Join BPW St. Petersburg-Pinellas for our annual Working Women’s Forum, Mothers of Invention: Women of Innovation. Thi s evening celebrates the women whose ideas, creativity, courage, and determination are shaping our future. Moderated by Alison Barlow, CEO of the St. Petersburg Innovation District, this engaging panel discussion will bring together accomplished women innovators to explore how women are challenging conventions, creating solutions, building businesses, and transforming their communities. Come be inspired, make connections, and discover what’s possible when women turn bold ideas into meaningful change. Your admission includes heavy hors d’oeuvres and a cash bar, making this a perfect evening for networking, conversation, and celebration. Best of all, your participation supports the mission of BPW St. Petersburg-Pinellas, with proceeds helping fund our programs, scholarships, and ongoing advocacy for equity and opportunity for all working women. Come celebrate the women who invent, innovate, and inspire and leave ready to create something new yourself!

Our Panel of Phenomenal Women

Alison Barlow is CEO of the St. Petersburg Innovation District, a 560-acre district adjacent to downtown St. Petersburg, Florida. She leads efforts to strengthen Tampa Bay’s innovation economy by bringing together industry, academia, government, and community partners to solve complex challenges and accelerate emerging technologies, with a particular focus on marine science, life sciences, and national security.

At the Innovation District, Alison founded the Maritime and Defense Technology Hub, a collaborative workspace supporting the growth of maritime technology and defense companies. She also serves as co-program manager for The Continuum, a national network of ocean enterprise accelerators advancing blue economy startups through technology commercialization across the United States.

Alison brings a distinctive combination of technology, strategy, and regional economic development experience to her work. Before leading the Innovation District, she spent 15 years in Washington, D.C., managing complex technology initiatives. After returning to Florida, she focused on building collaborative initiatives across Tampa Bay, experience that continues to shape her approach to innovation-driven economic development.

She holds a bachelor’s degree in Hospitality Administration from Florida State University and an MBA in Management of Global Information Technology from American University in Washington, D.C. Alison serves on several academic and nonprofit boards.

Rebecca Brown is the CEO of spARK Labs by ARK Invest, where she is building a flagship innovation center, incubator, and venture ecosystem designed to attract, support, and scale early-stage technology companies aligned with ARK Invest’s disruptive innovation themes—including artificial intelligence, robotics, energy storage, blockchain, and multi-omics. She is the founder of Core Satellite Partners, advising founders, family offices, and organizations on growth strategy, market positioning, and capital formation. Rebecca began her career at Goldman Sachs, later co-founded a consumer brand featured on Shark Tank, and has worked across consumer, fintech, health, and emerging technology sectors. She holds an MBA from Columbia Business School and an AB from Harvard College and is deeply engaged in building the Tampa Bay region into a nationally recognized innovation hub.

Nicky Bruger is the CEO and cofounder of Digital Twin Marine, a St. Pete based company bringing digital twin technology to the maritime industry. She loves building a company in an industry that is not always quick to adopt new technology and finding practical ways to make people’s jobs easier. She is also passionate about helping women in tech and innovation.

Sinead Norenius has founded and sold two companies: a beauty brand that landed on HSN, and an influencer marketing technology platform. She’s spent her career on both sides of the table, as a founder shipping her own products and as a Product Management Executive inside billion-dollar SaaS companies shipping other people’s. InnoVitale Spa, which she opened in St. Petersburg in 2024, is her third build and her most personal one. She brought that same build-and-iterate mindset to an industry that hadn’t innovated in decades: she engineered the Meno “Pause” Facial®, now a federally registered treatment for perimenopausal and menopausal skin, and built the systems, team, and client experience around it from scratch. Two years in, the spa has over 300+ five-star reviews and a growing list of women who couldn’t find this kind of care anywhere else.

This event is made possible by our generous sponsors:

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National Business Women’s Week®

National Business Women’s Week® is celebrated every year during the third week of October. It provides a valuable opportunity to recognize and honor working women, and employers who support working women and their families. For nearly a century now, this celebration has helped to promote leadership roles for women and to increase opportunities for personal and professional growth.

National Business Women’s Week originated with Emma Dot Partridge, Executive Secretary of the National Federation of Business and Professional Women’s Clubs, and was first observed in 1928. President Herbert Hoover was the first president to issue a letter recognizing National Business Women’s Week® in 1932.

To this day, National Business Women’s Week ® is used to call attention to women entrepreneurs, facilitate discussions on the needs of working women, share information about workplace policies, and raise awareness of resources.

– Monique DeMonaco
5 Ways To Celebrate National Business Women’s Week®

A tradition continues…

Since 2012, BPW/St. Petersburg-Pinellas has been fulfilling its mission of advocacy, education, and connections by presenting the Working Women’s Forum. Using a panel discussion format, the Working Women’s Forum takes on issues that are relevant to the lives of working women. The forums have included some of our area’s top subject matter experts and women leaders delivering informative, engaging, and often entertaining conversations. Our most recent forums are listed below.

Keeping the Momentum: Common Ground to Common Good (October 2025) Darla Otey-Murphy, Executive Director of Girls Inc. of Tampa Bay; Nicole Roberts, Director of Community Engagements of St. Petersburg Downtown Partnership; Christie Bruner, Vice President of Advocacy St. Petersburg Area Chamber of Commerce; LeShante Keys, Founder/CEO of Community EFX Inc.; Sherry Platt, Talent Acquisition Leader and Women’s Executive Coach; Jerri Evans of Lisa A Hoppe, PA.

Finding Common Ground Through Community Engagement (April 2025, rescheduled from October 2024) Christie Bruner, Vice President of Advocacy St. Petersburg Area Chamber of Commerce; Dr. Loretta Caldwell-Thompson, CEO, Caldwell Management Solutions; Peter Kageyama, Urbanist & Bestselling Author of For the Love of Cities; Caryn Nesmith, Director of Community Relations for USF St. Petersburg; Jason Mathis, CEO of the St. Petersburg Downtown Partnership.

Working to Belong (October 2023) Delquanda Turner Smith, Principal Consultant, Inclusivity LLC; Jessica Tomlinson, President, Democratic Disability Caucus, Pinellas Chapter; Kimberly Rogers, Executive Director, Community Law Program; Jeff Baker, Government and Community Relations Manager, Duke Energy;

Advocacy in Action (October 2022) Shanelle Rae, Ph.D., Director of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion, Tampa General Hospital; Marcia L. Alvarado, PE, Structural Market Leader, WGI; Kimberly Jackson, Executive Director, Strategic Policy Solutions (ISPS); and was moderated by Dawn Hunter, JD, MPH, Southeastern Region Director, Network for Public Health Law

The Great Reset (October 2021) Belinthia Berry, Acting Dean of Workforce Development, St. Petersburg College; Jessica Oreste, Chief Human Resources Officer, Women’s Care; Jennifer Yeagley, Chief Executive Officer, St. Petersburg Free Clinic; and was moderated by Dr. Keesha Benson, Chief Learning and Evaluation Officer, Foundation for a Healthy St. Petersburg.

Be Your Own Hero (October 2019) Amy Martinez-Monfort, Owner/CEO Tampa Laundry Company; Natalie Conner, Owner of Love My Dog Resorts: North Pinellas & Downtown; and was moderated by Tami Simms, Coastal Properties/Christie’s International Real Estate.

Gender Equity in Action (October 2018) Grow Financial Federal Credit Union, Kim Woollard, Chief Human Resources Officer; Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office, Major Stefanie Campbell, Commander for the Support Services Bureau; Sabal Trust Company, Jennifer Garbowicz, CFA, CIPM, Principal; Tech Data, Ameerah Mukayed, CDP, Diversity & Inclusion Specialist and was moderated by Tanya Hollins, Regional Executive Director, PACE Center for Girls

Women of Influence (October 2017) Our panel included Alizza Punzalan-Randle, Community Outreach Manager at Johns Hopkins All Children’s Hospital, Dr. Tonjua Williams, President of St. Petersburg College, and Molly Moorhead, Editorial Writer at Tampa Bay Times and was moderated by Cathy Unruh, WEDU Show Host and Author

From My House to the White House: Navigating the Crossroads of American Democracy (October 2016) Our panel included: Deborah Clark, Pinellas County Elections Supervisor; Nikki Gaskin-Capehart, Director of Urban Affairs for the City of St. Petersburg; and The Honorable Myriam Irizarry, County Judge, Pinellas County, and was moderated by Rob Lorei, a veteran of local news in the Tampa Bay area.

Being the Only Woman in The Room (October 2015) Our panel included Hon. Myriam Irizarry, Judge, Pinellas County Sixth Judicial Circuit, Criminal Division; Melanie Lenz, Tampa Bay Rays, Senior Vice President, Strategy and Development; Diane Bailey Morton, C1 Bank, General Counsel; Melissa Seixas, Duke Energy, Government and Community Relations, Pinellas and Pasco, and was moderated by Tami Simms, Coastal Properties/Christie’s International Real Estate.

From Grasshopper to Queen Bee: Mentoring Relationships that Buzz (October 2014) Our panel included USFSP Regional Chancellor Sophia Wisniewska, Founder of Working Women of Florida Jessica Rivelli, Executive Vice President of the WTL Group Elaine Smalling, and Infinite Solutions of Tampa Bay President and CEO Gwendolyn Reese, and was moderated by Tami Simms, Coastal Properties/Christie’s International Real Estate.

Women’s Success Stories: Shaping Your Career or Letting It Shape You (October 2013) Our panel included Director of the Leadership Development Institute at Eckerd College Margaret Cooley, Publisher of The Power Broker & Grapevine magazines Gypsy Gallardo, President of MAP & Associates Marty Petty, Owner of MISRED Outfitters and Lead Fashion Designer Sara Stonecipher, and was moderated by Tami Simms, Coastal Properties/Christie’s International Real Estate.

The Affordable Care Act (October 2012) Our panel included Cigna Senior Medical Director of Healthcare Coverage Dr. Julie Kessel, Bayfront Medical Center VP of Strategic Planning and Public Affairs Dr. Kanika Jelks-Tomalin, and Doctors for America Senior Regional Director Dr. Mona Mangat, and was moderated by Stetson University College of Law Dean of Faculty Michael Allen.

Why Do State and Federal Elections Matter to Working Women? (February 2012) Our panel included County Commissioner Karen Seele, School Board Member Nina Hayden, and Supervisor of Elections Deborah Clark, and was moderated by USF Political Science Professor Dr. Susan McManus.

2026 Working Women’s Forum

Attending the Event

Registration and networking begin at 5:30 pm; the program starts at 6:00 pm sharp.

Parking is available on site.