Creating a Space for Professional Women to Network and Connect

Mara (Aronson) Geronemus ’95 and Lisa (Dean-Kluger) Jerles ’97 did not know each other during their Pine Crest School days. 

After being introduced in 2017, the two working moms discovered they shared a vision to offer professional and personal support to working mothers. Both practicing attorneys in Miami with young children, they faced the same challenges many mothers face—networking and connecting with professionals and clients in their field while also dropping off their kids in car line and managing their households.

Lisa, an attorney at Kluger Kaplan, started her career in public relations and marketing before attending law school. After the birth of her first child, she continued to work full time but wanted to be more present once it was time for her child to attend school. 

Mara practiced securities litigation at a firm in New York and continues her work now at her own firm in Miami, Geronemus Law. 

“When I had my first child, reality struck—work and baby were competing for attention,” said Mara. 

Big firm life was not working for Mara’s work-family balance, so she took some time off and then accepted an opportunity to be in-house counsel at an investment management firm. The flexibility the position offered eventually led Mara to set up her own practice. 

“Leaving firm life was great for many reasons, but I felt isolated and unsupported,” she said.

The more traditional models of networking groups involving happy hours, mid-day golf outings and late dinners, did not work for Lisa and Mara, so they set out to change the model to fit working moms’ schedules. 

“When we met, we just clicked right away,” said Lisa. “We had such similar experiences, and knew we could offer something different to other women like us. We always had to get all of our work done before dinner—and bath time and bedtime—and so we came up with the name All Before Dinner.”

All Before Dinner is a networking group for working mothers that focuses on business development and personal and professional growth. The group is committed to referring business to working moms who reflect a variety of industries and are seeking professional expansion.

“We wanted this group to help women make professional connections while offering flexibility,” said Mara. “It’s a unique balance—our members can attend meetings in business clothes or yoga clothes. Kid on your lap? No problem. Just join us.” 

Lisa and Mara envisioned hosting monthly in-person social events where women could connect and refer business to one another. Launched in November 2019, a few months before the COVID-19 pandemic, their model had to quickly move to a virtual platform. 

Starting with 18 members, it was intended to be a local gathering of professionals from Miami and Fort Lauderdale. But shortly after launching, women from other states wanted to join. 

“Why not!” said Mara. “A virtual platform allows us to connect with women across the country.” 

The duo has been approached by women nationwide, so they have established other local chapters of All Before Dinner. The newest group, launched in December of 2021 is based in Chicago, Illinois.

“Our members are committed to referring work to other working moms,” said Lisa. “We seek to offer value to our members in the form of business development—finding clients, finding vendors, cultivating relationships, connections, and community.” 

Mara continued her sentiment saying, “We want to empower our members with a network of other moms to answer questions. We try to provide a professional community where it's okay to talk about the mom stuff too. The mom stuff doesn’t hide in a closet.”

All Before Dinner welcomes members from all industries—there is no professional exclusivity. The only requirements to join are that you are a mother and that you work outside the home. 

“Women are inherently collaborative and that is the ethos of the group,” said Lisa. “There is plenty of work to go around. We lean in hard to make those connections for our members.”

Members are asked to be active and engaged as it takes time to network. Members gain access to monthly networking meetings, guest speakers, and social gatherings. The monthly meetings allow for members to present their expertise and offer services to the group, provide professional development opportunities and offer a forum to ask for help with obstacles at work. 

Lisa and Mara reflect with fondness and gratitude on their respective time at Pine Crest, as it helped lay the foundation for their personal and professional success. 

“Pine Crest taught me how to work hard,” said Mara. “That work ethic made college more manageable. Pine Crest sets the bar high, and its students rise to the challenge.” 

Lisa points to her communication skills when reflecting on her days at Pine Crest. 

“My ability to express myself in writing has separated me from other people,” she said. “Being able to take the thoughts in my brain and express them cohesively is invaluable.”

Lisa and Mara truly want to help working moms like them. 

“I lean into who I am—a working mom,” said Lisa. “Members are invited to share the struggle of being a mother with like-minded people who understand and can support one another personally and professionally.”

“It is a real outlet for women in corporate culture, valuing women's work and motherhood equally,” said Mara. “Regardless of industry and the age of your kids, you can get something from this group.”