Blog & News

Board Member Spotlight: Miranda Ducey

At Woman to Woman Mentoring, we love stories about the power of mentorship! When women join our programs, there is no telling where their journeys will take them. In this blog we will follow Miranda Ducey’s special journey. Miranda started out as a mentee in our CORE Program, became a mentor to pay it forward, and has now joined our board of directors to continue the legacy of empowerment and guidance that our community thrives on.

Miranda moved from Nebraska to Frederick County in the early 2010’s with her young family and fell in love with the diversity, the culture, and the youth of the community. She was yearning to meet people and get involved in the community, and soon met Leslie Ruby. Leslie had been involved with W2WM for years, and often mentioned it as a great opportunity. Miranda decided to go for it, and joined W2WM as a mentee! This program came at the perfect time for Miranda. “It was really good because I had just moved to Frederick and I just started my job at FCC and I didn’t really know anyone” she said. Miranda matched with Cathy Warner as her mentor, and during their 6 months together they gained a lot of momentum. So much so that they extended their partnership long beyond the actual program time! They focused on career goals early on, but their extended time “gave [them] a chance to dive deeper and gain support with all life transitions.”

One of the most impactful workshops for Miranda was about money. As one of the activities they broke up into groups to talk about different ages and how your finances change. Miranda was so impressed with how open women were open to discussing topics and information with other women. She hadn’t connected with many women in the community yet, and she often left the workshops happily surprised and energized seeing how much the women leaned on and cared for each other. “So much of these topics were stuff that I was going through but I didn’t realize that this connection was the missing piece. It was like comparing notes in school… you’re not in it alone, you can crowd source this!” Miranda stated.

Miranda gained such amazing energy and support from Cathy, (Mentor Cathy, as Miranda and her kids still call her!) that she wanted to continue to pay it forward. She donated money and volunteered her time. And in 2020, W2WM staff asked her to consider becoming a mentor. She said yes, and greatly enjoyed getting to know the mentee and helping her navigate her educational future. Being a mentor impacted Miranda more than she expected. Mentors often tell us they feel they gain as much from the experience as the mentees do!

Miranda also became interested in learning more about serving on a nonprofit board. She sought information and insights from a few W2WM board members to learn more about the expectations and opportunities. The more she heard the more interested she became, and she applied to become a board member. She’s been an enthusiastic and dedicated board member since then, and we’re so grateful for all she brings to our W2WM team.

Miranda continues to make and share connections through W2WM for herself and others in the community. She values the wide range of personal and professional experiences and interests in the W2WM family and credits these connections for her own growth in her career and life. She’s excited to continue growing with and through W2WM and to continue spreading the word about the power of mentorship!

Looking to find your community and connect with women in Frederick County? Check out www.womantowomanmentoring.org to learn more and apply today!

 

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