AAUW hosts chamber president for Successful Women in Tehachapi talk
The Tehachapi Mountain Branch of the American Association of University Women presented Greater Tehachapi Chamber of Commerce Executive Director Clare Scotti as its speaker on Jan. 17.
She was asked to share her views on the topic of women succeeding in Tehachapi. Scotti is a mother, wife, entrepreneur, community volunteer, holder of a master’s degree from the University of Oregon, travel magazine founder, editor and publisher.
She also partners with husband Chris Scotti to run Tehachapi-based Discover Tehachapi tours.
“You need love for your community. Of course, tenacity, perseverance, and a little luck have a lot to do with success but the thing that makes someone truly unforgettably successful is community,” Scotti said as she opened her remarks.
She went on, “Take this chapter of the AAUW. You have come together to support women in our community during the different seasons of their life. The seasons of education, building a career, becoming mothers, balancing home life and work life, budding entrepreneur, climbing the ladder, retiring and volunteering time to lift others up. The community you foster nurtures success in others. When you take care of the community around you, it will take care of you.”
Scotti cited other community organizations that help make for successful Tehachapi women entrepreneurs: the Chamber, with its many networking luncheons; the city of Tehachapi; and Greater Tehachapi Economic Development Council monthly meetings, where the state of the city and its economic direction is openly discussed with business leaders.
She noted the active tourism commission and Visitors Center, coupled with a city government that fosters and promotes local business.
Scotti named a few Tehachapi women she admires for their success: “Jeanette Pauer, Susan Wiggins, Ilda Vaja, Michelle Story, Claudia Elliott, Danielle Green, JoEllen Scotti. I thank you for being brave, and the welcoming, supportive, empowering community that you are. Thank you for lifting each other up.”
She shard an inspirational thought as she finished:
“Bravery is not the absence of fear, but the strength to do what’s right in the face of it.”