Meet Ann Zimmer, senior project manager at Wolverine Building Group. Ann has 30 years of experience in the industry in which women only make up 9.1 percent. “... it is one of the most rewarding jobs you can do as a woman because you’re empowering yourself to guide hundreds of subcontractors to bring a building into its fruition,” Zimmer said. 

Having generated revenue of more than $100 billion in 2019, the video game industry is booming. While video game play among men and women is near equal, the gap widens when it comes to game developers: 75% are male, 22% are female and 2% report as transgender. Video game developer Rebecca Saltsman is the CEO and co-founder of Finji, an award-winning collaborative video game studio based in Grand Rapid. Saltsman shares her journey entering the industry and embracing her role as a game developer, and what compels her to remain visible in a community in which the loudest voices discourage women from participating. 

Military veteran Janet Blackall is leading the team at Blackall Racing, a motorcycle racing team she started with her husband, also a military veteran. Blackall sheds light on transitioning back into the civilian world, her mission to help other veterans, and what it’s like to be a first-time motorcycle team owner and mom. 

Additionally, we celebrate the work of Michigan Women Forward (MWF), an organization that elevates women throughout vital periods of their lives. Learn about MWF’s vast programming, from that which imparts leadership skills to high school-age girls to initiatives that create economic and social equity to women entrepreneurs, all the way to the Michigan Women’s Historical Center and Hall of Fame.

Visit womenslifestyle.com to read part two of our three-part series documenting the journey of the Amway River Bank Run Run Road Warriors as they train for race day; check out our coverage of LadyFest GR 2020, an event featuring performances by female musicians, local vendors and speakers; keep up on women’s history celebrations taking place around Grand Rapids; and finally, read our interviews with comedy superstars Fortune Feimster and Maria Bamford, both of whom are performing at LaughFest, taking place from March 5-15. 

Happy Reading!