About our Founder Michelle Dean
My Story
I am a small business owner (Michelle Dean Insurance & Financial Solutions) @ www.michelledeanifs.com) since 2013; wife for almost 20 years; mother of 1 son, and grandmother of 2. I am an introvert! I love spending time in my flower gardens or reading.
As a woman who experienced much abuse as a child and lived in a dysfunctional & abusive marriage for 23 years. I have learned to overcome many things in my lifetime. I always wanted more in life but never believed I could have more. I was a survivor of my abuse but still struggled with so much! I had no voice. I was afraid of everything. I didn't believe in myself. I had absolutely no self-confidence. I kept hearing the words of my mother when I was young... "get your head out of the clouds, get married and have babies, that's what women are supposed to do."
Well, God had other plans for me! No matter how much I tried to hide people and opportunities always found me. Little by little I learned to believe in myself, even if it was just for a moment to take that first step! You can read more about my individual story in my book "My Journey from Surviving to Thriving, My Story of Surviving Years of Abuse and My Journey to Thriving." It was published in October 2024 and is available on Barnes and Noble. Local bookstores can order it from Ingram if they do not have it in stock. (www.michelledean.org)
I believe women must learn their strengths and skills (we ALL have them!), learn to face our fears, and find our voice. It is not easy, but it is certainly possible! I know because I did! Will you join me?
About WHOW
WHOW (Women Helping Other Women) was founded in 2015 because of my passion for inspiring women by offering Ladies Night Out events. We were called Women In Business. I began to receive calls from many women who saw my advertisements and asked if they could join in even if they didn't own a business! In 2016 we became WHOW (a partnership) of 2 local women joined together with a dream of women helping other women.
In 2017 we officially became a Non-Profit.
I believe ALL women have individual strengths and talents. Knowing what those are is the first step in self-discovery. When you know what your strengths are you can build anything. Some women just don't yet know what their strengths are or how to use them. WHOW is a place for both! Those of us who know... help those who don't. (Women Helping Other Women)
I also believe ALL women have fears they must face. If you ever tell yourself, I could never do that, it's time to face that fear because I'm here to tell you, YES YOU CAN! I know... because I did!
WHOW is also a place for women to inspire and support one another. There were times in my life I had absolutely no one I could talk to about the "real" struggles in my life. Can you relate?
WHOW is a safe place to connect with other like-minded women who want to educate, inspire and support you!
We have 2 Facebook groups:
Faith Fueled Women with Vision - A safe space to connect with other women to share a dream or goal so we can support you. Learn from other women and share your faith with us.
https://www.facebook.com/groups/womanwithadream
WHOW Sisterhood - A networking space for women
You can become a VIP Member for $1 per month to have preapproval of your posts. (Must follow group rules)
We will also host fun monthly speed networking events on zoom to connect with our tribe. No additional cost for VIP Members.
$5 cost for non VIP Members. Visit the group to join!
https://www.facebook.com/groups/whowsisterhood
$50 per year
Become a Supporter
Your annual support of $50 helps fund our grants to women and supports our Mission to educate, inspire and support women.
$250 per year
Become an Impact Partner
Whether you are an individual, organization or business as an Impact Partner your funding, services, resources or program sponsorship directly helps our reach and outcomes for the women we serve.
Also included: VIP WHOW Sisterhood membership, spotlight in our directory, and the ability to engage with our tribe.