August 16, 2000
Noakes named Zonta International Director
TC resident will work with U.S. and Europe districts
By Carol South
Herald contributing writer
City resident Susan Noakes has found over her 20 years of involvement with Zonta International that no matter how much she gives, she gets more for her efforts in return.
From honing business and organization skills to expanding her worldview to international travel, Noakes has reaped rewards she never dreamed of when she attended her first meeting in Traverse City in 1980.
"Zonta is something I believe in very strongly, it is personally very rewarding to be involved," said Noakes, who is a local business consultant in accounting and training. "My involvement has taught me much about being a woman and aroused a global conscience I didn't know I had."
At the recent Zonta International meeting in July in Hawaii, Noakes was elected an International Director of Zonta. She will be one of seven women who will direct and support the more than 1,200 clubs in 71 countries.
Noakes has risen through the ranks since joining, serving in local leadership roles before running for district offices, mentored by other women who rose into leadership roles before her. Most recently she served as district governor from 1996-1998, overseeing a district that included 30 clubs in Michigan and Ontario.
In her new position as international director, Noakes will work with three districts, one in the United States, one in Norway and one that spans five European countries. She will support the district governors and their clubs there via e-mail, phone and at conferences.
Zonta International's mission is to improve the status of women worldwide fits with Noakes' philosophy that women's issues are human issues. Zonta programs range from building hospitals for HIV-positive women in India and teaching self defense to disabled women in Italy to digging wells in Sri Lanka and supporting women's shelters in the United States. Locally, the club is known for the Project 100 program for girls and the Festival of Lights at Christmas.
"This organization is probably one of the world's best kept secrets, although it is well known in Traverse City," said Noakes, who has traveled to Paris, Hong Kong, Toronto, Helsinki and Sydney over the years. "Zonta clubs champion projects that others do not, no project is too large or too small."
While her day-to-day involvement will be less as an international director compared to her district governor duties, Noakes will be busy with five board meetings and ongoing meetings with members in her districts. Daily she receives e-mails from women around the world and has made some good friends in other countries through her work.
"My involvement with Zonta has been a very, very exciting experience," Noakes said. "I have always loved to travel and the globe is getting smaller whether people like it or not."