Best San Francisco Places To Celebrate Women's History Month 2014

National Women's History Month has its roots in the San Francisco Bay Area. In 1980, the first Women's National History Week proclaimed by President Carter, grew from efforts begun two years prior by the Education Task Force of the Sonoma County Commission on the Status of Women to develop school curriculum. The theme for Women's History Month 2013 was "Celebrating Women in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics." For March 2014, the theme is "Celebrating Women of Character, Courage, and Commitment."

Date: March 7 and 29, 2014

The ninth annual festival showcases shorts directed by women to tell the tale of love, loss, death and hope. Whether it's quirky or provocative, film screenings serve as a catalyst for creating and facilitating dialogue through the power of independent filmmaking. Enjoy free admission on March 7, 2014 at New Parkway Theater in Oakland or a lineup of local female filmakers' works and on March 29, 2014 at 9th Street Independent Film Center in San Francisco when the spotlight shines on shorts by young female directors aged 12-19. Tickets at $12 are available for March 27, 2014 at 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. for a global selection of best indie shorts from female directors at Brava Theater in San Francisco.

Lectures at Commonwealth Club
595 Market St.
San Francisco, CA 94105
(415) 597-6700
www.commmonwealthclub.org

Date: March 4 and 27, 2014

Founded in 1903, the nation's oldest and largest public affairs forum offers talks on politics, culture, society and the economy. Many lectures have been broadcast live on public radio stations throughout the country. On March 4, 2014, Nancy C. Unger, Professor of History at Santa Clara University, presents "Beyond Nature's Housekeepers: American Women in Environmental History." Tickets are free to students with current I.D., $8 members, $20 non-members. At Davies Symphony Hall on March 27, 2014, Arianna Huffington of the Huffington Post is in conversation with Sheryl Sandberg, COO of Facebook, on "Redefining Success." Tickets are online.

Women's Initiative
1398 Valencia St.
San Francisco, CA 94110
(415) 641-3460
www.womensinitiative.com/sanfrancisco

You may have skills that are exactly what this not-for-profit agency is looking for. Since 1988, Women's Initiative has assisted high-powered low-income female entrepreneurs get dream businesses off the ground, to achieve self sufficiency and even create employment. Some 1,600 businesses -- equally divided among food, retail and service -- have been launched by female graduates of the intensive 20-session program. Volunteers mentor new owners in finance, business planning, strategic marketing, scalability, technical, webmaster and internet-related areas to help keep these startups viable. Learn more about how you can be a business connector at the annual signature event and marketplace on March 5, 2014 at San Francisco's Fairmont Hotel.

The mission of Dress for Success is to promote economic independence to disadvantaged women by providing professional attire, a network of support, and career development tools to help women thrive in work and in life. More than 5,000 women have received free career services since the San Francisco group was founded in 2006. In recognition of Women's History Month, women are invited to donate career clothing and accessories at the Union Square location on Thursday, March 20, 2014 from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. and on Saturday, March 22, 2014 from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m.

Ladies Who Vino and SparkSF
110 Pacific Ave., Suite 188
San Francisco, CA 94111
(415) 829.8068
www.sparksf.org

Established in 2012 to connect, mentor, empower and ignite change, Ladies Who Vino is a city-based social networking group of women in tech. By sharing their hallmark #ladybrags over a glass of wine, LWV has grown from a sofa to 500 who meet bimonthly to build relationships, encourage volunteerism and toast the socially conscious entrepreneurial spirit. Ladies Who Vino support SparkSF, established in 2004, is a growing non-profit philanthropic network of young professional members who invest time, money, connections, energy, ideas, mentoring and services to dozens of grassroots women's organizations in the San Francisco Bay Area. Monthly networking meetings ignite new ideas to get working women more involved in the fiber of the community.

Laurie JM Farr is a freelance writer covering all things in her adopted San Francisco. A dedicated urbanite, she's a transplanted New Yorker by way of a couple of decades in London as a hotel sales and marketing manager. Follow her work on @ReferencePlease, USA Today, Yahoo! and on Examiner.com.