Empowering women through accessible, quality financial education that builds confidence, offers practical tools and supports informed financial decision-making. That was the mission of the North Idaho Women and Their Money Conference (NIWATM) that took place on Tuesday at the North Idaho College campus. 

Pat Krug, a founding member of NIWATM, said the event was a big success. 

“We had 537 women register for the conference, Krug said. “I spent the lunch break walking around, talking to the ladies who had been to the sessions, and everyone was so excited, so empowered.” 

The conference, now in its second year, Krug said, started over a conversation over tea with Idaho State Treasurer Julie Ellsworth. 

“We all talked about the need for women to have resources for financial literacy. When young women are in school and college, they have access to some guidance counselors, to different resources,” Krug said. “But then, as they become adults, and I'd say as evidence of our registration demographics, many of them are responsible for raising their families.” 

Krug said many women become the sole head of their household, providing the primary income, but they rarely have any support to maintain their financial stability. 

“They are just busy making ends meet, trying to balance work and family. But then others who may be on a secure path suddenly have a major life event,” Krug said. “Maybe they lose their job, or maybe they lose their spouse to divorce or death. And that spouse has handled all the finances. Or they're facing later years in life and realizing they don't really know how to plan for estate planning.” 

She said the 16 breakout sessions at the conference were designed to bring support and resources to women at all different stages. 

One of the women attending the event was 83-year-old Kathi David. 

“I'm good friends with Tarie Zimmerman, who's one of the planners and speakers. She invited me last year, and I came, and I was so impressed with it that I decided to come again this year,” David said. 

David’s husband died four years ago. 

“He was pretty much in charge of all of the finances. I was involved, but I didn't really understand everything. So now that I'm responsible for everything, I want to learn more about what's going on — that’s important,” David said. “I've learned so much here. It’s good to see so many young people here. 

David offered them some advice. 

“Plan for the future — nobody prepares you for getting old, so you have to prepare starting when you are young,” she said. “The younger it is, the better it is because you don't know how long you're going to live and how long you need money to do so.” 

Twenty-two-year-old Myah Rietze and her mother, Kristi, attended the conference. It was Myah’s first time at the event. Kristi was at the inaugural conference in 2025. 

“It was very educational. I learned a lot,” Myah said. “I'm starting graduate school soon, and I'll be starting my career in the next few years. So honestly, just being exposed to how to start investing early and how to be smart with my money to protect my future — it was good to learn about that.” 

Keynote speaker Allison Kosik wrapped up the conference with words of encouragement. 

“Live life on your own terms,” she said. “But this kind of freedom doesn't come without knowledge and preparation. It requires a deep understanding of how money works, how to make it work for you and how to protect and grow it over time.” 

She added that the journey to financial empowerment is not just an individual one; it's a collective one. And when women become financially empowered, the benefits ripple out to families, communities and society as a whole. 

“By achieving financial independence, women are better equipped to challenge the status quo, to push for policies that promote equality and to create a more just an equitable world,” Kosik said. 

Following her closing comments, NIWATM committee members then took the stage to present $1,000 scholarships to 40 women whose names were drawn at random. 

Thirty-two-year-old Emily Jesberger, accompanied by her 2-week-old baby boy, Noah, was one of the recipients. 

“This conference was amazing — all the ladies here have something in common, and I learned so much,” Emily said. “This is Noah’s first outing — I’m so very grateful to receive the scholarship.” 

Nick Swayne, president of North Idaho College, was honored to host the conference. 

“It’s a big event. It supports the community, and we're the community's college, so it's just a great thing to do,” Swayne said. “Having people really understand how to manage their money for their families really gets them on a path towards success, and it helps the whole community.” 

Teresa Irish, founder and co-chair of the NIWATM Committee, felt the conference was a huge success. 

“We were very pleased with how it went — had 200 more participants than we had last year — we’re only 14 seats away from our maximum capacity,” Irish said. “Our goal today was to make people feel comfortable and inspired to take actionable steps to feel more secure, and moving forward, no matter what stage of life they are in.” 

Irish said everyone she spoke with had one question in common. 

“They all wanted to know if we’ve set a date yet for the conference next year because they wanted to take the day off and invite their co-workers to come along,” Irish said.

    Emily Jesberger, with her newborn son, Noah, was one of the 40 women who received a $1,000 scholarship to North Idaho College.
  

    Kathi David, 83, returned for the second annual North Idaho Women and Their Money Conference held at North Idaho College Campus on Tuesday.