I have always been fascinated about how an individual ends up becoming an icon. How is it that a large group of people can hear someone’s first name and everyone knows instantly the specific person that is being discussed? Globally in this category are people like Cher and Oprah. While amazing in their own right, I am especially proud of the fact that locally we have Rosemary!
Okay, I will concede for those of you who want me to confirm who I am talking about. It is Rosemary Kowalski, a living legend of San Antonio. For decades, she has achieved culinary excellence, making a name for herself early by catering delightful private dinners and eventually mastering the art of catering massive events. In any instance, Rosemary always focused on taste and quality, gaining her customers’ trust, and making our community proud along the way.
While Rosemary’s long-term technical achievements are now followed and enhanced by her family of diligent successors, who now operate under the name RK Group, I would suggest to you that it is actually the work that she personally does now that keeps increasing value for San Antonio. For example, as the Chair of the San Antonio Chamber of Commerce (SACC), I am honored to work directly with Rosemary on our Women-To-Women, Leader-To-Leader (WWLL) Committee. She gladly hosts meetings at her downtown, Eastside Headquarters, and she faithfully attends the WWLL planning meetings that we have at other community locations.
WWLL:
Our Mission is to connect top Military and C-Suite women leaders to authentically deepen relationships through engagement, while creating opportunities to help emerging leaders of the future.
Without skipping a beat, Rosemary, who will be 92 this year, helps our committee constantly drive toward this goal. Recently, Rosemary attended a WWLL meeting and brought in several two-inch stacks of papers that she had been enthusiastically accumulating over the last couple of years. She had gathered everything from random newspaper clippings to direct email correspondence and had enthusiastically identified women who are either already leading by example or are women to watch. In the latter case, she focused on emerging leaders who are craving opportunity and just enough personal encouragement to keep them forging ahead.
In any case, women, like men, will encounter high hurdles of adversity, doubt and risk. However, Rosemary not only exemplifies how someone can drive through these hurdles with conscious determination and grace, but also give women the visibility and share the wisdom that will make a difference in their lives and in San Antonio’s future
Please be on the lookout for upcoming WWLL gatherings and other great events that are planned for 2019. In particular, WWLL is working with the organizers of the SACC’s Tribute to Women’s Leaders“ luncheon to ensure more emerging leaders are invited to such an inspiring event.
Rosemary. While we all know who she is, she remains more focused on getting to know, support, and praise everyone else, and San Antonio is a better place because she puts her Servant Leadership into action.
