Published: August 01. 2009 2:00AM

By Stephanie Morgan
CONTRIBUTING WRITER

Beginnings only get better

Remember when you and your teenage friends would wonder about the future? Remember your first job, celebrations and bittersweet goodbyes? Jacqui Bomar and Sharon Colker remember, and never thought their futures would be what they are today. Like many, Bomar and Colker are living very different lives than they anticipated back in Simmons College in Boston. The lessons they learned at Simmons, a school that prides itself on preparing women to be leaders and visionaries in their chosen fields and communities, led both women down paths of unexpected twists and turns far away from, and very different from, each other.

However, time always tells a good story, and in this one it brings them back together for an incredible event here in Greenville.
How time flies and what a small world, thought Colker when she opened her TALK Greenville one afternoon and saw her friend from Simmons. She could not believe it. Bomar, her friend whom she adored yet had lost touch with after graduation, was featured in the magazine. “Jacqui with a ‘q,’ beautiful blond hair and those giant blue eyes told me that I was looking at a picture of my friend who I hadn’t seen in 25 years,” said Colker of the day she saw her. She couldn’t wait to call her, and before the day ended, she did!

Colker graduated from Simmons, and soon after got married. A couple of years later, she had the first of her two children. Mothering soon became her top priority, and one that she continues to take very seriously. Life threw many changes her way, and soon she found herself in Greenville, a mother of two and a dedicated volunteer to our community, serving on various boards and providing helping hands whenever needed.

After graduating from Simmons, Bomar began a successful career in event planning, which provided the opportunity to travel from shore to shore. She took full advantage of the chance to grow her professional life, putting her personal life on the back burner for a time. She has since created over 100 large-scale events, and today she specializes in boat shows. These shows eventually brought her to the southeast and to her last stop, Greenville, where she and her husband live with their adored son. From her quaint office holding treasures of days gone by, she plans and implements boat shows for the southeast. Lucky for us, she has finally created a show that puts her passion for being a woman front and center. She is the founder of the Upstate Women’s Show, taking place at the Carolina First Center Aug. 27-29.

A job worth doing is worth doing together

Together with Debbie Taylor and Leanna Hammett, staff members of JBM & Associates, Bomar and Colker are planning the 2nd annual Upstate Women’s Show. “This is not a seminar that you’ll want to come for an hour and leave,” said Bomar. The lineup for this event from start to finish is intriguing, and relevant to all who enjoy fashion, food, shopping, saving, decorating, gardening, learning, writing, reading … the list goes on and on. If you have been looking for a girls’ weekend, it’s right here at home, and it’s loaded with your favorite vendors for shopping and references for learning, as well as food and beverages for savoring.

On the Web site for the Upstate Women’s Show, www.upstatewomensshow.com, you will find an agenda that seems too good to be true. Beginning Thursday, there will be three different fashion shows hosted by TALK Greenville, with the help of Millie Lewis and Macy’s; cooking demonstrations; celebrity sessions; and a bachelor auction with incredible, professional, eligible bachelors from Greenville. Belly dancers will whirl and shimmy, the band, Florez, takes the stage, wine tastings will be on sight and “Top Chef” finalist Richard Blais will stir up some fun, too.

“Women understand the need to give back,” said Bomar. “That’s why, in addition to all the fun, we have chosen to benefit two agencies this year. Our guests have the opportunity to participate in giving back to families in need in Greenville by sharing accessories not so special to them anymore for Safe Harbor, or by bringing five cans of food to Harvest Hope food bank. Donating five cans will decrease your $8 ticket price to $6. This is a way to remember the needy while celebrating our own lives.”

Reconnecting with old friends brings joy and encouragement that uplifts the soul. Bomar and Colker lost touch, but never lost the passion for life they shared in college all those years ago. The Upstate Women’s Show offers a chance to reconnect with old friends and make new ones, all while helping out the community. Come and experience just how quickly time flies when you’re having fun.