On a dreary December evening in Portland, the venue, a hip new restaurant, Lechon, was anything but. The space was filled with laughter, hugs and energy when the city's women cardiologists gathered for the fourth annual ACC Oregon Chapter Women in Cardiology (WIC) social event. Led by the Chair of the national WIC Section, Sandra J. Lewis, MD, FACC, and Chair of the ACC Oregon Chapter of WIC, Nandita C. Gupta, MD, FACC, the event was attended by more WIC members than in previous years. Dr. Lewis brings with her experience and success as a long-time and active leader in the national ACC and WIC Section. The goals of these gatherings are for women to network, mentor, share challenges and triumphs, enable and empower each other. At this latest meeting we celebrated the fact that three Oregon Health and Science University internal medicine residents, who joined the Chapter's WIC group three years ago, are currently or will be cardiology fellows in July 2016!

Over wonderful wines, cocktails, and hors-d'oeuvres, women cardiologists, cardiology fellows, and even residents recently matched in cardiology, met and shared their professional and personal highlights of the year. Instead of having speakers and lectures, each person was given an opportunity to speak and contribute. Accomplishments large or small, professional or personal were celebrated. The event drew women cardiologists across the boundaries of age, training background, ethnicity, and even competing practice groups! It was wonderful for women who trained decades ago by and with men only to see younger generations of cardiologist being trained with women, sometimes even dominated by women and by women cardiology attendings. Topics covered in discussion spanned the excitement of matching into cardiology, to relocating to Portland to start a new cardiology academic career, to job searches, to mid-career leadership training, to marriage, pregnancy, babies, choosing the right school for children, surviving teenagers, traveling, and pets ...

The evening was topped off with a group photo, delicious desserts, exchange of contact information, and a promise to meet again next year.

This article was authored by Xiaoyan Huang, MD, MHCM, FACC, an invasive cardiologist and executive committee member at the Providence Heart Clinic and president-elect of the medical staff at Providence Milwaukie Hospital in Portland, OR.