The OlyPen and Kitsap Gathering Group in Washington State celebrates its one-year anniversary.
Ride the wave of friendship and fun by joining an Ethel Gathering Group
Transcript
Barb Thibert: I wanna welcome you all to our first anniversary.
This is so amazing to be able to connect with. All these different women that just wanna have fun and and in your own area.
They made me aware of all these different opportunities that I would've never had before.
I am an Ethel because they came along at the right time. I'd lost my husband and moved out here with my daughter, and I kind of was a hermit for a while.
And the Ethel's came along and brought me out a shell.
Over 200 of us are here celebrating our very first Ethel anniversary.
Our group has grown, um, pretty quickly in the. In the Ethel compared to other Ethel groups. Part of it is because we have 800 members out of our 1100 members that live within 45 minutes of each other. And so in order to have, um, repeated connections with each other and, and see each other more than one time a month, we hold a lot of events.
Welcome, so glad to see ya.
Kris Osborn: We'd like to grow organically. Uh, we don't want to just grow because we put a Facebook ad or something else like that out there. Um, it's really ladies feeling comfortable with other ladies.
Barb Thibert: The other thing that has helped our group grow a lot is that, um, pretty early in our group, we had QR codes made and little business cards that we give out to all of our members and they hand 'em out.
Sandra Boren: I'd lived here nine years with my husband of 34 years and he and he died, and I was very much alone. The one thing missing in my life. Was social connection. So, uh, it just filled in a great big gap. I mean, that days were so slow at first, but now time flies.
Linda Jacobson: All of a sudden my husband became ill, so I needed something.
I was feeling very lost and, uh. I just needed
Sharon Bridges: something. I have to say that this has been one of the happiest times of my life. It was a new chapter of my life and it's been a very, very rewarding.
Linda Jacobson: I.
Barb Thibert: I did not want our group to grow slow. I wanted it to grow rocket fast. So going forward into our next year, my catchphrase is going to be, um, I want everybody to try to make their own Ethel Magic. Kind of the concept behind making your own ethyl magic is that if somebody wants to go blackberry picky and they are fine with 10 other people coming with them, they can put an event out there.
So it gets back to doing what they want, when they want it, where they want it. I love your shirt. Oh yes. See, this is our new, um,
Tanya Unruh: I would think that she. Is the personification of any one of the ladies here. And she would probably be looking down, going, oh my goodness, I never dreamed in a million years that this is what would come of.
Kris Osborn: Uh, she really wanted that support of women and we have absolutely accomplished that. Sorry,
Linda Jacobson: because of the Ethel's in one year, in one small 365 days, I have become passionate. I love, I live. I'm glad to be alive. I have things to look forward to. Thank you, Ethel.