I hope our newsletter finds you well.  The Neighborhood Council EmpowerLA Awards and Volunteer Appreciation Dinner is less than 2 weeks away!  If you haven’t RSVP’d yet for the March 30, 2017 EmpowerLA Awards, please take the time to do so now because space is limited.  We have 40 EmpowerLA Award nominations of our Neighborhood Councils’ wonderful work.  I do not envy the Board of Neighborhood Commissioners’ task in selecting the final seven, which will be announced at the event.  Please come and celebrate your awesomeness, your fellow Neighborhood Councils’ achievements as well as the Neighborhood Councils ringing in 15 years of service to Los Angeles!

I was happy to attend Mayor Eric Garcetti and First Lady Amy Elaine Wakeland’s Inaugural Los Angeles State of Women and Girls Address on Tuesday morning to hear of women’s achievements, challenges and future.  Congratulations to Los Angeles Information Technology Agency’s General Manager, Ted Ross, for winning the first Gender Equity Award!  Ted has been successfully recruiting women to ITA in a field that is typically dominated by men as a majority of women in his management team. The address was followed by the first Los Angeles Young Women Assembly where workshops and leadership trainings were offered for nearly 700 women.  EmpowerLA was also there to recruit for upcoming Neighborhood Council Civic Youth classes this summer.  Much appreciation to Mayor Garcetti and First Lady Wakeland for their amazing work of achieving gender parity on City Commissions and for bringing more women and girls into leadership roles citywide!

We celebrated more Neighborhood Council 15 year anniversaries last night in the Central area at the Board of Neighborhood Commissioners.  PICO, Los Feliz, Central Hollywood, Hollywood Hills West, Historic Cultural and Downtown Los Angeles Neighborhood Councils were honored.  We’re looking to take some of the 15 year celebrations to Neighborhood Council meetings in the future so we can start celebrating with the whole board, too.

Don’t forget that our EmpowerLA Leadership Academy Bylaws Workshop Series starts tomorrow in the Valley.  The Neighborhood Council Budget Advocates are meeting tomorrow, too, and Chatsworth Neighborhood Council will be holding their selections.  On Sunday, SORO Neighborhood Council will be launching their awesome Digital and Computer Literacy Program.

Have a wonderful weekend!