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In its second year, Steamboat women’s conference promises big-name speakers, valuable lessons

2019 Thrive Together summit releases lineup of speakers for Oct. 4 event

The room at last year's Thrive Together sold-out event.
Lisa Schlichtman/Steamboat Pilot & Today

STEAMBOAT SPRINGS — In only its second year, Thrive Together has gathered some of the nation’s most successful, self-made women to inspire a local audience into action and change.

Thrive Together, a women’s leadership summit sponsored by the Steamboat Springs Chamber and Alpine Bank, want local women to know the October summit isn’t just a feel-good rally with nice speakers. 

“We expect people to walk away with really tangible takeaways they can apply immediately in their personal or professional life,” said Sarah Leonard, a Thrive committee member and community development director at the Chamber.



One of last year’s keynote speakers was so impressed with the sold-out 2018 summit that she joined the Thrive Together committee this year.

While Dr. Kristin Race makes Steamboat home with her husband and two teenage children, she is sought after nationwide for her expertise on brain science. She says this year’s Thrive summit will be even better.



“We had feedback from last year, and we were able to use that feedback to procure talent” for Steamboat’s Thrive Together said Race, author of the bestseller, “Mindful Parenting.”

Race, a neuroscientist known for her TEDx talks on developing habits to improve efficiency and productivity, is thrilled to host one of the workshops this year with corporate-drone-turned-entrepreneur Lisa Pevateaux. Pevateaux is known for coaching women-owned small businesses and will be the lead-off keynote speaker Oct. 4 at The Steamboat Grand.

If you go…

What: 2019 Thrive Together, Steamboat Women’s Leadership summit
When: Oct. 4, 2019
Where: The Steamboat Grand, 2300 Mount Werner Circle
How much: $115 for Chamber members, $145 for non-members
More info: To register for the summit and see the lineup of speakers and workshops, visit steamboatchamber.com or call Sarah Leonard at 970-875-7006. Child care options are available.

“She has an incredible story, and she’s one of the most successful brilliant entrepreneurs I know,” said Race. “She’s able to achieve balance… she’s dynamic and funny. I’m really excited to hear her.”

In an interview from her Denver suburb, Pevateaux said she wanted to share some “tools” with the Steamboat audience in hopes it helps them prioritize what’s important in life.

“In the last 17 years, I’ve come up with some very good gems to help me get things done,” Pevateaux said. “Prioritizing what’s important in life… we’re picking up socks when we should be doing more eminent things.”

The afternoon keynote speaker will be Orly Ripmaster, a Colorado native and Harvard University graduate who turned her love of skiing into a successful run on the slopes of corporate America. She now serves as senior vice president for KSL Capital Partners, which joined Henry Crown and Co. to form Alterra Mountain Co.

“She’s got a great story of how she came up in the ski industry, working in hospitality at the front desk,” Leonard said of Ripmaster. “She says she got ahead, ‘Because I showed up on Saturdays while others were out skiing.'”

The Oct. 4 lineup also includes local resident Diane Muntean, another nationally recognized executive coach; Wall Street veteran and money coach Christine Walsh; and local naturopath Dr. Grace Charles. Another two power-house Steamboat residents giving workshops will be Robin Schepper, who headed up former First Lady Michelle Obama’s “Let’s Move!” initiative, and Susan Larson, a former Dell executive and pioneering woman in the personal computer business. Speech specialist Elizabeth Peterson will also give a workshop on “Owning the Room.”

Leonard said last year’s popular Hazie Award Winners Panel will also return.

“They’ll speak about the importance of community involvement and giving back where you live; how do you get into it and how do you make the time and why it’s important,” Leonard said.

While Thrive doubled its participant capacity this year, organizers expect the summit to sell out again.

Frances Hohl is a contributing writer for Steamboat Pilot & Today.


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