Champions For Change

Kathleen Matthews: Turning a Community Partner Into a Great Story

When Suited for Change founder Lisa Woll called WJLA Channel 7 anchor Kathleen Matthews more than 12 years ago to ask if she would serve as emcee for a Suited for Change fundraiser, Matthews had never met Woll and had never heard of Suited for Change. When Woll explained Suited's work, Matthews thought, "What a brilliant idea."

Though Matthews received dozens of calls from community groups, she decided that she could make a difference with Suited. "One of the great benefits of being in local news is you serve the community in any way you can. Suited for Change was exactly Channel 7's kind of thing, because it created the sense of being a community partner," she says.

In 1995, soon after her first Suited event, Matthews joined the organization's advisory council. She became a board member in 2002 and served on the executive committee for several years. "How amazing that an invitation to come and emcee an event can be transformational in your life. If I had not accepted that invitation, I would have missed out on something huge in my life," she says.

Suited for Change was the first non-profit organization with which Matthews became deeply involved. "This was my first experience of taking my knowledge of what makes a good story ... taking that information and putting it in the context of a non-profit organization to see how they might get in the news. It was shifting perspective for me, and I realized how easy that was for me to do," she says. Suited also exposed Matthews to her first experience with budgets, executive search committees and strategic planning.

One of Matthews' early contributions to Suited was an event she spearheaded among local anchor women to auction off their favorite on-air suits. "Each of us picked a suit that we really liked that we thought would command some good bidding, but that also had a good story about our careers," she recalls.

Matthews' suit was a red designer number that she received when she was a guest on the Oprah Winfrey Show during a segment on anchor women makeovers. "It was a great way to show that even among competitors -- we are a very competitive industry -- that when it came to helping women in the community, the women of television could all be on the same channel. And they were all thrilled to be a part of it," says Matthews. This was the first time all the local female anchors had ever gotten together.

Several years later, Matthews, along with her co-anchor at WJLA, Maureen Bunyan, again organized the anchor women of Washington. During the day, Suited for Change clients shadowed the television news women. That night, each anchor presented her client with an accessory or suit from her own closet. The idea was to create incentive for the clients. "We started at the beginning, too, all of us, even people you see on television who seem so glamorous. When you meet them in person, they are just like you are," says Matthews.

Matthews says she looked for excuses to do stories about Suited's work. In particular, she remembers the organization's 10,000th client. When the client arrived to be suited, Matthews was waiting with a film crew. "She had no idea what was happening," recalls Matthews. The client received two suits, an Ann Hand pearl necklace, a briefcase, a pen, a month of groceries from Giant Foods and a limousine ride to ColorWorks salon for a day of beauty. She was also invited to speak at Suited's fundraising gala. Her story aired on Channel 7 that night. The next day, she went on a job interview and landed the job.

Through her involvement with Suited, Matthews learned about the tremendous obstacles that clients are up against. She recalls a woman who got off drugs, got suited and got a job, only to become addicted again, lose her job and have to start over. "Those stories just break your heart," she says, "and you think, is there one more thing we could have done? Or is there some sort of follow-up that you could do? These are the things that make you realize that it's not just about the suit. You try to remain engaged in women's lives. That's very hard for an organization based on a staff of three to do."

Matthews is no longer in television, but as executive vice president for global communications and public affairs at Marriott International, she is still involved with Suited for Change. She was auctioneer for the organization's 15th Annual Celebration, serves on the 15th Anniversary Task Force, has held clothing drives at the Marriott headquarters and ensured that Marriott donated a luxury vacation package for the annual celebration.

"Suited for Change has very good name recognition," says Matthews. She would like to continue to grow that recognition, "and also figure out...how to help our clients not only get jobs, but to succeed and grow their careers. I think that's really the next challenge." She would like to see more mentorship programs, more in-depth, sustainable career training and more partnerships with businesses who are committed to helping Suited's clients with their careers.

"I think everybody knows what a difference you make if you raise the quality of life for women in the Washington area who are economically disadvantaged," she says.

Suited for Change thanks Kathleen Currie, a Washington, D.C. freelance writer for writing the profiles and Dara Walsh, a freelance Washington, D.C. photographer, for photographing some of the profilees.

Suited for Change © 2006 . All rights reserved.