Ladies Get Paid is taking our town halls on the road! Our next stop on the East Coast? Washington, DC! The kick off town hall is tonight, April 6, 2017 at Sixth & I. If you can join us, RSVP here! We’ll share stories about money, and ways women can be more supportive of one another as we move up in our careers.

We are thrilled to bring this community to our nation’s capital! We are so thankful for our ambassadors, Annie, Gaby, Shayna, and Trish, who are making it happen:

Annie Orloff‘s life motto is, “It does not do to dwell on dreams and forget to live,” and yes, that is a Dumbledore quote. When Annie isn’t quoting Harry Potter, she’s probably walking her dog, Poppy, along the Potomac. In ten years, Annie hopes women have a woman to look up to in the highest office, and her badass moment was marching arm in arm with some of the most important women in her life at the Women’s March on Washington in January.

Gaby Krohmal is a proud native to the DMV (DC/Maryland/Virginia) region and self-described politico/foreign policy junkie. One of her favorite quotes, and inspiration for joining LGP, comes from the indomitable Ruth Bader Ginsberg, “People ask me sometimes, when – when do you think there will be enough women on the Supreme Court? And my answer is, when there are nine.”

Shayna McCready also channels the great RBG each day, and reminds herself to “just be nice.” When she’s not training for a race on the National Mall, she’s calling out her haters and shutting down mansplaining when she hears it. Shayna is ready for women to stop dreaming, and start living the dream!

Trish DiGirolomo lives in Baltimore, but is closely connected to the DC community. She believes that the greatest life adventures come from saying ‘yes’ to all opportunities. When Trish needs to kick back and relax, she enjoys a glass of wine, some dark chocolate, and snuggles with her pups, Natty and Frank. She hopes that now, and in the future, women are doing whatever makes them happiest with support and love from their friends and family.

You can follow our LGP DC team here on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter. 

Why did you want to be a Ladies Get Paid ambassador?

Annie: Ensuring that we close the wage gap is essential in women’s fight towards equality. I am motivated to make sure that happens before my niece, Zoe, is in the workplace. Being a LGP ambassador means I can take concrete steps to ensure that when Zoe goes in for her first salary negotiation, she is fearless and asks for what she deserves!

Trish: I wanted to become an ambassador because I think every city should have the opportunity to participate in this community. There is something very powerful in knowing that you are not alone in your daily fight! I also saw this as an opportunity to learn about other women’s perspectives, issues, visions for the future, and hopefully every way I can help!

Shayna: Perhaps it is the nature of this city or the context of which the women I know are framed, but November 8 (election day) changed a lot of the ways we move about our world nowadays. I have never been a sit-on-the-sidelines kind of girl but, I have always been privileged enough to never fully realize the need to stand up and advocate for my own personal value, and the value of other women, on a daily basis. How selfish is it to say that in 2017 I can strive to be a Boss Lady at the office, but not stand up for the collective benefit of the community I live in? Now, more than ever, coalitions will make or break the social fabric of the society that gave me the right to be active, so I want to do everything I can to protect and support other like-minded badass ladies to rise up and do the same.

How will your city and LGP benefit from one another?

Annie: LGP DC is unique because we are at the heart of politics and policy. LGP in DC is positioned to not only connect and learn from all the amazing women working in policy, politics, and activism, but also bring the fight for wage equality to lawmakers on the Hill.

Gaby: Washington, DC is unlike any other city in the country. People come here from all over the world, bringing their different cultures, viewpoints, interests, favorite sports teams, and driving habits (yikes!) with them. In fact, sometimes it seems like the only thing Washingtonians have in common is our willingness to move across the country for a job. If someone asks you, “What do you do?” know that they’re really asking, “Why are you here in DC, and what’s your passion?” I want LGP to harness all of DC’s energy and activism potential, and use it to advocate for equality and respect for women in the workplace.

Shayna: I want LGP to be a place for support and creativity. I want us to push ourselves to be uncomfortable, ask hard questions, and try new things. I want to give back to the community and collectively stand up for change. As frustrating as it is for me to admit (type A x1000), I alone cannot take charge on all the issues I am passionate about. However, I know that there are scores of amazing, driven, hard working women in this city, working in fields where I am not an expert, that are able and willing to act on these issues. I want to provide these women the networks and connections across women-led bodies of knowledge so that we can learn from one another and work together to make our city (and heck, our entire country, after all this is the U.S. Capitol) a better place for everyone. 

Best advice you’ve ever received?

Trish: The best advice I’ve ever received was from my parents, “Stay calm, have the tough discussion. You can still be kind and make your point. It’s all in your delivery.” My parents taught us this from a very young age. I do not enjoy confrontation and never have, but they always encouraged me to speak my mind even when it was difficult. This piece of advice has become invaluable to me as I entered the business world. I repeat it to myself before big meetings all the time. You can still be a strong, kick ass career girl, and make your point without stampeding those around you!

Shayna: Possibly this will eventually change, but here is one little gem from Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s talk last week celebrating the release of her new book, Dear Ijeawele: a Feminist Manifesto in Fifteen Suggestions. “It is not the role of a woman to comprise the space within the male ego. We are not just objects to be liked or disliked. We are subjects capable to choose to like and dislike for ourselves.”

If I’m visiting DC, where should I go? What should I do?

Annie: Put on a comfortable pair of shoes and walk everywhere! Be sure to check out the monuments and the museums (the Newseum is my favorite), but there are so many hidden gems as well! My favorite hidden gem is the Maine Ave Fish Market where you can get fresh oysters right off the barge!

Gaby: I love Washington, DC! The free Smithsonian museums are obviously a must: American History, Air and Space, the National Zoo, etc. And of course a walk around the National Mall to see the White House, Capitol Hill, and the monuments will not disappoint. Also take the time to explore some of our lesser-known neighborhoods. There’s more DC outside of downtown than most realize.

Shayna: DC is a cornucopia of amazingly interesting people, most of whom came here to get.shit.done. Yeah, everyone talks about politics constantly or has a cause/issue/policy that they are advocating for but, that also means that they are some of the most passionate people our country has to offer. We all somehow found ourselves in the District because of that true grit.

This is not a party town, but we are increasingly considered a blooming foodie city. Some of my favorite neighborhoods to eat in are Petworth, Columbia Heights, Bloomingdale, and Shaw. The nation’s #2 restuarant according to Bon Apetite is now located down the street from my 100 year old rowhouse, who knew?!

If you are a nerd like me, go to the Library of Congress, or visit one of the nineteen Smithsonian museums for FREE (aka the largest and most inclusive collections of art in the world)! If you are willing to pay a small fee and support female artists, visit the National Museum of Women in the Art. Get those ladies paid (yes, most of them are dead but that is beside the point). Remember: the metro sucks, literally to its fundamental fiery core. Check Twitter or this thread for schedule updates because here, more than any other city, protests are the new brunch.

Want to be an ambassador in your city? We’d love to hear from you. Let us know here!