Linda Williams

What brought you to ninety-nine girlfriends?

I joined shortly after I retired from Intel in 2016. I was looking for a way to “do good” in the community, learn about the nonprofit world and grow my network outside of Intel. I found all of that with ninety-nine girlfriends. I’ve attended events where I’ve met a wide range of women, but all with the common goal of wanting to positively impact our community. I’ve listened to the proposals of our grantees and each time I am amazed at the work being done to improve the environment, social justice issues and our community.

Why do you volunteer?

I have a simple life philosophy – the more I give the more that comes back to me. It has seemed to work financially, but most importantly with the riches of being alive and in connection in this world. My partner and I started our own little nonprofit last year called “Ponte En Mis Zapatos” – “Put Yourself in My Shoes” when translated from Spanish. We want to build more compassion in the world – one little gift, smile or act of kindness at a time. I also volunteer at Adelante Mujeres out in Forest Grove. I get to consult on HR topics, use my executive coach skills and do supervisor training, all of which I enjoy. I wanted to help ninety-nine girlfriends so I joined the Membership Committee. I had the wild idea (or not so wild) of having Sheryl WuDunn come and share her insights with us – so I called and connected with her and she said YES! I hope anyone reading this joins us at the Reser in Beaverton on Thursday, March 23, 2023.

What else do you want to share?

A fun fact about me is that I’m a small business owner of WestSide Goat Girl, LLC. My partner and I have a 20-acre farm in Gaston, Oregon and from April to October we take our team of hungry goats out around Portland to eat invasive species – poison oak, scotch broom, ivy and their favorite – blackberries! It’s really rewarding – working for Mother Earth – avoiding the use of harmful chemicals one blackberry patch at a time!