From Allegheny City Council
"Allegheny City Council issued an International Woman's Day proclamation to IWAP, which was received at the City Council Meeting on March 6th, 2018 (video available below).It is such an honor for IWAP and a proud moment for us as an organization. 15 of us were present at the meeting to receive the certificate and Veronica (one of our co-chairs) addressed the Council on IWAP's behalf. Each one of us should be proud of this achievement, for each one of us, in their own way contributes to making IWAP a wonderful association to belong to!"
Bhawna, Co-chair - On behalf of IWAP
From Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
"International Women’s Association of Pittsburgh marks 25th anniversary" - Link to Article
10/22/2018, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
10/29/2018, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
From Former Members
"I was in Pittsburgh for 6 years (2005-2011): 5 with IWAP and still in contact with the friends I made there. Just met them in April, missing them... I think that IWAP changed completely my life in the States, helping me to meet a lot of interesting people, discovering a lot of hidden (or not) secrets of the city, eating so many delicious meals. I still meet friends from there all over the world and some of them came to Belgium to visit me. Friends for life! Don't hesitate to invest time in IWAP! It is really worth it! You certainly won't regret it!"
Catherine, from Belgium
"Pittsburgh is awesome and so is IWAP! I arrived in Pittsburgh in December 2014 with nothing to do, no friends, no family, no work. I was just the "plus one" for my husband and here to support him in his work. This was a weird feeling for me. But after 3 weeks of acclimation I got to know Margit at the Carnegie Library and she told me about IWAP and the program. So I decided to visit one of their meetings and it was fantastic! Women from all over the world, good coffee, nice chats, cool stuff to do. I felt so welcomed in this group and I decided to become a member. It was one of the best decisions I had ever made. I got to know a lot of people (friends now), I learned a lot about different cultures, I got to know beautiful places in and around Pittsburgh and I had a lot of fun going to the meetings almost every week. It was an amazing time with an amazing group of interesting and strong women.
"I lived in Pittsburgh for 1 year and 7 months, I was supporting my husband who was studying at CMU (2012-2013). I thought it was going to be difficult for me to make friends in the USA because my English wasn't good enough, but since the first day I attended IWAP I felt good because all the ladies are so kind and if you don't speak English, they try to make you understand and to comunicate. There are a lot of interesting activities like crafting, field trips, cooking classes, dancing, Nationality days presentations, etc. With some of those activities we get to know a little more about our various countries (food, clothing, religion, customs, traditions, etc). So, you can make friends there and get some knowledge about different cultures. I can say that IWAP made my life in Pittsburgh amazing and much better than I expected. I made some of my best friends there and we stay in touch until now."
"Pittsburgh is awesome and so is IWAP! I arrived in Pittsburgh in December 2014 with nothing to do, no friends, no family, no work. I was just the "plus one" for my husband and here to support him in his work. This was a weird feeling for me. But after 3 weeks of acclimation I got to know Margit at the Carnegie Library and she told me about IWAP and the program. So I decided to visit one of their meetings and it was fantastic! Women from all over the world, good coffee, nice chats, cool stuff to do. I felt so welcomed in this group and I decided to become a member. It was one of the best decisions I had ever made. I got to know a lot of people (friends now), I learned a lot about different cultures, I got to know beautiful places in and around Pittsburgh and I had a lot of fun going to the meetings almost every week. It was an amazing time with an amazing group of interesting and strong women.
I am back in Austria again now - and I miss IWAP and its members a lot. I will visit you, when I come back to Pittsburgh one day and I wish I had had more time with you all. Thank you IWAP for everything - you are doing a great job!"
Katrin, from Austria
"I lived in Pittsburgh for 1 year and 7 months, I was supporting my husband who was studying at CMU (2012-2013). I thought it was going to be difficult for me to make friends in the USA because my English wasn't good enough, but since the first day I attended IWAP I felt good because all the ladies are so kind and if you don't speak English, they try to make you understand and to comunicate. There are a lot of interesting activities like crafting, field trips, cooking classes, dancing, Nationality days presentations, etc. With some of those activities we get to know a little more about our various countries (food, clothing, religion, customs, traditions, etc). So, you can make friends there and get some knowledge about different cultures. I can say that IWAP made my life in Pittsburgh amazing and much better than I expected. I made some of my best friends there and we stay in touch until now."
Adriana, from Mexico
"Congratulations for the 25th Anniversary!
Thank you IWAP for the field trips to the places that I would have not found by myself. Thank you for the interesting conversations in English classes. Special thanks for the international days and everything I learned about the cultures, habits and celebration days of different countries all over the world. Thank you for making me realize how up north we Finns actually live! Thank you everyone for all the great memories!"
"Congratulations for the 25th Anniversary!Thank you IWAP for the field trips to the places that I would have not found by myself. Thank you for the interesting conversations in English classes. Special thanks for the international days and everything I learned about the cultures, habits and celebration days of different countries all over the world. Thank you for making me realize how up north we Finns actually live! Thank you everyone for all the great memories!"
Johanna, from Finland
"I joined IWAP in 2006 and was involved until 2013 when I left Pittsburgh to come to New England for family/work reasons. IWAP has certainly played an essential role in my feelings for America, my home-country since 2006. It has a very warm, welcoming and laid-back environment that supports its members in many ways some of which this article has laid out. It has introduced me to several precious lifelong friends with whom I'm still in touch. I would love for Maya and Daniel to experience the unique mixture of fun and friendlyness you find in Pittsburgh, forever my home town in US."
"I joined IWAP in 2006 and was involved until 2013 when I left Pittsburgh to come to New England for family/work reasons. IWAP has certainly played an essential role in my feelings for America, my home-country since 2006. It has a very warm, welcoming and laid-back environment that supports its members in many ways some of which this article has laid out. It has introduced me to several precious lifelong friends with whom I'm still in touch. I would love for Maya and Daniel to experience the unique mixture of fun and friendlyness you find in Pittsburgh, forever my home town in US."
Akram, from Iran