Mother’s Day is a significant occasion to express gratitude towards the remarkable and inspiring women in our lives. On this Mother’s Day, we would like to honor a group of business owners who are members of The Club—an empowering community of women entrepreneurs with a network that expands globally.
The Club serves as a holistic support system for diverse CEOs, Founders, business owners, experts, and creatives, providing access to customers, a nurturing peer community, and curated resources. Collaboration and positivity lie at the heart of The Club’s success, with strategic partnerships, cross-promotion, and reciprocal support fostered between members.
Heather Anderson, the visionary Founder of The Club and The Mamahood, the largest and most diverse support group for mothers in the Bay Area, has created a unique ecosystem where business owners thrive and mothers benefit from the support of community-centered experts and brands.
The Club members featured below have been handpicked by Heather for embodying the values of building in community and having an ‘abundance mindset’. She invites you to join in celebrating these exceptional mothers by exploring their websites and supporting their work.
Heather Anderson, Founder of The Club & The Mamahood
Heather Anderson is a community leader and marketing strategist who’s passionate about creating organic growth for businesses through partnership. In addition to founding The Mamahood and The Club, she’s also a writer, speaker, songwriter, and a mother of five with a penchant for graphic novels and reading cookbooks without actually cooking. Her second book, The Story of Sadie, is being published episodically as an illustrated musical memoir.
Jaimee Campanella is a Time Strategist and Productivity Consultant who specializes in empowering parents, professionals, and entrepreneurs to effectively manage their time. Her flagship program, Time Power™, is a six-week, personalized coaching experience designed to equip busy moms and entrepreneurs with the essential tools and strategies they need to avoid overwhelm and regain control of their time.
With a mission to help mom entrepreneurs find balance between their personal and professional lives, Jaimee is dedicated to empowering her clients to excel in both areas without compromising their well-being or succumbing to mom guilt.
Gita spent over 20 years as an Operations and Strategy leader before launching Neeshi. Now, her focus is on easing heavy & painful periods, and creating a space for menstrual health in the mainstream conversation.
Gita’s journey started as a very personal one: to ease her daughter’s heavy and painful periods naturally. Rooted in the principles of natural food healing and Ayurveda, she began baking daily treats to support hormonal balance. Neeshi’s products are made with superfoods proven to support hormonal balance. In trials and with customers, the treats reduced menstrual period length from 8 days to 4, removed the need for super heavy pads and painkillers, reduced acne/bloating/mood swings/PMS, and customers over 40 experienced new hair growth and a 68% reduction in hair loss. Neeshi’s missions is to free women from the burden of their menstrual cycle because no one should have a heavy period stand in their way.
Ramsey’s passion is to empower women who are creating positive change in the world by helping them establish a strong online presence. She specializes in working with visionary entrepreneurs who are dedicated to making a difference through their businesses.
After gaining experience and knowledge from renowned designer Ushi Patel, Ramsey pursued her passion for web design and founded SPARROW.
When she’s not working on design projects, Ramsey is an Army wife, a mother to a daughter, and a dog lover who has a fascination with cows and the enneagram. In her free time, she enjoys spending time with her family under the sunny skies of Southern California, whether it’s at the park or snuggled up on the couch watching Doctor Who.
Shari, a mother of five, is dedicated to lowering the maternal mortality rate and supporting families as they transition through the postpartum and early years of parenthood. She is the founder of Navigating Parenthood, where she combines her passion for evidence-based, biologically normal practices with her extensive experience in education and content creation. With training as a lactation educator counselor, postpartum doula, infant massage instructor, craniosacral therapist, and family sleep and well-being specialist, Shari provides a range of services, courses, events, and support for expecting and new parents to help them thrive.
Samantha Tradelius is a commercial property insurance broker and co-founder of Commercial Coverage Insurance Agency, where she draws upon her 24 years of industry experience to assist women-owned businesses with risk management. Additionally, she is the award-winning founder of The Sparkle Foundation, a non-profit organization dedicated to helping single women throughout the Bay Area, Los Angeles, and Sacramento.
Samantha’s mission to support and uplift women is evident in everything she does. Through The Sparkle Foundation and its resource arm, SparkleBiz, Samantha provides financial aid for enrichment programs, microloans for female-owned small businesses, and access to a large, connected network. Since its establishment in 2016, The Sparkle Foundation has raised over $1 million, with every dollar reinvested in the community.
Samantha’s latest project, S. By Samantha Inc., is all about giving real-life women a voice. She hosts the weekly InspiHER’d podcast, shares a monthly roundup featuring female-founded brands, and authored a joyful book titled, “Impact: Stories of Change Makers, Creators, and Everyday Women Doing Extraordinary Work.”
When she’s not making waves in the insurance industry or celebrating women, Samantha is raising two incredible daughters, finding ways to make a difference every day, and living a life of purpose.
Enya moved from South Africa to the U.S. at the age of 8, and growing up, she always had an entrepreneurial spirit. Enya found joy and inspiration in her ability to create the things she wanted. She earned her BA from UCLA and went on to obtain her MBA. Enya found the courage to leave her marriage and moved in with her parents, where she currently lives with her son.
While starting a new chapter in her life, Enya started noticing gaps in the market for simple children’s products. This realization gave birth to her company, Minimalist Minis. So far, the company has published two children’s books and produced the only white splashpad on the market. Additionally, there are two other products that are patent-pending and coming soon. Enya is completely self-taught and does not have any funding. As Maureen Kelly said, it’s all “credit cards and a dream.”
Enya has recently been invited to speak on a panel for inventors about online-selling and has been chosen as a contestant for the upcoming season of The Blox, the largest competition show for startups. She hopes to inspire others to realize that they have the power to achieve anything, no matter the circumstances they face.
Amy holds an MBA in International Management and has a proven track record of leading companies through successful growth phases. She has worked in various roles, including at corporate fashion houses like Carolina Herrera and Angel Sanchez, as well as founding her own businesses. Amy possesses strong project management, communication, and organizational skills and has a passion for environmental sustainability.
Amy resides in Walnut Creek with her husband, daughter, and Siberian husky, while her older sons attend college. In 2018, Amy founded Planet Renu, which offers eco-friendly products, organic refills, green consulting, and education. The company operates a refill store in Walnut Creek, as well as an online store, and has partnerships with farmers’ markets, schools, colleges, and corporations. Education is a critical component of Planet Renu’s mission, as the company aims to raise awareness about the importance of sustainable living.
Brandi Flores is a highly qualified healthcare professional, specializing in Pediatrics, Postpartum Doula, and International Board Certified Lactation Consulting. As a proud member of the International Lactation Consultant Association and Bay Area Lactation Consultants, she brings a wealth of knowledge and experience to her practice. With four children of her own, Brandi understands the challenges and struggles associated with breastfeeding and is passionate about providing compassionate, non-judgmental support to families in their feeding journey. She offers a range of lactation support services to ensure that her clients have access to the resources they need to achieve their breastfeeding goals.
Lynnea Molina is a proud mother of four boys, including twin toddlers who will be turning two this summer. She is a seasoned trainer, clinical supervisor, consultant, and licensed clinician, whose passion lies in helping others grow and embrace the healing journey. Lynnea is the founder of a private therapy and consulting practice situated in the San Francisco Bay Area, where social justice and multiculturalism are integral values. With a decade of experience as a school and community-based social worker, Lynnea now specializes in working with couples, teens, and individuals going through major life changes. As an entrepreneur, she looks forward to collaborating with like-minded women in the health and wellness industry to expand her business and continue cultivating professional joy.
Priya Velji is a functional medicine health coach, wellness enthusiast, and mother based in Fremont, California. She is dedicated to helping others heal through education and inspiration, and believes that finding the root cause of health issues is essential to true healing. After overcoming her own health challenges, Priya founded Pri Vell to guide others on their healing journeys. She specializes in working with women to combat hormonal issues and improve gut health. Priya has been practicing semi-classical and traditional Indian folk dancing since she was six years old.
Susan Stein has been a Creativity Guide for over 20 years, specializing in using art as a means of self-expression for her students. Her art classes and camps are designed to encourage children to explore their own ideas, experiment with various materials, navigate the creative process, and build their confidence in their abilities. Through her programs, children are able to develop their creativity and problem-solving skills, enabling them to become independent thinkers who can bring innovative ideas to the world. Susan is passionate about nature, travel, museums, reading, learning, music, and has a love for art supplies, maybe even having a few too many!
Kim English Hanlon, MA, is one of the cofounders of Yahdav & Hanlon Grief Support, alongside her partner Ilana Shapiro Yahdav, MPA. With a background of 15 years in health education, Kim has helped individuals overcome wellness barriers and live their lives to the fullest. Following her brother’s death in 2012, Kim shifted her focus from lifestyle and nutrition to grief recovery and co-founded Yahdav & Hanlon Grief Support with Ilana.
Kim and Ilana share a passion for offering individual grief support and enhancing corporate wellness programs to support employees around loss and life changes. They have worked with various organizations, including corporations, higher education institutions, law firms, and individuals, to make the difficult topic of grief accessible to all. They have even provided consultation for a film about suicide loss to bring insight, tools, and support to process difficult themes throughout the film.
Kim and Ilana believe in meeting grievers where they are and have created various resources, including workbooks, online courses, and workshops to support them. They are also the authors of the digital workbook “Grief & Gratitude: Building Your Coping Action Plan,” with plans to have it in print by the end of 2023. Kim resides in the San Francisco Bay Area with her husband, first-grader, and three cats, where she enjoys nurturing a growing succulent garden, local community building, and drawing.
Charise Freeman, an Author and Motivational Speaker, has a strong passion for building stronger relationships with her partner of 7 years and her kids – a daughter aged 17, a son aged 10, and an adopted nephew aged 9. After serving in the United States Air Force for 8 years, Charise left in 2011 to focus on nurturing a stronger bond with her daughter, unlike what she had experienced with her own mother.
In 2013, Charise’s daughter expressed her desire to harm herself, leaving Charise in shock and her daughter being taken to a children’s facility. During her daughter’s stay, she revealed her feelings of being loved less than her brother, which propelled Charise to seek counseling and parenting courses to understand and mend their relationship. She has since been dedicated to showing her daughter love and support.
Charise shares her authentic connection journey with other mothers to let them know they are not alone. Through her parenting courses, Charise discovered the 5 Love Languages and has used them to connect with her family for over a decade. She has created a 90-day guide, based on her knowledge, to help other moms begin to connect with their families.
Julie Holland, the owner of Stonewood Kitchen and Bath, has been transforming her clients’ interior spaces for over 23 years. Her Walnut Creek location has been serving clients for 15 years, while the Westlake Village showroom opened its doors two years ago.
Thanks to her exceptional designs, Julie’s company has received two NARI Awards in 2013 and another in 2014, recognizing her excellence in kitchen remodeling. Furthermore, her company Stonewood has been named “Best of Oakland and the East Bay” in the Kitchen Remodeler category by Oakland Magazine in 2018, 2021, and 2022. Julie’s dedication to her work has earned her recognition as one of the “Most Influential Industry Leaders of 2023” by LA STYLE Magazine.
Besides her work, she is committed to giving back to her community and collaborating with Elevate Basketball to offer scholarships to young basketball players. Julie Holland’s latest endeavor is the creation of the “Dunamis: Power Within” podcast, set to launch in the summer of 2023. The podcast is designed to inspire and empower both men and women entrepreneurs.
Dani Kenney is the founder of Dani Kenney Coaching, an international women’s empowerment community aimed at helping female entrepreneurs master their energy and mindset to achieve a 10x increase in their income, make a greater impact, and create a fulfilling life. With more than ten years of experience in high-level business leadership and coaching, Dani has helped hundreds of women overcome their limiting beliefs and gain confidence.
Dani is a Certified Coach and Practitioner of NLP, EFT, and Hypnotherapy, equipped with the tools and expertise to help women overcome any obstacles that may hinder their success. She firmly believes that the world thrives when women thrive.
In addition to her work as a coach and leading experiences for women worldwide, Dani is also a wife and mother of three. When she is not helping women achieve their goals, she enjoys spending quality time with her family, going on adventures and exploring new places. Dani’s mission is to empower women to be the best version of themselves in both their personal and professional lives.
Dorothy Dominique is a creative director, community liaison, and mother, who grew up in San Francisco, California after moving there from Haiti as a toddler. Having lived between two cultures, she developed a unique perspective on life, and in 2018, she founded Treasures Unleashed, a company that uses the arts to empower children and unify communities in the Bay Area through entertainment. Dorothy’s passion for helping others led her to establish a youth empowerment program called I Am! and a newly launched non-profit called Hidden Jewels Unleashed.
Dorothy’s artistic versatility enables her to merge different artistic realms, providing children with opportunities to showcase their skills while effortlessly learning new information. Her own life experiences led her to find purpose in helping others and inspired her to publish her first book, Broken. Canvas!, which is composed of poems, monologues, and short stories about overcoming obstacles and finding beauty in adversity.
Elizabeth is a baker and city dweller who grew up on a farm in a small agricultural town. She began baking for friends and coworkers as a hobby and eventually decided to turn her passion into a business. In 2019, during her maternity leave, she started City Gal Bakes, a small-scale baking business that specializes in custom cakes, cookies, and other baked goods. During the COVID-19 pandemic, Elizabeth provided sugar cookie decorating kits to San Francisco families looking for indoor activities.
Elizabeth now runs City Gal Bakes while raising three young children with her husband, Ed, in San Francisco. She enjoys teaching classes and creating beautiful cakes and cookies for personal and corporate events. Elizabeth believes that anyone can learn to decorate cookies and that something delicious can also be beautiful. She takes pride in being a part of her clients’ special moments and feels that a little something sweet can make any situation better.
Christine has a background in business consulting, having worked in the field for two decades. However, she decided to start her own business, MacMillan Travel Design, a boutique travel agency, to provide personalized travel planning services for working mothers. Her agency helps these busy moms plan vacations to make unforgettable memories with their families, take time for self-care, and eliminate the stress and time-consuming task of planning their trips.
Christine resides in the San Francisco Bay Area with her husband, Jon, their son Lucas, and their terrier mix, Maya. Her passions include travel, wine, food, family, friends, and dreaming big. As a working mom herself, she understands the challenges of finding time to plan a vacation and the importance of taking a break. She is dedicated to creating unforgettable travel experiences while her clients make lifelong memories. Christine specializes in both land and cruise vacations in North America and Europe and has been featured in CanvasRebel.
Leilani Lopez embarked on her career in Insurance & Financial services in 2007, juggling the responsibilities of a new baby, a new home, and a new husband. In 2015, she was offered the opportunity to collaborate in a fresh independent agency with Christopher David Herrera Insurance Agency, which later became HIFs Inc after incorporation in 2017. By merging with Alameda Associates, their agency expanded in size and markets, and now specializes in Business Commercial. The agency has more than 50 years of experience serving Non-profits, HOA’s, as well as Travel & Tour. Leilani Lopez was named CEO in 2023, managing two successful offices with multi-line writing capabilities. During her leadership, the agency’s growth was remarkable, increasing from 1m to 5m amidst the competitive industry and ever-changing market.
As a Chicana woman in the Financial industry, Leilani Lopez strives to be a role model for all Latina women in business. She overcame several challenges to attain her position, including restarting her career after having two children and not obtaining a degree. Leilani Lopez intends to demonstrate that Latina women possess tremendous power, capable of achieving greatness, and deserve a place at the top.
Leilani Lopez was born and raised in California’s Bay Area and is the proud mother of two boys. She leads a very active lifestyle and enjoys watching her son’s baseball and flag football games when not hiking with her adopted cattle dog, “Checo,” practicing kickboxing, or yoga. Leilani recently enrolled as an undergraduate at Golden Gate University, working towards her Bachelors of Science in Business degree.
Jasmin Moultrie is a local mother of two toddlers who understands the difficulties of leaving home for date nights. Recognizing the need for an at-home experience, Jasmin created Bay Luxe to help people bring joy and wellness into their lives. Having worked in the medical field for over a decade and experiencing burnout, she understands the stresses of work and the daily grind. As a clinician, she believes it is essential to prioritize mental health and find tools to navigate stress. Through Bay Luxe, Jasmin is passionate about sharing her expertise and providing people with an opportunity to enjoy fun and healing experiences in the comfort of their own homes.
Elmeisha Fahrner graduated with honors from the culinary program at Elpaso Community College in Elpaso, Texas, eight years ago. She has since been working as a cake decorator at Karas Cupcakes and as a baker at Safeway. Elmeisha started her own company, Paper Rock Fork, due to her husband’s encouragement to follow her passion for baking and her son’s inspiration.
Paper Rock Fork offers a combination of traditional and modern baking, with most of the recipes reflecting Elmeisha’s southern upbringing and family traditions. Having traveled around the world as a military brat, Elmeisha’s baking is also influenced by the places she has been to.
Elmeisha’s desserts are unique and delicious, with her bourbon pecan pie being one of the top sellers. The recipe is a family tradition that she has adapted to reflect her own style. Elmeisha is also inspired by her customers, such as the couple she recently catered for whose British and Swiss backgrounds inspired her new cake flavor, London fog, which features earl gray with a lavender buttercream.
Currently residing in the Castro Valley community, Elmeisha is very active with the Castro Valley Marketplace twice a month. She lives with her husband, her biggest inspiration and cheerleader, and her son who is turning nine this year.
Tess Connolly, a true extrovert and direct communicator, loves to engage in conversations and connections with her audience as the Host of The Single Parent Reset Show Podcast, which has a worldwide audience of thousands of parents. According to Tess, the best parenting skill lies within oneself and emphasizes the significance of the connection and relationship with one’s children. Tess and her teenage son and their dog named Red call Northern California their home.
Dr. Amy Day is a highly regarded women’s health and hormone expert who has been leading the natural women’s health movement since 2004, when she became the fourth licensed Naturopathic Doctor in California. She is a renowned speaker and the founder and clinic director of The Women’s Vitality Center, which caters to patients across the state of California. Dr. Day’s team uses a unique approach called The VITAL Method, which involves compassionate care that combines lifestyle counseling, functional lab testing, nutritional supplements, and bioidentical hormones to help women of all ages feel great in their bodies and maintain vitality throughout all stages of life.
Nika Manabat’s story is unique as it is not characterized by degrees or accolades, but by the life experiences that shaped her. At the young age of 25, she experienced the loss of her best friend, and later on, at 31, she lost her first and only child, Jaden. Her regrets about not being able to spend more time with Jaden while working long hours motivated her to seek more freedom in her life. She embarked on an entrepreneurial journey fueled by passion and a $20,000 loan from her mom, but it ended in bankruptcy, which she considers her “business degree.” Nika took all the lessons she learned from her first business and created BabaBellies, which is now thriving. As she puts it, “With BabaBellies, I feel I have finally found my calling. I’ve discovered a nice balance between being a mom and being of service to others, and that’s exactly where I want to be.”
Lisa Malia Norman collaborates with leaders to enhance their personal, professional, and spiritual growth, empowering them to acquire new skills for leadership that enable them to utilize collective wisdom, trust their teams, and their shared vision to create more meaningful and impactful work. She developed EVOKE, The Feminine Leadership Immersion, a distinctive leadership program, to connect more women who seek to live with greater clarity, purpose, and joy, incorporating intention, ritual, and mentorship to guide us as we navigate a new way forward without sacrificing our health and relationships.
Lisa has a Master’s degree in the Science of Midwifery. Following her diagnosis with breast cancer in 2014, Lisa broadened her focus to include breast density notification policies, advocacy, and survivor support, leading her to establish the nonprofit organization For The Love of Cups. As a breast cancer survivor and mother of three adult daughters, she spends most of her time in CA, OR or WA, spending time with family, practicing yoga, attending retreats, or enjoying a cup of coffee.
Letavia Bernard has over 15 years of experience supporting families in the Bay Area. She is the Founder of At Ease Family Solutions Agency, LLC and At Ease FlexCare Solutions, LLC, both of which are household staffing agencies that aim to provide a safe, balanced, and thriving home for parents and their children. Prior to working in the childcare industry, Letavia worked in the medical field for 14 years and owned and operated an event planning and gift basket business. Letavia is passionate about helping others and has completed a Life Coaching course through the Life Purpose Institute. She is also a proud mom of four, a wife, and a “GLAMMA” to four amazing grandchildren. When she’s not working, Letavia enjoys shopping, dancing, watching HGTV, spending time with her family, and cooking.
Julie Neale, the founder of Mother’s Quest, celebrates the wonder, challenges, and significance of parenthood, believing that our kids urge us to evolve into our best selves. As a parent to two neurodivergent children and with her own ADHD diagnosis at 50, Julie knows firsthand the difficulties that come with parenting. She is dedicated to living a truly E.P.I.C. life, and through her example, encourages her children to do the same. Mother’s Quest is her “for-purpose” endeavor that offers inspiration, coaching, and community-building to mothers and those working with young people to connect them with support and resources, help them fulfill their unique purpose, and live their E.P.I.C. lives. In 2021, Julie released her first book, The Mother’s Quest Inspiration Guide Volume 1, by participating in the Tiny Book Course, and a cohort of five other members of Mother’s Quest also authored their own books.
Mental health is crucial, and for Nicole Chenault of Fbombs & Booze, it became a top priority when her retail store manager job started to take a toll on her in 2017. Despite the risk, she decided to leave her six-figure career without a backup plan and take control of her life. After brainstorming ideas with her cousin, Nicole started making snarky and sweary handmade drinkware products using her Cricut machine. Fbombs & Booze was born in July 2017, and her products are now sold on various e-commerce platforms, in over 200 shops and boutiques globally, and on Etsy, where she is a top 10% seller. Nicole is so good at what she does that she even coaches other handmade makers on how to grow their businesses. She lives in Northern California’s Bay Area with her child and aims to bring more joy to people’s lives by adding humor to their everyday activities like enjoying a morning coffee or evening cocktail. Nicole says, “We pride ourselves on making this world just a little bit better by bringing more laughter into the lives of others.”
Lorraine is the proud owner of Serene Sleep Solutions, a business that helps families establish healthy sleep habits for their little ones. With three children of her own, Lorraine is no stranger to the challenges of parenthood. She resides in San Mateo with her husband Jaime, their dog Bentley, and their three kids who keep her on her toes.
Lorraine received her undergraduate degree from Santa Clara University with a BS degree and went on to complete several post-graduate programs in Pediatric Sleep Consulting (Institute of Pediatric Sleep and Parenting), Early Childhood Education (Westmed College), and Postpartum Doula (Cornerstone Doula Program). While Lorraine’s experience as a parent has provided her with valuable knowledge, she believes that continuing education and certification gives her clients an extra level of comfort and confidence.
After struggling with her first child’s sleep, Lorraine was determined to help other parents avoid the same exhaustion and frustration. She realized that so much of parenting is about learning from experiences and from others who have been there before. As a coach, Lorraine strives to support parents and help them achieve the results they are looking for when it comes to their child’s sleep and overall well-being.
Salome Sallehy is a trailblazer in the beauty industry, having founded Sugar Sugar Wax, a sustainable and holistic hair removal and body care company in 2020. With a strong commitment to promoting health and sustainability in the personal care industry, Salome has gained recognition for her innovative approach and sustainable business practices. Salome resides in the San Francisco Bay Area and is passionate about empowering people to make informed choices about their personal care products.
At Sugar Sugar Wax, every product and ingredient is carefully evaluated for its impact on human health and the environment. Salome is dedicated to making a positive impact, not just through her products but through education and awareness. In line with this mission, she also launched the Natural Beauty Summit, a non-profit platform for health and wellness experts to share valuable insights and knowledge that big businesses may not want the public to know.
Peggy is a co-founder of ActivityHero.com, which is the largest online marketplace listing thousands of kids’ camp and class schedules, making summer and after-school planning easier for families. She resides in the Bay Area with her husband and two children. Peggy is actively involved with alumni groups at Stanford GSB and enjoys gardening in her free time.
Peggy collaborated with another mom and technologist, Shilpa Dalmia, to create the marketplace and software platform. While Shilpa was focused on building the software platform, Peggy utilized her experience working with small businesses at Intuit to assist camps and classes with marketing, registrations, and camper management. She takes pride in ActivityHero’s scholarship program, which enables all families to attend a camp or class.
FEATURED ARTICLE IMAGE CAPTION: Sydney James of Stay Polished, Heather Anderson of The Mamahood + The Club, and Jill Wesley of The Science + Soul of Speaking
