Texas Women's Foundation hosts its Leadership Forum & Awards Celebration on May 8, 2025, at the Omni Dallas Hotel (555. S. Lamar St., Dallas, TX 75202). A highlight is the Leadership Forum, presented by Merrill, a Bank of America Company/Crockett & Associates, where the 2025 Maura and Young Leader awardees will share insight and inspiration in micro-learning sessions from 4:00-5:30 p.m. Afterwards, there will be a cocktail reception at 5:30 p.m. followed by dinner and an awards celebration, presented by Oncor Electric Delivery, at 6:30 p.m. Individual tickets are now on sale at https://txwf.org/join-us/events/lfac-event/. 

Anne Talk: “Lead Bigger”

Presented by Anne Chow, The Rewired CEO Founder  

In a “TED Talk-style” keynote, Chow will share insights from her recent book, Lead Bigger. She will also explore the transformative power of connectedness to create stronger businesses and more vibrant communities. 

Power Panel: Women, Girls & STEM, moderated by TXWF Board Director Debra Hunter Johnson, Reciprocity Consulting and featuring: 

• Jennifer Bartkowski, Girl Scouts of Northeast Texas CEO 
• Carine M. Feyten, Ph.D., Texas Woman’s University Chancellor and President 
• Nirupama “Rupa” DeSilva, M.D., Parkland Health, UT Southwestern Medical Center Professor 

2025 Maura Award recipients Bartkowski, Dr. DeSilva and Dr. Feyten will explore how increasing representation in STEM not only empowers women and girls, but it also drives innovation, enhances problem-solving and strengthens the entire sector.

Young Leader “5-in-5’s”

Haleigh Jones, Crawford, Wishnew & Lang Attorney 

Cristal Retana Lule, Children’s Health Vice President of Community Relations 

The 2025 Young Leader award recipients, Jones and Retana Lule will answer five “rapid-fire” questions in five minutes in interviews conducted by aspiring young journalists from Irma Lerma Rangel Young Women’s Leadership School, a school in the Young Women’s Preparatory Network.

Real Talk with Anne Chow, moderated by Deborah Ferguson, NBC Anchor 

Chow will discuss her journey to becoming AT&T’s first woman of color CEO, how she navigated that historic role, and what leadership lessons she learned.

Texas Women’s Foundation President and CEO Karen Hughes White said, “The heart of the Leadership Forum & Awards Celebration is getting to know our  honorees and hear how they have learned and continued to grow in their careers and in service to their communities. I know you will be inspired, encouraged and empowered by their stories.”

Co-chairs for the event are business and community leaders Debbie Dennis, Chief Customer Officer and SVP Human Resources and Corporate Affairs at Oncor Electric Delivery, and Brooke Hopkins, Managing Director at Alvarez & Marsal. Dia Wall, WFAA anchor/reporter, will emcee the evening awards celebration.

To learn more about this event and purchase a sponsorship, visit https://txwf.org/join-us/events/lfac-event/ For those interested in sponsorship, contact Joy Busch at maura@txwf.orgor 214-525-5321.

About Texas Women’s Foundation: One of the largest women’s foundations in the country, Texas Women’s Foundation (TXWF) knows that now more than ever is the time to create more equitable communities to build #StrongWomenBetterWorld. TXWF raises funds from a broad base of donors, including individuals, foundations and corporations. These resources support more than $6 million in investments each year that advance economic security and leadership for Texas women and girls through research, advocacy, grantmaking and strategic/educational initiatives. Since its inception in 1985, TXWF has invested nearly $85 million in Texas women and girls. The Foundation’s statewide research on issues impacting Texas women and girls provides corporate, state and local decision-makers and lawmakers with critical data to inform policies, practices and programs across the state. Its advocacy, grantmaking and educational initiatives support solutions that help Texas women and girls survive and thrive. In addition, Texas Women’s Foundation is an acknowledged leader and advocate in the gender lens investing movement, deploying 100 percent of its invested assets – endowments, operating investments and donor-advised funds – in a gendered impact portfolio that yields strong financial returns and social benefits to women and girls. For more information, visit www.txwf.org, Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn or Instagram or donate now

About the Maura Women Helping Women Award:

For 46 years, the Maura Women Helping Women Award has been presented to more than 230 courageous individuals who have catalyzed change for women and girls.

Brenda Jackson, a former Maura Women Helping Women Award recipient and TXWF Board Director, and Carrie Freeman Parsons, TXWF Board Chair co-chaired the 2025 Award Selection Committee that chose the following honorees:

Cynt Marshall, Marshalling Resources Founder and The Dallas Mavericks (retired CEO) 

Cynt Marshall has been a dynamic force in business over a 36-year career at AT&T.  When she was hired as the CEO of the Dallas Mavericks in March 2018, she set her sights on a culture transformation. Her vision was for the Mavericks organization to become the NBA standard for inclusion, diversity, and workplace culture, and the Dallas Mavericks have twice received the NBA’s Inclusion Leadership award. She is  founder of Marshalling Resources, a consulting firm. Her first book, You’ve Been Chosen, was released in September 2022 and was nominated for an NAACP Image award. Marshall is the recipient of several honors and awards including the 2024 Lone Star EMMYS President’s award, the 2024 Junior Achievement of Dallas Business Hall of Fame Laureate award, among others. She graduated from the University of California at Berkeley with degrees in Business Administration and Human Resources Management and holds four honorary Doctorate degrees.

Anne Chow, The Rewired CEO Founder 

Anne Chow is a transformative business leader whose trailblazing corporate career spans over three decades. She is currently Lead Independent Director on the Board of Directors of Franklin Covey and serves on the boards of 3M and CSX. She is a Senior Fellow and Adjunct Professor of Executive Education at Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management and the national best-selling author of LEAD BIGGER: The Transformative Power of Inclusion. In her prior role as CEO of AT&T Business, she was the first woman of color CEO in AT&T’s 140+ year history, responsible for leading a $35B global operating unit comprised of over 35,000 people. Widely recognized for her role model leadership, Chow was named to Fortune’s Most Powerful Women in Business twice, Forbes inaugural CEO Next List of Leaders set to revolutionize American business and was inducted into the Dallas Business Hall of Fame. 

Carine M. Feyten, Ph.D., Texas Woman’s University Chancellor and President 

Since 2014, Carine M. Feyten, Ph.D. has served as chancellor of the Texas Woman’s University System and president of Texas Woman’s University, the nation’s largest university with a woman-focused mission. Spearheading the largest construction boom in the university’s history (nearly $500 million) and first ever comprehensive campaign, she has more than tripled the endowment, launched many major initiatives such as the Jane Nelson Institute for Women’s Leadership and the Doswell School of Aeronautical Sciences focusing on preparing women pilots. Personally, she is deeply committed to amplifying the impact that emerges from TWU’s distinctive campus where women comprise 90% of the student body. She has made strategic investments to extend the university’s mission to whole-person development. Her leadership fosters a supportive environment that prepares graduates to succeed in today’s complex global society. These efforts were recognized by the American Council on Education with the 2023 ACE/Fidelity Investments Award for Institutional Transformation.

Jennifer Bartkowski, Girl Scouts of Northeast Texas CEO 

Jennifer Bartkowski is the Chief Executive Officer of Girl Scouts of Northeast Texas (GSNETX), having held multiple leadership roles over the last 15 years. She pioneered a national Girl Scout STEM initiative built on the success of the $15M STEM Center of Excellence in southwest Dallas to change the workforce pipeline for North Texas. She is now leading a transformational strategy to reimagine Girl Scouts to serve more girls in more communities in more inclusive ways. Bartkowski holds a Master of Public Administration from Texas A&M University and has worked with a variety of organizations including United Way of Metropolitan Dallas and the American Lung Association of Texas. She serves as Chair of the Leadership Dallas Alumnae Association and The Dallas Summit, Board Chair of Black Women in Nonprofit Leadership, sits on the Aggie Women Network Board of Directors, and is a founding board member of Carson’s Village.

Nirupama “Rupa” DeSilva, M.D., Parkland Health, UT Southwestern Medical Center Professor 

Nirupama “Rupa” DeSilva, M.D. is a Professor of OBGYN at UT Southwestern.  A specialist in pediatric-adolescent gynecology, her clinical practice is at Children’s Medical Center. Dr. DeSilva also serves as Parkland’s Medical Director of Family Planning and Child Poverty Action Lab’s Expert in Residence. Throughout her career, Dr. DeSilva has had great interest in increasing access to effective medical care within her community, as well as educating people about their reproductive needs so that patients can decide if a contraceptive option is best for them. In her role as Medical Director of Family Planning, she is dedicated to working with her team to increase access to women’s health for marginalized women through innovation. In this vein, she has created many new projects, including a new mobile van that can make access to contraception easier for those women who desire it.  

About the Young Leader Award: 

The Young Leader Award recognizes breakthrough leadership exhibited by a trailblazer who is achieving success in a field, initiative or sector, and creating a path of opportunity for other women to follow. This year’s recipients:

Haleigh Jones, Crawford, Wishnew & Lang Attorney 

Haleigh Jones is an attorney practicing civil litigation in Dallas. She handles trials and appeals in high-stakes, commercial cases. She uses her law degree to effect positive change and advance the lives of women in Texas, most recently pursuing a school district for violations of Title IX that led to sexual abuse of a female minor student. Jones is a mentor in and servant of her local and state bar associations. She served as the president of the 2024 Dallas Association of Young Lawyers, a 2,500-member bar association with more than 30 committees whose two-fold mission is to improve the lives of young lawyers and to improve the DFW community. In 2021, the Dallas Women Lawyers Association recognized Jones as its “Rising Raggio.” The award, named after Louise Raggio, recognizes an outstanding young woman lawyer who has had significant professional accomplishment and acted as a leader in the Dallas community.

Cristal Retana Lule, Children’s Health Vice President of Community Relations 

Cristal Retana Lule is committed to advancing equitable access to opportunities and resources to enhance the overall quality of life for all. As Vice President of Community Relations at Children’s Health, she leads the organization's community outreach initiatives also focusing on local and regional advocacy. Lule is a first-generation Texas and proud daughter of Mexican immigrants. She began her public policy career as a legislative staffer in the Texas Senate and has held several influential roles at both the state and local levels. She also served as Mayor Pro Tem for the City of Farmers Branch where she launched several initiatives including the city’s first night court, youth commission, senior repair program and more. Lule has received numerous accolades, including the 2024 League of Women Voters Volunteer Award, 2023 DFW Hispanic 100 Emerging Latina Leader Award and was recently appointed to serve as the 2025 state chair-elect for the Hispanic Women’s Network of Texas.

Hairless Hassles

Mobile Cat Groomer Mysteries, #3

by

Ruth J. Hartman

Mystery and murder return to Whitewater Valley!

Hairless Hassles is the third book in author Ruth J. Hartman’s great Mobile Cat Groomer Mysteries, which features intrepid cat-mom Molly Stewart, and her feline family, Jasper and Percival. When elderly and very quirky clients, next-door neighbors Florence Makes and Lottie Campbell, become the main suspects in a murder, Molly can’t sit back and watch. She’s compelled to look deeper into the case and clear her friends’ names. 

Molly Stewart, cat groomer extraordinaire and successful amateur sleuth, is once again at the right place at the right time for her cats to find the body of the latest victim of murder in the small town of Whitewater Valley, Indiana. The plot gets down to business straight away with the discovery of the victim occurring in the very first chapter. As the body is found in between the two octogenarians’ homes, the sheriff soon narrows his investigation to these two elderly ladies. While a highly doubtful conclusion from the start, the victim, Carlotta Sykes, also has a reputation for being unpleasant and was involved in a couple of nasty altercations in the days leading up to her death, so there are a few more plausible suspects to consider besides. Also, Florence and Lottie have provided some wonderfully reliable comic relief in this series from the start, and it would have been a sad day for them to have been the culprits. I went back and forth on some others, though, and it took the suspenseful confrontation between Molly and the real perpetrator to reveal the actual murderer. 

As with the previous books, there is a plethora of locals dropping in and out of the story throughout, and there is nice teamwork between Molly and her friends to investigate and cross the red herrings off their list of possible suspects. There are plenty of cats to ooh and ahh over, including the Sphynx kitties, Eleanor and Helga, which are referenced in the book’s title. Readers new to the series should have no trouble jumping in on this story as each one reads as a standalone. 

With its engaging characters, both human and feline, and interesting and quickly evolving plot, I recommend HAIRLESS HASSLES to cozy mystery readers, especially those who enjoy cat-themed stories. 

I voluntarily reviewed this after receiving an Advanced Review Copy from the author through Great Escapes Virtual Book Tours.

The 2024-25 Youth Leadership Council learns how to create successful teams from Google’s landmark Project Aristotle study; contributes 1,655.5 service hours; and launches multiple impact projects

Founded in 2021, the Youth Leadership Council (YLC) of The Storehouse Community Center was established to provide high school leadership experience while fulfilling the mission of The Storehouse to feed, clothe, and care as neighbors in one community. This year’s group of 40 students from 19 area high schools in Carrollton, Dallas, Frisco, Plano, and Richardson took their service a step beyond, launching multiple impact projects while learning how to work best as a team.

This year’s theme, “Creating Successful Teams,” was built around Google’s Project Aristotle—a landmark study that explored what makes teams thrive. Each month, student leaders facilitated interactive learning sessions on five traits identified in the study: psychological safety, dependability, structure & clarity, meaning, and impact. The research, a multi-year initiative, found psychological safety — where team members feel safe to take risks and be vulnerable — as the most critical element of team success.

YLC Squad Leaders Abigail Muccio, Ava Henry, Blair Neumayer, Caroline Hathaway, Carter Jacob and Assistant Squad Leaders Joshua Montes, Nikhil Aluri, Nina Zucconi, Sophia Perez, Tessa Devasia developed the meeting content alongside their squad members and implemented learning activities focusing on these characteristics.

“I was quite impressed with the creativity of squad leaders in coordinating these learning sessions,” said Ben Skye, director of communications and culture and YLC advisor at The Storehouse. “Through obstacle courses, skits, discussions, and more, each meeting brought the concepts to life in memorable ways, helping students build leadership and teamwork skills they’ll carry into their futures.”

"Last year, we spent a lot of time learning about our personality profiles and figuring out our individual strengths and weaknesses,” said Raghav Gupta, senior, Plano West Senior High School. “This year built on that foundation, and we got to really dig into what makes a team work. Leadership isn’t just about you — it’s about how you work with other people, and learning about Project Aristotle helped all of us understand how to do that better."

The group also came together in teams to launch a series of projects that would directly benefit The Storehouse. When Joseph’s Coat clothing closet needed warm clothing for the winter, the students created a marketing campaign with materials and served as liaisons for two large high schools whom they asked to launch drives: Plano West and John Paul II, which collected a combined 562 items. The council also closed out the year with a socks and underwear drive which resulted in 402 donations – a pressing need they learned about while volunteering.

Over the summer, YLC alumna and founding member Rishika Chimaji — now a junior at Texas A&M majoring in environmental science — returned to The Storehouse to complete the eight-week Nonprofit Management internship. While working in the food pantry, Chimaji noticed that damaged packages of oats, though still safe to eat, were being set aside and left unused. Drawing on her academic background, she proposed a new YLC project: repurposing the oats into protein bites for neighbors attending The Storehouse’s Saturday morning Academy education classes. Made with oats, honey, peanut butter, chia seeds, and vanilla, the protein bites quickly became a popular and energizing snack for Academy students. Preparing them grew into an ongoing YLC team effort — a project that combined sustainability, creativity, and care for their neighbors. This year, the students prepared more than 1,100 protein bites.

“We could not be prouder of our council and the impact they have made not only through their service hours but also through these multiple projects,” added Skye. “Rishika’s project is a prime example of what we hope our YLC members take away from their year or years of service at The Storehouse. For her to see a need, take the initiative, and apply what she has learned in college to her deep commitment to the YLC and our mission to care for our neighbors was extremely rewarding to watch. Not only that, her efforts and initiative launched a YLC project that will likely be continued in the years to come.”

As the 40 members of the 2024–25 Youth Leadership Council wrapped up the council’s fourth year, they gathered to reflect on their accomplishments, recognize their leaders, and honor their graduating seniors. They also celebrated this year’s recipients of the David A. Huerta Student Volunteer Award* for the most hours of service: Joshua Eappen (79.5 hours, 11th grade, Frisco Memorial High School), Nina Zucconi (74.25 hours, 12th grade, Plano West Senior High School), and Misha Kandukuri (71 hours, 11th grade, Plano West Senior High School). Altogether, the 40 YLC students contributed an impressive 1,655.5 hours of service — averaging 41.38 hours per member, well above the council’s 30-hour annual requirement.

Beyond their scheduled service days, many council members also volunteered independently across all four of The Storehouse’s core programs, lending their time and talents to the clothing closet, neighbor care, education, and food pantry programs.

Twenty-one seniors were honored for their service, including founding members Raghav Gupta (Plano West Senior High School) and Charlotte Bray (Plano East Senior High School), who helped grow the YLC into the thriving program it is today 

“The YLC is one of the best experiences I have ever had,” said Charlotte Bray. “I was very shy and introverted as a 9^th grader, and since being a part of the YLC, I have become more comfortable opening up, talking, and being seen. This whole experience has shaped me into being more of a leader than I ever thought I could be. It’s a cool thing to be a part of a group of leaders dedicated to helping people. If I hadn’t joined YLC as a freshman, I honestly don’t know where I’d be today.”

“This is my third year leading the Youth Leadership Council, and it’s been incredible to not only watch the growth of the council but also our individual members,” added Skye. “After two years of developing the structure, this year’s council stepped into their own – taking on projects that truly made an impact at The Storehouse. These were initiatives uniquely designed by and for the YLC.”

While the YLC roster is complete for the 2025–26 year, The Storehouse welcomes all high school students to volunteer. To sign up, visit www.thestorehousecc.org/volunteer-sign-up. To learn more about the Youth Leadership Council, visit www.thestorehousecc.org/ylc.

“The Storehouse created the YLC to provide students an opportunity to serve our neighbors while developing life and leadership skills,” said Candace Winslow, CEO, The Storehouse Community Center. “And each year under the leadership of Ben Skye, I am overjoyed to see it develop into so much more. Students are not only learning more about themselves, but they are also seeing that they can create positive change in the world. We are beyond grateful for their many hours of service and the love and care they have shown to our neighbors.”

In her remarks at the council’s year-end celebration on April 26, Winslow highlighted research showing that high school students who volunteer and engage in leadership programs like the YLC are much more likely to step into leadership roles and stay active in community service throughout their adult lives. She shared with the students, “The work you are doing today is planting seeds for a lifetime of leadership and service.”

*DAVID A. HUERTA, 22, the award’s namesake, began volunteering at The Storehouse at age 14 after he and his family arrived in Plano as immigrants from Venezuela. He volunteered weekly, helped found the YLC, and is a recent graduate of University of Texas at Dallas with a bachelor's degree in finance. He is a YLC advisor and works part time with The Storehouse team.

# # #

The Storehouse Community Center (formerly The Storehouse of Collin County) is a nonprofit organization dedicated to serving residents of Collin, Dallas, and Denton counties through food, clothing, resources, education, and employment support. By creating strong partnerships and offering transformational programs, TSCC works to address the root causes of food insecurity and empower neighbors to achieve self-sufficiency. During its previous fiscal year, The Storehouse served 180,000 unduplicated neighbors with the support of more than 2,000 volunteers. Visit www.thestorehousecc.org. The Storehouse EIN: 27-1883333

What Goes Around

by

Michael Wendroff

A riveting tale of a mysterious serial killer, white supremacists, and the detective team determined to stop them.

What Goes Around is the first novel by author Michael Wendroff, and after reading it, readers will definitely hope it won’t be his only one! After a shooter practicing in the woods is in the right place at the right time to anonymously stop a violent assault, they discover the act of killing fulfills a need in their life, and they enjoy it. But as the body count rises, a newly-paired “dog and cat” detective team pledges to put an end to this vigilante’s trail of death. 

Wow! I was immediately drawn into this clever story from the very first chapter. Its opening scene, where readers are introduced to Jack Ludlum and Jill Jarred, the two police officer main characters fated to become partners, is both suspenseful and explosive, with bullets and blood flying everywhere. Confident, talented, and highly competitive, these two officers do not like each other and have little in common but their desire to get the job done. They rub each other the wrong way, both consciously and inadvertently, from the moment they meet at the academy, but the author does a great job setting up their slow-burn relationship with teasing, tentative moments until they eventually realize they are perfect for each other, on and off the job. I really enjoyed how they quickly see they complement each other while working cases and come to understand they are better together as a team than separately and on their own. 

As mentioned, the plot hits the ground running, and the action never lets up, with several storylines working at one time, each equally as puzzling. Still, with so many moving parts, this first-time author juggled them like a pro, keeping things straight and clear until the storylines began to converge. The shooter remains a well-kept secret, tantalizingly out of reach, until the big reveal, and kept me guessing and in the dark the entire time. I’m sincerely hoping for more from this author and SOON. 

I recommend WHAT GOES AROUND to mystery and thriller readers. 

I voluntarily reviewed this after receiving an Advanced Review Copy from the author through Partners in Crime Virtual Book Tours.