Beverley Claire Pomeroy is mother of an eight-year old daughter named Sophia who was born with a disease so rare there has yet to be name for it.   Every organ and system in her body is compromised, her life is very limited, and she struggles are very real for her and her family.  

Are you looking for a new job? Do you think it's a waste of your time to network? Or maybe you're too nervous to try it? I don't blame you. I'm much better one-on-one and in small-group situations; I wouldn’t want to purposefully sign up to attend a large networking event in hopes of finding a contact who might or might not lead to a new job. But then, when I thought about it some more...I realized that I found my last two jobs through people in my personal network.

I've been participating in service days where I can share my technology skills with local organization.   My favorite is the annual NTEN Day of Service for the NTC which I've been doing for the past ten years!    Mozilla Service Week starts on Monday, September 14!  The idea behind service is simple: Everyone should know how to use the Internet, have easy access to it, and have a great experience when they’re online.   Mozilla is reaching out to geeks far and wide to give a helping hand to nonprofit organizations and people all over the world to experience the joy of using the Web!

There are days when I feel like all I do is move from one social networking spot to another. First BlogHer, then Twitter, then Facebook, then back to BlogHer again only to start the entire process over an hour later. It's a chain that never ends and can leave me feeling like I haven't accomplished a single thing. I need tools that help me work more efficiently. The Chatter to Twitter functionality helps a lot.

Though it’s over seven months away and may not even be on your radar yet, we’re buzzing with excitement about the interactive portion of SXSW ’10, slated for March 12-16. Why? Several BlogHers have proposed sessions for the conference, and we’re hoping that a few good women will be selected to speak. But we need your help! Read on to learn more about the fabulous sessions proposed – and if you like what you find, or would attend one of the proposed panels, or even if you’re just slightly fascinated by an idea, we could use your vote of confidence. Quite literally.

We all know the familiar personal ad format: "Kind and caring female seeks marriage-minded man for long walks on the beach, hand holding and soft rock listening marathons. Must love dogs." I mock because I love but, seriously, I have several fine friends who found love and mates through personal ads. And the success of finding companionship through better advertising can get one to wondering whether or not there are are other life desires that can be found through placing a clever bit of copy.

When Nellie B. of The F-Bomb attended a pre-college leadership program for young women this summer, she "anticipated a group of smart, articulate young feminists, eager to share their knowledge, skills and connect with like-minded girls." She was surprised to find that, despite writing several essays about feminism, slightly more than ten percent of the attendees identified as feminists. Nellie wrote:

Source: Planned Parenthood Fan Page Profile Photos Allison Fine and I have been busy working on a book about how social media and connectedness is changing the way nonprofits are creating social change.   Earlier this week, we had an amazing conversation with Planned Parenthood's president, Cecile Richards

Some people at the BlogHer09 conference went mad for the swag. BlogHer Conference virgin that I was, I missed prime swag opportunities, I've been told. But seriously, I have pack rat issues already. Me and swag would have been a dangerous thing. Business cards, however--that's a different story. At the other end of a BlogHer business card is rarely a major corporation trying to sell you a tangible product. It's a woman saying "This is who I am" or at least how I want you to see me at this moment in my life.

Whee! Great stuff. Not BlogHer swag, but BlogHer blogroll extra good stuff. I've got geeky tutorials, links to tools that will help you track your content (damn those content stealers!), a network for designers of color, an article about getting sued for your tweets, and tips for getting your emergency contact information on your iPhone as wallpaper. Geeky Tutorials

So, you've gone to a networking event, perhaps just gotten home from BlogHer '09, and now you have a pile of business cards and new contacts. What do you do next? It can sometimes be a little overwhelming but follow up is a critical element in making the most of new connections you make.