Over the past several years, I've had a chance to participate in hackathons, as part of teams that developed a social payment app and helped users decide meals to cook. But it wasn't until last month that I got to experience a hackathon from the other side, as a judge.

This post was co-written by Shirly Manor and Marissa Masangcay
As members of the Silicon Valley chapter of Women Who Code (WWC), we’ve seen first-hand how important support and professional development can be in encouraging women to pursue careers in tech. Inspired by the great turn out for the WWC meet-up we hosted last August, it was time to host another. Last Sunday was the day – bringing together more than 40 women, from companies like Amazon and Apple to entrepreneurial start-ups, who are leaders and volunteers, for the WWC’s quarterly information session and on-boarding meeting.

For the last few years I’ve been active as a member of the Silicon Valley chapter of Women Who Code, a nonprofit that encourages women in tech careers. I’ve loved being a part of it, meeting new people, working with mentors and going to meet-ups where I can learn skills or become more proficient in my iOS expertise.