Our October meeting exemplified Zonta roles in general; 1) an induction of a new member conducted by President Barb Yong, assisted by Anna Weselak, Membership Chair; 2) a program featuring a long-time Zonta member, a transfer originally from Zonta District 18 Club of Nigeria, Yemi Onibokun; and Peg Dowling, another very experienced Zontian and business owner, introduced our speaker. A very special meeting for all of us!

Maria and Barb

Anna, Maria and Barb

Zonta Club of Oak Brook welcomed Maria Zucchero-Denkov as an official Zonta member. Maria has been advocating for women’s rights and their well-being for a while, on both a personal and a professional level. Maria owns of her own spa services business, focused on wellness for her clients. She participates in many non-profit organizations in her Lombard community and throughout the western suburbs.

Peg and Yemi

Our own Oak Brook member, Olayemi “Yemi” Onibokun, honored us with a program consisting of an introduction and details about how she worked on the book. She answered our questions and passed copies around so we could actually get a hands-on preview. Recently published and available only in Nigeria, but soon to be available on AMAZON. The title is “ THRIVE! Conquer Marital Dystopia and Live Your Dream.”

The book describes the socio-cultural and educational environment of female children in post colonial Nigeria. It examines the system of matrimony , using firsthand experiences and reports from a Focus Group Discussion. It concludes that “when relationships are no longer mutually beneficial; women must stand up, stand tall, adapt, and THRIVE.