Get Fit, Financially, at Women's Financial Planning Event

Women from all walks of life can gain great insight on getting in good financial shape during the first Women's Financial Fitness Symposium at the Workforce Training Center from 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. on May 7.

"Thirty-two workshops are planned," said Paula Fisher of the WTC. "Attendees may pick from various tracks, such as Retirement, Investing, Credit Repair and Protection, College Planning, Insurance and Small Business Development."

Informative workshops will be held throughout the day and are designed to provide women with the financial tools they need to lead financially secure lives. Workshops are applicable to every woman, from the relatively young who are just beginning to save to those who are preparing for retirement.

The symposium has been put together through collaborative work between Fisher and Erin Johnson-Kruft, program coordinator for the Workforce Training Center and Terri Berrenberg and Randi Melvin of Berrenberg Wealth Management LLC.

"Terri and Randi, our CNM personal enrichment instructors for Money Matters classes came up with the idea of the symposium," Fisher said. "It seemed to fit perfectly with CNM's mission and vision to Change Lives and Build Community."

Fisher said that the planning committee also includes CNM employees representing several departments, the Small Business Development Center and community businesses such as Berrenberg Wealth Management.

"It's been our experience," said Terri Berrenberg, president of Berrenberg Wealth Management, "that women are extremely open in the finance classes we teach. They ask questions, they share their stories and history so we wanted to plan a women's event. This event would create an opportunity for women from every background to seek much needed financial information to help them in their decision making."

Both Berrenberg and Melvin will be presenting workshops at the symposium and agree that the event is a great opportunity for women to feel empowered. Melvin encourages women to bring their sisters, moms, daughters and friends.

The keynote speaker for the event is Natasha Mata, President of Community Banking for Wells Fargo.

A $40 registration fee will cover lunch and the cost of workshops. CNM employees are eligible for a 10 percent discount. Each registrant will have over 30 workshops to choose from and the schedule allows for attendance of four workshops.

Women interested in participating can register by calling (505) 224-5200 or by visiting cnm.edu/campus/wtc/wffs.