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 WDS Member Renewal Retreat 2006 at St. Julien Hotel & Spa in Boulder, Colorado
The WDS Member Renewal Retreat was held in Boulder, CO on June 23-25, 2006. What an exciting retreat it was.!
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 Our Boulder Retreat Had It All!
By Rochelle Torgerson, MD, PhD
.The instructions were simple: hydrate, pack casual clothing and come ready to relax and be rejuvenated. 72 members of the WDS followed these instructions and oh boy did we have fun. The 2006 WDS member renewal retreat was held June 23-25 at the St. Julien Hotel and Spa, the newest hotel in Boulder Colorado. Settled between the mountains and Boulder Creek, our rooms had four poster beds, down duvets, and slate bathrooms with nearly bottomless soaking tubs. A full service spa, lap pool, and fitness center as well as opportunities for hiking, biking and shopping on the Pearl Street Mall were all close at hand. Clearly, that alone would have been truly boring so Anne Burdick, MD and her committee added pilates, breakfasts on the terrace, a sing-a-long, line dancing, a champagne book club and late night munchies.
Who were we you ask? We were at times the Tu Tu Divas, the Kick Ass Babes and the Naked Cowgirls. We paired up at the opening reception to meet each other and learned we were linguists, musicians, ballet dancers, figure skaters, seamstresses, immigrants, newlyweds, mothers and grandmothers. We came from around the world, and we even included two brave men.
On the first evening, led by pianist Jerry Miller, we used a songbook prepared by Barbara Reed, MD to belt out many a fine tune. Some of us, including David Norris, MD, could clearly hold our own. Others having been told by junior high chorale instructors that we should just mouth the lyrics, ignored that advice for the evening and joined in the fun. A better rendition of “Funiculi Funicula” has never been heard.
The next morning bright and early, some of the group joined Ginat Mirowski, MD for pilates. A few displayed fine form and others groaned as we located our transverse abdominus muscles that had been on sabbatical. Other optional activities that day included a Celestial Seasonings Presentation with Kathleen Hectorne, MD and a bird watching tour with actual rare bird sightings.
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Janet Hickman, MD, Amalie Derdeyn, MD, Rochelle Torgerson, MD, and Ann Deren-Lewis just before they kicked up their heals to line dance.
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Three past president's of WDS at the retreat: Susan Weinkle, MD, Lenore Kakita, MD, and Jean Bolognia, MD.
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.After breakfast, Professor and author, Regina Barreca, PhD, had us laughing to the point of weeping. She shared with us how to use humor to cope with the realities of life, unearth issues and win arguments. Her essay of how her childhood acne carries its effect into adulthood was a good lesson for a room of dermatologists.
 That evening, with our reading assignments from Sandra Read, MD completed and the champagne flowing, Professor Barreca brought her book, Too Much of a Good Thing is Wonderful, to life. She also answered the all-important question, “What is it like to be a guest on Oprah?”
Before the champagne (as it seemed safest in that order), with help from an enthusiastic and patient instructor, we (each and every one of us including a reluctant Margaret Wong) were turned into accomplished line dancers that could go around-the-world with style. Response was so great to the initial video clip, we may be forced to take the show on the road at future AAD meetings.
On the final day, Linda Roth, Senior Executive Director of Communications for Drexel University College of Medicine, gently pushed us to think about image building and self-promotion, both of which women and especially women physicians often avoid. Key points included 1) shape your own image or someone will shape it for you 2) develop a personal philosophy 3) reputation is the cornerstone of power. Linda Roth also reminded us of President Clinton’s statement, “When our memories outweigh our dreams we have grown old.”
By spending time with friends, forging new ties and just plain letting our hair down, I think we each dusted off our dreams and got a little bit younger by the end of the retreat. |
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