved with my husband and three girls from Brooklyn to Greenwich, CT. Our family is no stranger to moving -- over the last number of years we’ve crossed oceans and borders countless times, most recently moving from London back to Brooklyn in 2016. Having called New York home for nearly 20 years, I thought I was satiated on the friends and professional network front, but Tide Risers made me realize you can never have too many good people in your life.
So, alongside my new personal chapter, I have decided to launch a new Tide Risers chapter in Fairfield County. I want to seed a community of women working together, not in competition, to help change the world while learning and growing. I want to help build connection between thoughtful, impressive, successful, captivating women, many of whom I’ve already met in my short time here!
I am grateful for this community of women and the infrastructure that has been developed to help us connect with one another, support one another, and grow as people and professionals. I am grateful that Lara has empowered me to expand the reach of this positive force. I can’t wait to see where this journey takes all of us.
Already, I have met many amazing women who are supporting me in my efforts and connecting me to key leaders. The feedback I have received from these engaged, accomplished women is that there is a real need for Tide Risers in Fairfield County, and that they are looking for areas of connection and support to ultimately change the world. I am so looking forward to officially begin recruiting and for the magic of connection to begin!
Jamie Renwick is the President of Jamie Renwick Advisors, and has worked as a fundraising professional in New York City and London for more than two decades. Jamie is currently a Tide Riser and is the cohort leader for Tide Risers in Fairfield County, Connecticut, where she resides with her family.