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Shirley Jones to Speak at Women’s Financial Conference. Really.

By J. Gelband, 10-31-07

The state of Idaho really does care about the financial well being of women. 

The Smart Women Smart Money Conference on Thursday at the Boise Centre on the Groveis a free, all-day seminar with classes and speakers designed to educate all women in the area on being financial fit and getting smart about their money.

The annual conference has hosted hundreds of women in the past few years, and most walk away with a basic education on subjects such as saving and investing, debt reduction, strategic planning for the future, negotiation, and managing retirement income. Experts on each subject will host small breakout session and attendees register for the classes that interest them.

There are also raffles, prizes and a free lunch, but the highlights of the afternoon are supposed to be the keynote speakers, the practiced motivators and educators. For example, Idaho State Treasurer Ron Crane will speak on the importance of financial stability.

Also speaking is Troy McClain, that Boise guy who was on the first season of the TV show the “Apprentice.” He’s more known these days for being a speaker at the conference each year than he is for his original public feat of not winning the apprenticeship.

But he’ll wow the crowd again with his “rare combination of country charm, street savvy business smarts and a blue collar work ethic.” And he’ll probably tell the story about how he had a poster of Donald Trump in his bedroom as a kid and even though young Troy didn’t know who Trump was, he looked rich and Troy wanted to be just like him.

But the keynote speaker on this day of financial education is…Shirley Jones! Yes, that same Shirley Jones of “Partridge Family” fame.

The connection is clear as mud, but she’s an entertainer, which should hopefully prove entertaining.

These days Jones spends her time speaking to Corporate America about her career. “Shirley will delight…with humorous stories, songs from her Las Vegas shows and inspirational messages from her heart,” reads her bio. “We are afforded a deeper insight into Shirley’s formula for success by this quote offered by her husband Marty Ingels: ‘It is hard to conceive of a human being the likes of that consummate lady, who can somehow live and function in a world of flowers and frenzy and see only the flowers.’”

Just a guess, but maybe the flowers are a result of having spent a significant part of her adulthood on a primary colored bus with Danny Bonaduce singing “C’mon Get Happy.”

In any case, the state-sponsored event is free. And everyone knows that any education for that price is a good investment, even if she hasn’t been to the program before.

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