Oklahoman, "You" section, Thursday, Dec. 31, 2009
 
Those of us who know Darcie Harris know that she is a champion for women. 
 
She founded and grew EWF International into a successful company offering peer advisory groups, coaching and consulting for female business owners and executives. She has helped countless women realize their professional dreams and finds the fulfillment of her own dreams by encouraging women to think big, pursue their passions and achieve their personal best. And by now you know that she's passionate about "what's possible."
 
That's why she is recognized as one of five finalists in the Oklahoman's Woman of the Year 2009, along with Dawn Welch, Carrie Underwood, Brenda McDaniel and Ree Drumond.
 
Look for Darcie at a speaking engagement in your area soon. And, be sure and check out our online learning products scheduled to launch in 2010. 
 

Business: Like alpha mare, 5 executives use horse sense to find success
By Penny Cockerell
Published: April 9, 2009 in the Daily Oklahoman

By: Clytie Bunyan

The Daily Oklahoman

Darcie Harris just returned from Rwanda, and as she tells it, she did not want to leave.

“It’s absolutely beautiful,” she said.

Lin Weigel, who also accompanied Harris on the trip, described the African country as “a paradise, almost like Hawaii minus the ocean.”

A country that just 15 years ago was trying to emerge from the ravages of genocide, Rwanda is a developing country focused on the population being one people — instead of individual tribes — and trying to carve a path to economic success.

And with the help of an institute founded here, an increasing number of women are a part of that economic story. The post-genocide government has recognized that women, who head nearly 50 percent of families there, can play a crucial role in rebuilding the country.

by Heather Caliendo
The Journal Record May 13, 2009


OKLAHOMA CITY – In the mountains of Rwanda, they are growing coffee beans and entrepreneurs.

An Oklahoma delegation of women from the Peace through Business program visited a Rwanda coffee plantation two hours from Kigali, out in the mountains where millions live in poverty, said Lin Massey-Weigel, chief of staff for the Oklahoma City-based Institute for Economic Empowerment of Women.

As they were getting ready to leave, they were approached by a group of women who had heard the delegation was there.

Massey-Weigel said the Rwandan women could have tried to sell them products, but what they wanted was to learn how to get their products to the market.

“These are women that live on pennies a day, have a very small piece of land and limited means to transport goods, and they wanted to know about marketing and getting their goods to a viable market,” she said. “These are not beggars; they are entrepreneurs who are starving for education to grow their business.”

After spending a week in Rwanda, members of the delegation said they returned to the U.S. with a sense of accomplishment and deeper understanding of the Rwandan culture.

IEEW’s Peace through Business program sponsored the delegation of three Oklahoma City businesswomen to educate and mentor Rwanda businesswomen.

Darcie Harris, chief executive of EWF International, participated in the Peace through Business program when several Rwandan business owners traveled to Oklahoma City one year ago.