The boards of both the Women’s Resource Center of Manatee and the Women’s Resource Center of Sarasota County recently voted unanimously to move forward with negotiations for a merger, which is set to take place this fall. Both boards also unanimously selected Ashley Brown, who has served as executive director of the Women’s Resource Center of Manatee for the past 13 years, to lead both organizations during the months leading up to the merger and to assume the role of CEO of the newly formed entity.