Meet the President’s Award Winners

Written by Maria Rivera.

At Banner Brunch on May 2, Women Communicators of Austin (WCA) will honor Maria Cammack and Julie Lara with the President’s Award. The President’s Award is given by WCA’s President to shed light on the vast contributions of particular volunteers whose work often goes unseen by the entire organization but deserves to be recognized.

Get to know our two award winners a little better below.

Maria Cammack

In addition to her full-time position at a marketing agency, Maria Cammack is also WCA’s VP of Communications. She heads a committee of volunteers and coordinates all the communications activities to promote WCA events and services, engage current members, and grow the membership base.

Q: How did you first become involved in WCA and what attracted you to the organization?
A: I joined WCA right after I moved to Austin in 2011. Being new to the city, I was looking specifically for organizations or groups to join to help expand my network. I was immediately impressed with how friendly and welcoming all the WCA members I met were and how there was true sense of wanting to help each other succeed.

Q: What are some interesting things you’ve accomplished and learned through your role?
A: As a professional organization, I really want WCA to also be an educational resource to our members and supporters. One of my goals this board year was to add more original content to our website. We have so many great writers in our organizations and members who know a lot about various topics related to communications and career development. This is something I really felt we should take advantage of and help promote. This year has been a lot of fun and there have been many new things to learn as well.

Q: What recommendations would you give other women in joining an organization such as WCA?
A: When joining a professional organization I recommend taking advantage of all the membership resources available to you to make sure you get the full value from your membership. I also highly recommend volunteering with the organization – it is a great way to network, use your skills to build up your portfolio or even learn new skills. I’ve made some invaluable professional connections and personal friendships from my volunteer experience.

Q: Can you tell us more about your position as the Director of Marketing Research and Strategy at MGH and how you balance it with your role in WCA?
A: I work with a full-service marketing agency offering advertising, media, PR, social media and interactive services. In my role I help clients better understand their target audiences and define their brand message. I work with clients and internal teams on developing ideas, concepts and messaging for PR and marketing campaigns or responsive web design that really resonate with the target audiences of our clients.

In order to balance the two roles without making myself crazy, it’s been important to plan ahead by setting deadlines and expectations for everyone involved. I have a great support team in my committee and the rest of the WCA board and since the organization is based on volunteering, it is imperative to respect everyone’s time.

Besides keeping busy with work and her professional organizations, Maria enjoys abstract acrylic painting and crossing items off a shared Austin to-do list with her husband – a list that helps them explore all the fun, delicious and interesting things the city has to offer.

Julie Lara

A WCA member since 2009, Julie has been a valued committee member, conference co-chair for multiple years, and currently serves as this year’s treasurer.

Q: Can you tell us about how you first became involved in WCA? What attracted you to the organization?
A: I’m not a traditional WCA member. My field is not communications. I joined in 2009 to meet other working women, I was starting my own business and women were my targeted clients.

Q: What are some interesting things you’ve accomplished and learned through your many different roles?
A: I’ve done my best in each board position I’ve held to create and document processes for that position so the next person might find it easier to fulfill their duties. Some of my accomplishments that I’m proud of are:

When Cristen James and I Co-Chaired the Get Smart  conference, we moved it out of the hotels we’d used in the past and found a more affordable location at the J.J. Pickle Research Center in the UT Commons Building. The past 4 Get Smart Conferences have been held there and it’s allowed us to reduce expenses dramatically and dropped the ticket price by 22%.

As part of the task force to separate from National I helped research local membership fees for similar organizations, developing the current WCA membership rates were are 40% less than what National charged, $125 versus $75 for member renewals now.

Q: Any fun/personal facts about you outside the workplace that you’d like to share?
A: My husband and I own 13 acres on the San Gabriel River in Hutto where we breed Dorper Sheep, own about 3 dozen hens and a couple of roosters with attitude, we have 2 horses and 3 Great Pyrenees/Anatolian Shepherd mix dogs each weighing about 100 pounds. Their job is to keep the coyotes away from the lambs and chickens.  I love to hike Big Bend National Park and spent 10 days there in mid-April with Cruz, my husband, to whom I’ve been married 22 years.  I’ve completed five half marathons and look forward to one day finishing a full marathon.

Join WCA on May 2, 2015 at our 42nd Annual Banner Brunch to celebrate Maria, Julie and our other award winners. Learn more and get your tickets here.