February 2022 by Austin Woman Magazine

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FEATURE

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CONTENTS | FEBRUARY

FROM THE DESK OF Vasavi Kumar

STAFF PICKS Who Do You Consider Local Champions of Equity and Inclusivity?

24 24

64 6 | AUSTIN WOMAN | FEBRUARY 2022

COUNT US IN The Health Care Disparity

GIVE BACK No More No Mas

GIVE BACK The Notley Moontower Ball and Changemaker Awards

ON THE MONEY Free Tech Certification Opportunities

SEE HER WORK Calligraphy Artist Amanda Reid

WHERE TO WORK

WAITING ROOM Tierra Denae

SIPS AND TIPS AirBrewNB Founder Elle Thomas

TASTEFUL ART Shelesa “Sugar” Tennon

I AM AUSTIN WOMAN JuiceLand’s Chief People Officer Angela Shaw

ATX WOMEN TO WATCH 32

STACEY PUMO

ERIN VINEGAR

MORGAN SEAMAN

8 | AUSTIN WOMAN | FEBRUARY 2022

ATXWOMAN.COM | 9

IN OUR HOUSE, SAFETY IS FIRST. To ensure the highest safety protocols, we have taken these steps:

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• All touchless bathrooms • Stand-alone sanitizers throughout the restaurant • Tablet menus that are sanitized after each use by guests • Tables & chairs sanitized after each table leaves • “Blue Light “ air sterilizers on each A /C unit • Daily sanitizer fogging throughout the restaurant, including the kitchen. • Automatic sanitized hand washing equipment in kitchen. • Masking required by all staff at all times. • Copper skins on door handles

Lo c at io n s

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Some restrictions apply. You must be 21+ to shop and order online, receive delivery, or pick up in store. All deliveries require in-person verification of a legal photo ID at point of delivery. Orders will NOT be left unattended. Limited delivery area and pick up only available at select locations. Not all in-store promotions and pricing apply to online orders. Exclusions apply. Please drink responsibly.

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CONTRIBUTORS This month, we asked our contributors: What’s one of the best Valentine’s Day gifts you’ve received (or given yourself)?

A PUBLICATION OF AW MEDIA INC.

VOLUME 20, ISSUE 6

DAWN WESTON

JESS BUGG

Publisher

Writer, “Illuminate the Night,” page 24

JEN RAMOS-PERKINS

Business Operations Manager

• She always makes homemade cards. • When she was little, she dressed up as Cupid. • She celebrates Galentine’s Day on Feb. 13.

JAIME ALBERS

“I’ve always viewed Valentine’s Day more as a

Art Director

children’s holiday à la Charlie Brown rather than a

CY WHITE

romantic holiday. So, heart-shaped cookies and a

Managing Editor

Goosebumps book from my mom takes the cake.”

DARBY KENDALL

Copy Editor

MCKENZIE HENNINGSEN Writer, “Stand in the Light,” page 22

KRISNA MENIER

Community & Events Manager

• She’s a UT Austin student. • She’s an avid period-piece watcher.

ANNE COX

• Tiramisu is her favorite food ever.

Production Manager

“Last year, my parents got me a teddy bear with ingredients for s’mores. There’s a reason

DONNA MITCHELL

everyone gifts stuffed animals and chocolate. It’s

Sales Account Executive

just the best!”

CONTRIBUTORS

Editorial: Jess Bugg, Tierra Denae, Kathryn Freeman, McKenzie Henningsen, Jenny Hoff, Ruvani de Silva, Angela Shaw, Cy White

JAIME ALBERS Creative Director

Art: Breezy Ritter Photography, Justin Brummer, Cayla Cummings of Carhart Photography, Tierrra Denae, Rachel Efruss, Madi Finley, Buster Jetter, JuiceLand, Marie Lowman, No More No Mas, Romina Olson, Philly Photo & Philm, Jessica Wetterer

• She lives near Kansas City, MO. (“Go Chiefs!”)

INTERNS

gift card for a massage or facial comes in a close

Jess Bugg, McKenzie Henningsen, Emily Manning AW MEDIA INC. MELINDA GARVEY

KIP GARVEY

Co-founder/Co-owner

CEO/Co-owner

SAMANTHA STEVENS

Co-founder

ASHLEY GOOLSBY

CFO

• She just visited Disney World for the first time at almost 40. • They (mainly her husband) raise Angus cattle. “When you have kids, the best gifts to receive are always the handmade cards and artwork. BUT a second.”

RUVANI DE SILVA Writer “Reinventing the Beer Tour for a Diverse, Inclusive Audience,” page 58 • She loves to travel and has been to 40 states and over 50 countries. • She’s badass at karaoke.

• She’s a British Sri Lankan of Portuguese descent, married into a Jewish family and now living in Austin.

To offer feedback, email feedback@awmediainc.com. For submission information, visit atxwoman.com/jobs.

“My best Valentine’s gift to myself was accepting

No part of the magazine may be reprinted or duplicated without permission.

feel guilty or lesser about it. However, indulging

Visit us online at atxwoman.com. Email us at info@awmediainc.com. 512.328.2421 | 7401 West Slaughter Lane, Austin, TX 78739

that it’s okay to stay home and do nothing and not in Austin’s many great Valentine’s beer and candy pairings is now my favorite way to celebrate!”

ATXWOMAN.COM | 11

FROM THE EDITOR

Well, dear reader. It’s February. A month that holds a great deal of significance for me and millions like me. I reflect on the ideals of some of the most important Black figures in my life: James Baldwin, Nikki Giovanni, Josephine Baker. Artists who not only occupied spaces society told them the didn’t fit; they did so loudly and fearlessly. I sit here thinking about their legacies and can’t help but ponder my own. Since becoming the managing editor at Austin Woman magazine, I’ve managed to accomplish a few things that I’m proud of. Beautiful Black and Brown women have graced the cover and the pages, our first intersex cover, nonbinary and trans features. I was proud that Austin Woman featured its first Muslim woman wearing her hijab on the cover. Elated that we followed that cover with one featuring an Indian woman equally proud of her heritage. Guess what...I’m not special. As much as these women have inspired me and given me pride in my job, let’s be real. I am a Black woman in the United States. My entire life living in this skin, voluntarily or not, is directly correlated with this notion of “equity and inclusivity.” What I did, while necessary, was second nature. Because all I know is identifying with womxn who look like me, who’ve experienced the same pain I have. I don’t know how much I deserve praise for something that’s a no-brainer. And you know what? It’s not about me and never has been. It’s about the womxn in our city who live their lives always striving for true equity, in some way directly impacting change in predominately cis, white, able-bodied spaces. These women of the February issue are the real paragons of change, equity, inclusivity. To them, true equality isn’t a set of buzzwords. For our cover woman, Miss Central Texas International Najah Smith, real change happens when you stand up in your truth and act as a beacon of hope for young girls and women who look like you. For the young women participating in the Special Olympics, true inclusivity is shattering expectations and pushing past limits others have set before you. It’s about affirming your power and not minimizing yourself for the comfort of others, like Real Rich Community founder and entertainer Vasavi Kumar does. What’s more, it’s about looking your hometown in the eye, embracing its faults and fighting everyday to shift the conversation, as in JuiceLand’s new Chief People Officer, Angela Shaw. The women in these pages deserve their flowers. They’ve done the hard work and are still working, still fighting. This February, let’s talk about progress. About moving forward and creating opportunities for those who need them most. Nominate underrepresented and underappreciated women for the Woman’s Way Business Awards. (Applications are open now.) Let’s take note from the women in this issue and be intentional with our work, nonperformative in our service to our communities.

CY WHITE EDITOR

Publication of Austin Woman would not be possible without the support of our monthly advertisers and sponsors, who believe in the impact we are making in the Austin community. The following businesses have stepped up their support of our efforts beyond traditional advertising and we are proud to recognize them as our partners. The team at Austin Woman is grateful for these businesses that have shown their commitment to the advancement of women in Austin and hopes you, as readers, recognize their efforts and support these businesses and all our regular advertisers.

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STAFF PICKS

WHO DO YOU CONSIDER LOCAL CHAMPIONS OF EQUITY AND INCLUSIVITY?

The Austin Woman staff look at women and businesses who are intentional with their inclusivity.

JESS BUGG EDITORIAL INTERN

ANNE COX PRODUCTION MANAGER

I love keeping up with Future Front TX (formerly Boss Babes ATX). I think they’re a wonderful organization championing equity and inclusivity in everything they do. Last year, I went to their Front Market and got to meet and shop with so many diverse artists and makers. I easily spent way too much money, but it was well worth it to support local women and minority-owned businesses.

18 | AUSTIN WOMAN | FEBRUARY 2022

All photos courtesy of respective staff member.

It’s inspiring to see equity and inclusivity promoted organically through someone simply doing what they love. Joyce Ni is the co-founder of PlowBao and is doing just that. PlowBao is a food truck that serves dim sum, bao and Chinese fusion. It also happens to be vegan. PlowBao is the first business to come out of an employee-to-entrepreneur program created by Isaac Mogannam, owner of Plow Distribution (Plow Burger). Ni realized there weren’t many plant-based options for Chinese cuisine in Austin and pitched PlowBao. With a passion for food sustainability, she is tirelessly working to provide Austinites with more food options for environmental, dietary (food allergies) and ethical reasons. Although her recipes are loosely based on more traditional ones she remembers from her childhood, they are very much her own. All of PlowBao’s packaging is also completely compostable and biodegradable. Through PlowBao, Ni also regularly partners up with various animal sanctuaries and rescues offering her time and money while promoting kindness to all.

KRISNA MENIER COMMUNITY AND EVENTS MANAGER

Creative Action is an arts and music program for children of all ages. Their vision alone shows the dedication to teaching core values to the future leaders of our society. “One student, one project, one community at a time, Creative Action will be a force for equity, belonging and joy in our society.” Creative Action reaches out to young people in low-income urban public schools, rural school districts, public housing sites and juvenile detention centers, ensuring every child has the opportunity to embrace their own creativity, courage and confidence. Creative Action works toward a better, stronger and more inclusive community. They not only stand up against injustice and oppression through their programs. It is in their core values to actively work toward equity, justice and love. One of my personal favorite programs they offer is the Color Squad, a group of artistic teens that have created eyeopening and conscious conversation-starting murals around the city.

CY WHITE MANAGING EDITOR

Nowadays, most people only recognize House culture from shows like Pose or more loosely RuPaul’s Drag Race. (Older millennials will remember the sadly exploitative but no less pivotal documentary Paris is Burning.) However, many don’t really grasp the importance of Houses (and by extension House Mothers) in the lives of predominately Black and Brown LGBTQIA+ teens and young adults. Austin only has a couple, perhaps none more prominent than the House of Lepore. The head of the Household (and first House Mother in Central Texas), Natalie Sanders, aka, Mother Girl6 Lepore, is more than just a dedicated and loving mother to her children. She’s an outspoken advocate for BIPOC and LGBTQIA+ rights and a health prevention specialist, providing free STD and STI testing. In 2020, Sanders began work on the Orisha Mere Project, a business that will provide the community with, among other things, housing, scholarships, GED/high school diploma classes and food assistance. She’s always on the front lines, fighting for her children, her people and her community. She is the physical embodiment of true equity and inclusivity.

ATXWOMAN.COM | 19

COUNT US IN

THE HEALTH CARE DISPARITY

THE GAP IN HEALTH CARE QUALITY IS DANGEROUS, ESPECIALLY FOR BIPOC WOMEN. BY JESS BUGG ILLUSTRATIONS BY JESSICA WETTERER

700 According to the CDC, 700 women in the United States die each year from pregnancy-related complications. BIPOC women are at two to three times greater risk than white women. Several factors contribute to this imbalance: lack of quality health care, structural racism, implicit bias as well as underlying medical conditions often resulting from the three previous factors. It is estimated that about half of pregnancy-related deaths are preventable.

80% Last year, Fortune Magazine estimated that women control more than 80% of health care spending in the United States. They spend more on health care both on an individual level and as the primary caretakers of their families. Women now represent the majority of medical school students yet are rarely represented in leadership positions, accounting for only 3% of chief medical officers and 6% of department chairs.

20 | AUSTIN WOMAN | FEBRUARY 2022

$12,880 NBC News recently reported on the lifelong consequences of not receiving abortion care. It is estimated that nearly half of those seeking abortions live below the federal poverty level—$12,880 a year for a single-person household. When people carried out unwanted pregnancies, they were more likely to experience bankruptcies and evictions. They also struggled with necessities like food, housing and transportation.

47% Genentech conducted a national survey consisting of 2,200 patients. The study found that 47% of medically disenfranchised individuals discontinued their medical care because they believed their health care provider did not understand them or did not want to help them. Medically disenfranchised refers to individuals who suffer from lack of access whether through location, language, disability, being uninsured or other factors.

16 A University of Pennsylvania study found that women waited 16 minutes longer than men to receive pain medication when visiting an emergency room. Doctors and nurses also prescribe less pain medication to women than men even though women report pain more frequently and at higher levels.

ATXWOMAN.COM | 21

GIVE BACK

STAND IN THE LIGHT

The Rev. Lea Walker-Clark began Austin nonprofit No More No Mas to help survivors of domestic violence find their strength. BY MCKENZIE HENNINGSEN

It takes more than telling a woman in an abusive relationship to “just leave” in order to protect them. The guilt, financial strain and physical danger that can come from completely changing one’s lifestyle after a traumatic experience can feel impossible to navigate. That’s where No More No Mas comes in. For the past 12 years, the Austin-based nonprofit organization founded by the Rev. Lea Walker-Clark has supported women and other individuals whose lives have been impacted by domestic violence, sexual assault or substance abuse. Now, Walker-Clark has teamed up with her daughter and No More No Mas Vice President, Tyra Clark, to expand their organization’s reach in the community. WHY DID YOU START NO MORE NO MAS?

My family went through a similar situation. This birthed the passion that I have to help people navigate the terrain of resurfacing after they’ve been injured. We’ve been in the trenches. We’ve experienced it personally and professionally, and being women of color, we understand that the nuances can come from all sides, all people. We know what it is to come out of darkness and stand in the light. I started this from an individual point of view, and then it morphed into a nonprofit. REV. LEA WALKER-CLARK

“” The guilt, financial strain and physical danger that can come from completely changing one’s lifestyle after a traumatic experience can feel impossible to navigate. That’s where No More No Mas comes in. TYRA CLARK 22 | AUSTIN WOMAN | FEBRUARY 2022

WHAT DOES NO MORE NO MAS DO?

We help repair people who are injured by an issue that can be dealt with from an emotional perspective, from a physical perspective, from a financial perspective [or] spiritually. We try to help them find the proper path that helps them do it themselves without leaning on us or being codependent. We ve been strong enough and educated and trained to understand that people have to do this on their own. They have to take personal responsibility to face their demons and deal with the repair from their perspective. But we give them channels to try to work through and navigate their lives. TYRA, WHY DID YOU DECIDE TO JOIN YOUR MOTHER’S NONPROFIT ORGANIZATION?

I used to work in the corporate world. I was on the grid like most of us, and I wanted to do something more impactful, more meaningful with a slower productivity that yielded larger results. So working in a family business, I was just drawn to what my mom did and decided to jump both feet into the nonprofit. I knew that the work she was doing absolutely aligned with where I saw my future personally. WHAT ARE SOME SPECIFIC WAYS YOUR ORGANIZATION SEEKS TO HEAL WOMEN?

Rev. Walker-Clark: If they re willing to be honest and bare it all, their authenticity helps us [to] be able to channel them to navigate their new journey now that they want to get help in a better way through counseling and education. Through volunteering with our organization to get stronger, working with other people and support groups, [we] help them understand that they re not the only one that has been through the trauma they may be experiencing. Our victims become leaders and teachers…who work on their own issues through other programs that they feel driven to, because they’ve [found] a passion to help others not be stuck in their victimization. DO YOU HAVE ANY ADVICE FOR WOMEN WHO NEED TO BEGIN THEIR HEALING PROCESS?

Tyra Clark: Just ask for help when you re ready. We don t want to force you just because you think you might need help or people are pressuring you. Roll into it when you re ready, but keep it in the back of your mind. It s a judgement-free zone, so ask for help in your own way on your own time. Rev. Walker-Clark: People will tell you when they think you re trash. You re not. You re lovely. You re beautiful. You re perfect for every situation. Those scars are only reminders that you came through something, but that doesn t tell you who you are. Just breathe and know that you are loved, and we will help you navigate the path you choose to go on. I want people who are in the state of Texas, or whoever comes to get our services, to understand that we love them. There is a better way if they re willing to take the time to do the work themselves.

ATXWOMAN.COM | 23

GIVE BACK

ILLUMINATE THE NIGHT

Notley shines a light on relentless change-makers while paying tribute to Austin history. BY JESS BUGG

As Zoom continues to be our primary meeting place, it’s hard not to miss the humanity of connecting in person. However, when speaking to Lisa Graham and Lawton Cummings, their warmth somehow transcends the two-dimensional screen. Bringing people together as hosts of the Notley Moontower Ball and Changemaker Awards, they are sure to deliver an experience like no other. WOMEN ON A MISSION

Graham is the co-founder and a partner of investing group Notley, founded in 2015, a self-described “band of changemakers [sic], entrepreneurs, leaders, investors, troublemakers, social-change warriors, philanthropists and do-gooders.” When speaking about the inspiration behind Notley, Graham says, “We wanted to do more than write grants; we wanted to create an organization where we got to be entrepreneurial while also getting to work with nonprofits. The problems that all of our community’s face are multifaceted and incredibly complex. We realized we wanted to be the wind at the backs of change-makers and leaders in their field.” The mission of Notley is to, “unleash relentless change-makers to bring about systemic change through the integration and collaboration of purpose for profit.” Notley’s business model is investing in for-profit ventures, with the group’s partners only taking a set salary so they can put additional profits toward their nonprofit work, which they do via a 501(c)(3) called Notley Impact. The investing group also runs multiple initiatives out of Notley Impact, such as Philanthropitch, Beam, Notley HomeFront and Notley Fellows. Cummings is a partner at Notley and the president of Notley HomeFront, which addresses food insecurity, affordable housing and access to economic opportunities. While working as the CEO of Austin100, a nonprofit where business and community leaders discuss challenges facing the city and abroad, she was tasked with creating topics for group sessions and recruiting more women to join the organization. “It was a really exciting time for me, working through how to leverage both your business and your nonprofit side,” Cummings explains. Becoming a partner at Notley was a natural transition. “I need my work to be purposeful, but I also love being entrepreneurial and investing in startups, and that is what Notley does.”

Graham and Cummings are co-chairs of the inaugural Notley Moontower Ball and Changemaker Awards being held on Feb. 12. The Moontower Ball is named after Austin’s iconic moonlight towers (colloquially referred to as moontowers), which have illuminated Austin’s community gathering places for well over 100 years. Like its namesake, The Moontower Ball hopes to serve as a “beacon of amplification” for organizations and individuals who are driving positive community impact. “A big part of the work we do is connecting people by building an ecosystem,” Graham says. “What better way to do that than bringing people together for this event that recognizes change-makers in a room full of other change-makers so they can NOTLEY CO-FOUNDERS DAN AND LISA GRAHAM support each other?”

24 | AUSTIN WOMAN | FEBRUARY 2022

Photo by Buster Jetter.

PAYING TRIBUTE

When researching award ceremonies, Cummings discovered most nominees are chosen based on their ability to fill a table (essentially, how much money they are able to raise). That was not going to fly for the Moontower Ball. “We only want to give awards to people who are doing amazing work, not based on their ability to buy a table,” she says. Rather than giving out awards to those who raised the most capital, Notley asked companies to sponsor their awards instead. Graham took on the awards committee and put together a group of experts in the field of each area Notley supports, and Cummings took on the event and fundraising side. There are eight Changemaker Award categories that include philanthropy, innovation, rising change-makers and champions in community, racial justice and affordability. CHANGING THE NARRATIVE

When talking to both women, the way they speak about the award ceremony highlights how much they care not only about their own work, but the work of their nominees and the city of Austin itself. “Often award ceremonies will tack on a category like ‘community leader’ at the end,” Cummings says. “We said, ‘Let’s make it all about that.’” The event is meant to connect a diverse group of people in Austin who are all working toward positive change. “One of the things that shocks people when they first come to Austin and start networking is that people actually want to sit down and meet with you and help you,” says Graham. “We wanted to get more of these people together and make those connections because everyone is so generous here with their time and their money.”

PARTY AT THE MOONTOWER

Planning anything over the last two years has not been without its challenges, but agility and embracing change is something Notley prides itself on. Cummings says, “We run Notley somewhat like a startup in that we are constantly innovating.” She describes their team as being self-driven with the ability to thrive in an environment of uncertainty, purposeful and optimistic while carrying with them a sense of possibility. The event will be held at the JW Marriott with half of the ballroom set up for the more formal dinner and awards ceremony, and the other half set up for an after party with more of a laidback atmosphere. The after party will pay homage to Richard Linklater’s Dazed and Confused, with a “party at the moontower” theme. Lights will be set up in the center to emulate a moontower with a band. A Tito’s Handmade Vodka airstream and a food cart facade will dish out more late-night fare. “One of the things that we do really well is bring people together from a lot of different backgrounds to support each other and the community,” says Graham. “It’s been a long time since we’ve all gathered, and getting all these people in a room together will be electric.”

“”

Photos by Buster Jetter and Madi Finley.

It’s been a long time since we’ve all gathered, and getting all these people in a room together will be electric.

ATXWOMAN.COM | 25

ON THE MONEY

FREE TECH CERTIFICATION OPPORTUNITIES

A LOCAL PROGRAM HELPS WOMEN OF COLOR GET READY FOR CAREERS IN TECH. BY JENNY HOFF

When Chandra Sanders was a single mom in Louisiana raising her children on $50,000 per year, she knew that in order to have a chance at increasing her income, she would need to pick up her family and move across the country to California. Within weeks, she was making six figures and operating with a much more flexible work schedule than she ever dreamed of, while making more money than she imagined she could. “Not everyone can move across the country,” says Sanders. “And now they don’t have to. That’s perhaps the one good thing to come out of this pandemic. There are so many more remote work opportunities for high-tech companies.” Sanders is now determined to help others like herself—women of color who are single moms—achieve financial security, while also having the flexibility to be involved in their children’s lives. As a director for The Mom Project, she seized the opportunity COVID-19 provided and started a program called RISE, which offers scholarships, mentorship and job placement assistance to women of color who are ready to enter the tech industry, no matter where they live. In just one year, RISE awarded 2,000 scholarships to women across the country. Many of the scholarship recipients came from the hospitality industry. Unlike tech companies, which were able to transition to remote work with few disruptions, hospitality was hit hard during the pandemic and didn’t have remote-work opportunities to keep staff employed. The RISE program pays for online upskill certification courses, as well as provides mentorship on resume writing, interviewing and connecting with tech companies for immediate job placement. “Four million households financially depend on a Black woman,” says Sanders. “We need to give them a leg up so they can stand up and rise after.” While RISE is a fully immersive program with mentorship and support included in their scholarships, 26 | AUSTIN WOMAN | FEBRUARY 2022

“” Four million households financially depend on a Black woman. We need to give them a leg up so they can stand up and rise after. there are other opportunities for women of color to get free training and certifications to join the tech industry. Google offers a program called Black Women Lead, which provides free classes, seminars and certification opportunities to women of color. General Assembly, a global company that offers multiple ways to upskill and certify in tech skills, has launched CODE for Good, with the specific aim of helping underrepresented groups of people enter the tech industry. While the tech industry has grown exponentially in the last 20 years and is projected to add 667,000 new jobs by 2030—more than any other industry—Black women only make up 3% of the tech workforce. With one of the highest earning potentials of any industry, tech offers a great opportunity to close the wage gap and give women of color a more secure financial future. For this reason, Sanders encourages women to research opportunities to gain tech skills for free or at a reduced rate. She believes this pivot is the one that offers financial freedom and the support system women need as they take on the responsibility of supporting their families and communities.

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SEE HER WORK

THE ART OF SELF-CARE

Calligraphy artist Amanda Reid reflects on selfcare and increasing visibility in fine art. BY JESS BUGG

If you haven’t given calligraphy much thought, spend 10

STEPPING UP

Shortly after creating Amanda Reid Designs in 2019, Reid created the Instagram page Calligraphers of Color after realizing there were no prominent BIPOC in the calligraphy space. “If you search ‘Black calligrapher’ the only thing that comes up is calligraphy in black and white.” She says laughing, “I remember standing in my kitchen with my husband, [Matthew], and I was like, ‘Where are we? I know I am not the only Black calligrapher. If we don’t have anyone as an example, then somebody has to step up, and that might have to be me.’” Reid initially had between 1,000 and 2,000 followers before the Black Lives Matter movement accelerated in the summer of 2020. Suddenly her page reached over 10,000 in only a few months and Reid had to quickly adapt to growth she wasn’t necessarily ready for. “People were looking for Black artists and my page was getting shared a lot. At first, I was overwhelmed by support but then realized a lot of people were reaching out who didn’t feel genuine. I felt that some people were just trying to throw my name and my face on their list of Black artists even though they had never even spoken to me.”

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“” It was really relaxing and meditative for me. It just became an escape.

Photos by Cayla Cummings of Carhart Photography.

minutes with Amanda Reid and it will become your new obsession. Reid is a calligraphy artist, educator, health care worker and entrepreneur. She is also incredibly passionate about making a positive impact on the world through promoting diversity within the calligraphy space. While working on her doctorate in physical therapy, Reid attended a calligraphy workshop. “It was really relaxing and meditative for me. It just became an escape.” Reid continued attending workshops in the evenings after class as a way to unwind from the demands of school and to exercise her creative side. At home she practiced by writing her course notes in calligraphy, which also made her study sessions more relaxed. During a particularly draining orthopedic residency, Reid realized she was no longer willing to sacrifice her mental health for the sake of reaching career goals. After leaving the residency, she was able to put her attention back on calligraphy. Eventually she started posting her work on social media where followers requested custom designs and tutorials. This is how Amanda Reid Designs began.

While there may have been growing pains initially, Reid has built an amazing community and a strong network of support. “A lot has happened in a short amount of time. When you find something that you really love and present it to the world, the type of people it attracts is kind of amazing.” For Reid, the goal of Calligraphers of Color is to promote and highlight diversity in the calligraphy space. “I wanted to create a space that was for us first. I want people of color in calligraphy to feel like they are not alone. A goal of mine is to create a directory for people to find us. I am trying to increase visibility and support calligraphers of color in their journey as artists and in their businesses.” CALLIGRAPHY AS A FINE ART

Reid often works with high-end brands, personalizing items for in-store events, engraving everything from clothing, to glass bottles, to Jo Malone fragrances and Louis Vuitton Boxes. “Calligraphy is a luxury service,” Reid says. “If you were to commission a custom piece from an artist you would expect to pay top dollar, yet with calligraphy people often don’t want to pay. They don’t view it in the same way. I am a calligraphy artist, and I think that’s why high-end brands have commissioned me, because they find my style different from traditional calligraphy. “Most of the time artists are working at home or in the studio alone, and no one gets to see that behind-the-scenes process,” she continues. “What I love about live calligraphy is that it’s really exposing calligraphy as an art to people who’ve never thought about it. It’s almost like a performance. It’s a beautiful experience that people get to watch.”

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SELF-CARE WITH INTENTION

Reid’s workshops have remained a high priority for her and she’s hoping for more in-person opportunities in the future. “Workshops are my happy place,” she says with giddy enthusiasm. “I love creating an atmosphere. I have all these ideas, and seeing them come to life gives me so much energy.” This year, Reid is focused on building a modern calligraphy course online for beginners that will be a more in-depth version of her workshops. Don’t be surprised if you see a book from her in the future as well. “I’m an educator at heart.” Fast growth has forced Reid to become more selective in how she invests her time. “I don’t want the practice I fell in love with to become something I no longer enjoy.” For her, it is still a form of self-care. “When I get stressed about the business side, I sit at my desk in my garage studio. I could have a thousand things to do, but all I want to do is write. I have a candle that’s always on my desk that I light, I put on lofi chillhop. I just create this whole vibe within my own space and get lost in it. Calligraphy is a form of self-care because it forces you to be present and slow down. You have to be very intentional.”

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“” Workshops are my happy place. I love creating an atmosphere. I have all these ideas, and seeing them come to life gives me so much energy.

ATX

WOMEN to WATCH Our pages are full of stories of Austin’s most engaging, empowering and successful women, and this section is specially designed to provide you access to even more incredible role models and success stories. Be part of this amazing group and share your story with thousands of women. Contact us at sales@awmediainc.com or call 512.328.2421 for more information. PHOTOS BY ROMINA OLSON

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ATX

WOMAN to WATCH

S TA C E Y P U M O

tacey Pumo is the chief marketing officer (CMO) at Advanced Pain Care (APC). She drives the company’s mission to improve the quality of people’s lives by building marketing programs that educate the community and break through chronic pain misconceptions. Pumo joined APC in 2019 as a physician liaison. Within four months, she became the director of marketing and the following year was promoted to CMO. Her 20 years of health care experience include advertising, branding, market research, public relations, reputation management, website development, social media, events, communications activities and online marketing. Together with her team, Pumo assisted in rebranding the 18-year-old company with consistent messaging that gives the business a leading voice in the industry. She contributes to the growth of APC, which currently includes 27 physicians, 13 locations, three surgery centers and encompasses a multitude of patient services: pain management, neurosurgery, orthopedics, rheumatology, neurology, addictionology, anesthesiology and behavioral health. austinpaindoctor.com

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Photo by Steve DeMent Photography.

A DVA N C E D PA I N C A R E | C H I E F M A R K E T I N G O F F I C E R

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WOMAN to WATCH

ERIN VINEGAR

HALCYON HOME | DIRECTOR OF NURSING

rin Vinegar is the director of nursing at Halcyon Home in Austin, managing the hospice program and an entire interdisciplinary team. Her adult life began as a teenage mom with a GED. At age 28, with four children, Vinegar enrolled at Austin Community College. She transferred to Concordia University where through significant struggle and dedication she earned a Bachelor of Science in Nursing cum laude. She landed at Halcyon Home, fell in love with senior care and earned multiple promotions over the next five years. A devoted leader, Vinegar has enjoyed growing Halcyon Home’s innovative hospice program from the ground up. She feels privileged to share in each patient’s sacred journey, describing home health and hospice as one of the best environments to work in. Vinegar epitomizes one C.S. Lewis quote: “You can’t go back and change the beginning, but you can start where you are and change the ending.” halcyonhome.com

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WOMAN to WATCH

MORGAN SEAMAN

T H I S E M P O W E R E D M O M C O A C H I N G A N D C O N S U LT I N G | TIME OWNERSHIP COACH

organ Seaman is a respected corporate leader, speaker and certified master coach. As the founder of This Empowered Mom Coaching and Consulting, she leads her clients on a journey to reclaim their time and heal their relationship with themselves through self-compassion, self-advocacy and whole selfcare; shedding self-doubt and guilt; and stepping into the power of saying “yes” to themselves. With two daughters and 17-plus years as a leader in the biotech industry, Seaman easily connects with women who feel trapped in their addiction to “busy.” She’s missed important meetings with sick kids at home, missed school events for presentations and lived through loss. Being a mom makes her a better leader, and being a leader makes her a better mom. When she’s not working, you can find her enjoying a run, eating donuts, snuggled on the couch for family movie night or watching reruns of Beverly Hills 90210. thisempoweredmom.com

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Beauty GOALS Najah Clay has made pageants a platform for serving others. BY KATHRYN FREEMAN PHOTOS BY ROMINA OLSON STYLED BY PARKE BALLENTINE WITH INSPIRATION FROM NORDSTROM SHOT ON LOCATION AT MOXY AUSTIN

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For most of her life, Najah Clay never knew she could do both: serve her country and “serve” on the runway. It wasn’t until she met fellow servicewoman and Miss Rhode Island 2015, Allie Curtis, and then saw Miss USA 2016, Captain Deshauna Barber, that Clay realized she could not only occupy, but thrive in both worlds. As former Miss Black Texas and reigning Miss Central Texas International, Clay now emphasizes just how impactful true representation really is. “It helps to see yourself represented and to see yourself outside of your situation, whether you are a girl struggling to go to school in Haiti, are lower income [in the U.S.], an abuse survivor or a woman in STEM,” she says. Born in San Antonio into a military family, Clay was a tomboy growing up. “[Serving in the military] was a rite of passage. Boys went into the Army, and girls went into the Air Force, and you stayed in long enough to get education benefits because no one was going to pay for your college. Then you used your education benefits to go into medicine or law,” she says. But Clay decided to chart her own path, though it has not been an easy journey. She endured bouts of homelessness as a teen, the loss of a brother in a car accident and sexual assault as a member of the U.S. Army. Her way into pageants was a circuitous one. She became interested in modeling, acting and pageants in her junior year of high school. But it was not until she enlisted, when she met Allie Curtis and they bonded over their love of pageants, that she began to think of pageants as a place for someone like her. “Allie inspired me to participate in pageants because she saved my life when I was in the Army,” Clay shares. “I wanted to have the same impact on young women that she had on me.” It may sound like a cliche, but representation matters. Being able to see yourself reflected in popular culture, in positions of power, as smart and beautiful matters for all young people. But for Black women—who for long periods of the country’s history have been excluded from idealized visions of success and beauty— representation in beauty pageants is not trivial. Pageants have an important place in the American psyche. In her book Ain’t I a Beauty Queen?: Black Women, Beauty, and the Politics of Race, sociologist Maxine Leeds Craig argues that to the extent that the Miss America pageant “established the reigning definition of beauty, it reinforced cultural codes that placed Black women outside of the beauty ideal.” Black women were often portrayed as ugly, overtly sexual, servile and rough. Black, middle-class organizations like the NAACP and Greek organizations like Alpha Phi Alpha sought to counter these racist portrayals of Black women by hosting their own pageants such as Miss Black America and Miss Black and Gold. In creating their own pageants, Black social and civic organizations were denying Eurocentric beauty ideals that said Black women were undesirable or unworthy of celebration.

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“Major pageants like Miss USA and Miss America have a racist history,” Clay states matter-of-factly. In fact, in the 1930s, rule seven of the Miss America pageant formalized that all contestants must be of “good health and the white race.” The rule was formally abolished in 1950, but it was not until 1970 that a Black woman would appear on stage as a contestant: Miss Iowa, Cheryl Browne. Vanessa Williams would be the first Black woman crowned Miss America in 1984. But the definition of beauty continues to expand. In 2019, all four of the winners of the major pageants were Black: Miss Teen USA, Kaliegh Garris; Miss USA, Cheslie Kryst; Miss America, Nia Franklin; and Miss Universe, Zozibini Tunzi. Clay also notes that Miss America, Emma Broyles, is Korean American, and the current Miss Texas International (the crown Clay will compete for this spring), Xavia Wigfall, is Black. Standards of beauty are broadening, and the diversity of current pageant winners reflects those changes. “We are seeing major shifts in all of the major pageants, not just in diversity of skin color, but diversity of body types and talent,” Clay says. She points to Miss Universe Thailand, Anchilee Scott-Kemmis, who by Asian standards is considered plus size, yet she placed in the top 15 at the Miss Universe pageant. She also highlighted Miss America 2020, Camille Schrier, who won the title by performing a science experiment complete with lab coat and protective goggles as her talent—thereby associating a woman’s ability with her brain, and not her body. These are not your mother’s beauty standards. Clay, like many young women, welcomes the shift. “You do not have to be a size zero to be on the stage at Miss Universe, and you do not have to wear a bikini to be Miss America,” says Clay. “Deshauna was a dark-skinned Black woman with 4C hair when she won the crown. This new diversity is really beautiful.” Even for Black women, where communal beauty standards have historically perpetuated a colorist ideal of beauty—light skin, light eyes, straight hair— seeing winners like Clay and Barber points to an expanded view of what is beautiful. Part of the expanded beauty ideal Clay represents is the refusal to hide her scars. While serving in the U.S. Army she was sexually assaulted by her drill sergeant. “I wear a crown and I wave and I sit on floats, but I am also a person who’s had hard times. I am not a perfect pageant patty,” she says defiantly. “I am a human being; I have survived, and I have a story to tell.” The ordeal was traumatic. “For a long time, I believed I was worthless because of [the way my assault was handled]. The quality of my work was altered, so my career opportunities were affected all while I saw the reputation and safety of my abuser prioritized over my actual physical safety.” The experience stuck with her even after she left the military; she worried what her new civilian colleagues might think or what might happen once her case went to trial. Clay says she is living with her traumas. “I will never cure my trauma. I can’t change what happened, but I can learn to live with them, and that is what makes me a survivor.” Accepting the reality of trauma and being a victim can be hard for Black women. The “strong Black woman” trope is just as harmful as being stereotyped as ugly or sexually deviant. Clay argues that it is important for Black women to refuse to just “suck it up” and rather allow themselves to be acknowledged as victims.

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“” I can’t change what happened, but I can learn to live with them, and that is

survivor

what makes me a .

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“” Clay points out that Black women are more likely to be subject to fatal domestic violence and sexual abuse. According to the Violence Policy Center, Black women are murdered by men at more than twice the rate of white women. The American Psychological Association found that 1 in 5 Black women was a survivor of rape (a higher share than women overall) and that 40% to 60% of Black women report coercive sexual contact by age 18. The strong Black woman trope belies the statistics and encourages Black women to ignore their pain and vulnerability. Suffering is often either hidden or ignored in favor of a narrative that prevents healing and thriving. But as writer Zora Neale Hurston wrote in her masterpiece Their Eyes Were Watching God, “If you’re silent about your pain, they’ll kill you and say you enjoyed it.” Clay refuses to be silent about her own suffering or the suffering of others. “Black women have a right to say, ‘I am not okay, this is not okay.’” She stresses Black women deserve softness, peace, stability, gentleness and kindness. “To become a survivor, a victim needs help, safe refuge and, most importantly, justice.” She is defiant and determined to advocate for others. Clay knows what it is to stand in front of peers who do not respect you, who mock your suffering and ignore your pain. “[The assault] stayed with me,” she reveals. “I was afraid of applying for jobs I was overqualified for, of being in predominantly male environments, of wearing the wrong thing and just being defined by it.” While she acknowledges her traumas are still with her, she is not defined by them. “It was hard, but eventually I was able to turn the negative into a positive,” she says. “Pageants gave me a platform to help homeless youth and other survivors of sexual trauma and domestic violence.” Now Clay takes every opportunity to inspire others just like she was inspired by Curtis and Barber. Clay’s experience as a sexual assault survivor has served as a catalyst for her platform, first as Miss Black Texas International Ambassador 2020 and now as reigning Miss Central Texas International. She has been able to take her story and show the world that despite how she looks, she knows what it is to feel ignored. Last year, she received the Jane Doe Award from the Genesis Women’s Shelter in Dallas. The award seeks to honor the thousands of nameless and faceless victims of domestic violence by recognizing those who commit to standing with victims through their journey to safety. “I have made being a voice to the voiceless a crucial part of my platform. As a survivor of military sexual trauma, I know what it feels like to be muted and unheard, so my platform is going to different underrepresented or unheard communities and saying, ‘You deserve to be heard, and your truth is valid, and your story matters regardless of what [you look like] or where you are from,’” Clay declares. So far, she has lent her voice to homeless youth in Austin, domestic violence survivors in Dallas, young girls in Haiti seeking educational opportunities, girls in STEM, the Central Texas Girls and Boys Club and sexual assault survivors.

deserve

truth

You to be heard, and your is valid, and your story matters regardless of what [you look like] or where you are from.

While Clay has faced many obstacles, and no one would blame her if she gave herself over to despair, she is a ray of sunshine during the Zoom chat. She smiles as she recalls one of her proudest moments and the ways her work as Miss Central Texas International has created opportunities for wider impact. For example, when she gave what she deemed a standard “stay in school” speech, she spoke afterward with a young female student about her drawings of cats and other artwork. The next day the program director informed Clay that the young lady was autistic and previously communicated very little with her peers and teachers. Her interaction with Clay had been both an anomaly and impactful. The two became friends, and Clay sent her an art kit to encourage her to continue to pursue her artistic endeavors. “Sometimes I am speaking in front of a bunch of people, or I am reading off a teleprompter, and I feel so disconnected, but [pageants] have given me a platform to connect with others, to see their faces and connect with them on a deeper level,” Clay beams. One does not need a platform to be a support or friend, particularly to someone experiencing domestic or sexual violence. She suggests our job is much simpler than that of a judge or police officer. “You can just be a good friend, offer support and help them get access to resources...that is what everyone needs, and anyone can do [it].”

LOCATION: MOXY AUSTIN Located in the lively Campus District, Moxy Austin – University is a trendy boutique hotel that helps you live your best college life unleashed. With a "work hard, play hard" attitude, this fun and vibrant hotel is a great place to reward yourself, let loose and play. Each campus-inspired room, thoughtfully designed with touches of the Austin environment and campus life, reminds you to live stress-free and rediscover what makes you happy. Grab a cocktail from Bar Moxy and make a new BFF, play your favorite games like Giant Jenga and Ping-Pong in the Backyard or get yourself something from Zombie Taco, a food truck-inspired 24/7 taco counter to fulfill all your taco needs. Want to explore Austin? Campus, local shops, music venues and museums are just a short walk (or scooter ride) away. At Moxy Austin – University, every day feels like Friday. 2552 Guadalupe St., marriott.com/moxy/austin

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Clay

and

women

like her are

redefining beauty.

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Clay is an inspiration in more ways than one. But she does not want to be alone on the stage. She believes pageants are for every woman. “There are so many pageant systems out there. So focus more on the content and the quality of your platform and how you could capitalize on the opportunities of the platform and less on [fitting old stereotypes], because things are shifting.” While representation matters, she also warns against sitting around and waiting for someone who looks like you to go first. “Maybe there is not anyone that looks like you, because they are waiting for you?” She points out that if Vanessa Williams had not said yes, there would be no Kenya Moore or Deshauna Barber. You can be the first woman to win the crown or run the company or invent the product while using your unique traits as strengths. “You do not have to wait, because the opportunity you are looking for may never come,” Clay adds. “Instead of waiting, you could build your own table.” While her time serving in the military clearly demonstrates she is no wilting flower, Clay gives a new definition of strength, saying she feels her strongest by remembering where she started and where she is now. When she is knocked down, she writes down the things that she can control and the things that are out of her control and focuses her energy on the former. Right now, that energy is focused on preparing for Miss Texas International. She is taking the conventional steps like walking with books on her head, but it would not be Clay’s way without doing the unconventional things too. When asked how she was preparing, she offers, “I am volunteering more, just so I can remember what my platform is about. I am going into my community and connecting with survivors and other marginalized groups.” The pageants have provided her a platform to speak on behalf of those who can’t speak for themselves, and Clay wants to remain connected to her purpose. Whether she is walking in circles at her home or walking the stage in an expensive dress, she is not your typical pageant girl. While she wants to win, Clay seems less focused on the awards and more focused on the platform the wins provide. The Miss International pageant program is the fourth largest pageant in the world. “It is one of the biggest platforms in the world, and I take great pride [in the fact that] I have lent my platform to many needs and causes.” Beauty pageants have long occupied a strange space in feminist conversations. It is easy to dismiss them as outdated and sexist, but for Clay and many other women, they have provided a platform to speak on and spotlight issues they care about. For Black women, they have provided ways to challenge stereotypical ideals of beauty. Beauty is not an empty symbol, and making beauty ideals more inclusive empowers women from all backgrounds. Maybe that should be the true aim of feminism—providing space for the multitudes women contain. Women like Clay, who is both a veteran and a pageant girl, strong and soft, kind and fierce, an advocate and a survivor. Women do not have to be just one thing, they do not have to be bound by Eurocentric beauty ideals or Victorian ideas about what makes a woman. Clay and women like her are redefining beauty. So even if she never wins another crown, Najah Clay has a lot to be proud of.

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GOING FOR THE GOLD

AND

BREAKING THE MOLD

The Special Olympics gives local athletes a chance to shine BY JENNY HOFF

Fifteen-year-old Reagan Lowman is a walking miracle…literally. After suffering a stroke in utero, Lowman was born with a cleft in her brain. At 2 years old, doctors told her parents she would never walk and that they should concentrate on speech therapy instead. This month, she’ll be competing as a cyclist in the Special Olympics Winter Games being held Feb. 18 through 20 in Reagan’s hometown of Bee Cave, TX, and neighboring Lakeway. “After the doctors gave us their opinion, I immediately looked up alternative therapies,” says her mom, Marie, relaxing with her daughter on the back patio of their Bee Cave home, which overlooks acres of unspoiled hill country land. Land that houses a horse, two donkeys, two dogs, chickens and honeybees. “I came upon something called hippotherapy— therapy through horses.” Marie found a local woman, RED Arena Founder Jen Young, who was starting a hippotherapy program and asked if she could bring Reagan to try it out. “She rode for an hour and screamed her head off the whole time,” says Marie. When they got home that night, Marie asked Reagan to carry something over to her dad, keeping hope alive that she would eventually walk. To her shock, Reagan stood up and ambled over to her father. “At that moment, Jen called me and said, ‘I’ve got some really sad news,’” recalls Marie. One of her horses had died. “She said, ‘I don’t think I’m going to move forward with hippotherapy.’ I said, ‘Jen, stop right there. Reagan just took her first steps.’” Thirteen years later, Young’s RED Arena has two facilities and has helped hundreds of children with disabilities attain milestones their families never thought possible. Marie is vice president of RED’s board of directors and

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Reagan Lowman speaking at Special Olympics Texas event.

Photos courtesy of Marie Lowman.

says she witnesses miracles everyday— special needs kids walking and talking for the first time and gaining a new sense of confidence in their abilities. Beyond the practical benefits, Marie says participation in programs like RED and the Special Olympics give children a strong social network beyond their immediate family. The world opens up, and they form lifelong friendships. Reagan counts the friendships she has made as her favorite part of the Special Olympics. In a society where living with special needs can often isolate children, the more than 300 annual Special Olympics competitions give the athletes a chance to hear the cheers of their community and work with other students their age who might not have special needs but play the same sport. “When we host our statewide games in a city, one of our goals is to create a ‘unified’ school district,” explains Sarah Ribeiro, director of development for Special Olympics Texas (SOTX). “For these winter games in Bee Cave and Lakeway, we are already working with Lake Travis ISD to create a unified campus.” A unified campus is an initiative within the school system that aims to create an environment of social inclusion between students with and without intellectual disabilities. It creates a culture of understanding and empathy through meaningful involvement in unified sports, whole school engagement and inclusive youth leadership. These partnerships are often created through the Special Olympics games, which introduces the organization to a new community. For this reason, choosing a host city is more than just looking for an event space. It’s about building a true partnership that will last for years. Cities often bid for the opportunity to host the competition, as it brings thousands of people to town and showcases the city’s amenities and communities to a wide audience. SOTX looks for a city that will also contribute financially to the games, since they aim to pay for every athlete’s hotel and attendance, as well as a community that will fill the volunteer rosters and come out to cheer the competitors on. Bee Cave and Lakeway City Councils voted to contribute $100,000 each from their hotel occupancy tax funds to this year’s games. Event organizers say there has been an unprecedented showing of support from the community, people eager to volunteer and contribute. “We are just so excited to host the Texas Special Olympics’ Winter Games,” says Bee Cave Mayor Kara King, who is also a middle school science teacher. “We can’t wait to cheer them on in their competition and volunteer to make this weekend so special for everyone involved. I’m especially eager to see kids who were at our school and have since graduated come back to Bee Cave and compete. I just know our community is going to come out in full force and make these games an experience of a lifetime.”

Reagan Lowman doing hippothe rapy at RED arena as a toddler,

“” I’m especially eager to see kids who were at our school and have since graduated come back to Bee Cave and compete. I just know our community is going to come out in full force and make these games an experience of a lifetime. ATXWOMAN.COM | 45

While the competitions play a key role, the games are much more than a test of athleticism. With free hearing and vision tests, many adult athletes get critical health services throughout the weekend. The events surrounding the games are truly “olympic.” The games begin with the athletes participating in a torch run with local police, running throughout the community as neighbors welcome them to the city and then ceremoniously placing the torch in a central location for the entire weekend. The opening ceremonies will take place at Bee Cave’s famed Star Hill Ranch, a recreation of an early 1900s Texas town filled with historical buildings that have been the backdrop to many movies and starstudded events. Local restaurants will provide food and drink as legendary WWE wrestlers, including “The Undertaker” Mark Calaway, who lives in the area, emcee the event. Pitch Perfect film actress and singer Kelley Jakle will sing the national anthem and other songs for the hundreds of attendees throughout the night. “What I want most is for the athletes to feel celebrated, not just for their accomplishments but for who they are,” says Jakle. “I’m pinching myself that I get to be a part of the Special Olympics family, and I can’t wait to sing and dance the night away in their honor!” For most of the participants, especially those who have already graduated, the events and competitions throughout the Special Olympics are their main social activity for the year, proof that COVID-19 has hit the special needs community especially hard. Since many of the athletes are high risk, the Special Olympics has had to shut down all in-person activities for two years, leaving many participants without any social interaction outside of their homes. This will be the first time since 2019 that most of the athletes have had a chance to see and talk to their friends. Athletes like Sydney Weigand, who hasn’t seen her boyfriend, Brennan, since the onset of the pandemic, appreciates the ability to see those she cares about at the event. “She only really gets to see him at the games,” says her mom and trainer, Delanie Weigand. “I miss my best friend, Hayley, from Galveston too,” says Sydney after her 10 sit-up, 10 push-up and 10 squat warmup routine at the YMCA in Northwest Austin. “I will get to see her at the games.”

Star Hill Ranch

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“” What I want most is for the athletes to feel celebrated, not just for their accomplishments but for who they are. Sydney was diagnosed with Down Syndrome when she was 4 days old. Her mom says the most devastating part of the news was the possibility that her daughter could one day become a target of bullies or predators, unable to defend herself. “The first nurse said, ‘She is not going to have an aggressive bone in her body,’” recalls Delanie. “That was the worst thing she could have said. The thought of having a daughter who couldn’t stand up for herself was awful.” But Delanie was pleasantly surprised a few days later when she realized her daughter was no pushover. “They had to sedate her because she was fighting the tubes so much,” she says, with a smile. “I thought, ‘Yes! That’s what I want to see.’” Sydney has been bulldozing her way through life since that moment 25 years ago. With 200 medals from competing in Special Olympics games since she was 8 years old, a high school diploma and a personal care attendant certification from the University of Texas, Sydney is constantly striving for

Photos courtesy of Jenny Hoff and Special Olympics Texas.

Sydney Weigand training at the gym.

“When she was born, I bought these books to learn how to help her,” says Delanie. “I learned really quickly to put them on the shelf because she was an individual and we were there just to follow her lead. She’s taken us to some pretty amazing places.” The next place Sydney will be taking her family are the Winter Games in Bee Cave and Lakeway. The competitions will center around floorball, volleyball, powerlifting, cycling and golf. Sydney plans to compete in powerlifting. She can benchpress 75 pounds and deadlift 145 pounds. “I think the talent level that you see at the Special Olympics shocks a lot of people, how good so many are,” says Delanie. “The attitudes, the smiles, their outlook on life. You always walk away from a Special Olympics event feeling better about humanity as a whole.” Special Olympics Texas serves almost 59,000 child and adult athletes. The chance that an intellectually disabled individual will become employed is almost double for those who participate in Special Olympics. With more than 40,000 volunteers across the state, SOTX is reaching its goal to create greater inclusivity for special needs kids. Creating that unity not only greatly impacts the quality of life for the athletes, but for the volunteers as well.

new challenges. She now works as an office assistant with the U.S. Money Reserve, has an active social media presence and is debating whether she’s ready for her boyfriend to propose to her (which would likely mean she would have to join him in Dallas). Brennan also has Down Syndrome and, like Sydney, is very independent, has a job and is primarily self-sufficient. “Our biggest battle is getting people to treat her like they would anyone else,” says Delanie. “She will achieve what you set out for her to do. A lot of people underestimate her. Our goal is to make sure she is not underestimated.” Delanie says the Special Olympics has played a pivotal role in helping educate others about the true capabilities of children born with special needs, as well as the unique joy, love and acceptance they bring to the world. She admits she had her own preconceived notions when she learned of her daughter’s condition, not understanding yet just how much Sydney would be able to accomplish, extra chromosome or not. “My husband and I are both athletes,” Delanie says. “I always pictured my daughter as a brown-haired, pony-tailed athletic girl. I thought that dream was gone when she was born. But she is that and so much more. She even lettered in Round Rock ISD sports. She is everything I pictured and yet so much nicer than me. She sees the good in everyone.” Delanie says Sydney’s involvement in the Special Olympics has changed her life. Not only through the social interaction and opportunity to compete in sports, but the exposure she’s had to politicians, actors and musicians. A few years ago, she won a fundraiser for the Special Olympics, which earned her a date with the Jonas Brothers and free tickets to their concert in Seattle. She has given speeches on health, produced a video about healthy living with her brother, a filmmaker, and has performed in musical theater and dance.

ATXWOMAN.COM | 47

“Just being around these special athletes and by donating your time, it’ll be something you thank yourself for forever,” says Calaway. The Special Olympics exists through donations and volunteers, which is why game weekends include fundraisers to ensure SOTX can provide health services, accommodations, food and more to the athletes. On Feb. 18, SOTX will host a VIP event at Lakeway resort with the hopes of raising $100,000 from individuals in the area to keep the games going. Two days later, NFL fans and business owners can purchase sponsorships to an exclusive bowling event with NFL players, USA Olympic athletes and WWE wrestlers at High 5 in Lakeway. The Winter Games is truly an event that involves the whole community. “Our goal is that Special Olympics Texas never has to look for another home,” says Bee Cave City Manager Clint Garza. “We want to show them how much our community supports what they do and give them a reason to stay here for as many years as possible.” Marie Lowman agrees, and it’s why she worked hard to bring the Special Olympics to Bee Cave. While the games have typically been held in bigger cities like Dallas, Austin and San Antonio, she believes in the power of smaller communities to deliver much more than expected. So far, she’s been proven right. “We’ve never seen a volunteer response like we have here,” says Chad Eason, senior director of competition and games for SOTX. “Within a month of our announcing the city, half our volunteer slots were filled, and some competitions already had no spots left.” For Reagan and Sydney, the weekend is about reconnecting with old friends, making new ones and proving that doing hard things isn’t a burden, but rather a chance to show just what they’re capable of.

48 | AUSTIN WOMAN | FEBRUARY 2022

To volunteer or attend the games, visit sotx.org. @SOTexas @specialolympicstx specialolympicstexas

ATXWOMAN.COM | 49

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WAITING ROOM

THE ALLOSTATIC LOAD OF HEALING AS A BLACK WOMAN

Certified yoga instructor and bodywork specialist Tierra Denae offers insight on ways to heal the effects of the allostatic load. BY TIERRA DENAE

had to work a demanding job (that I hated) for the state of Texas, while also taking care of my grandfather in his final stages of life. The mounting load was something I never really could explain to anyone in detail or let myself fully care about. I just dealt with it. I mean, for me and from what others knew of me, I should have been strong enough to handle it all, get enough rest and take care of myself. What I didn’t know was this moment in time would be the biggest shift in my healing journey. Shortly after my grandfather passed, I dove headfirst into becoming a yoga instructor, wanting to become the change I desperately sought. The first time I heard the term “allostatic load” was in the doula certification class I took in 2017. The term comes from Bruce McEwen and Eliot Stellar. Coined in 1993, this term refers to the “wear and tear on the body” from the “physiological consequences of chronic exposure to fluctuating or heightened neural or neuroendocrine response, which results from repeated or prolonged chronic stress.” I had no choice but to acknowledge that this was real, then sit deeply in this term and shift into compassion for all of the women who sat with me. For a while this term seemed abysmal. I thought for a while that we (Black women) would never be able to escape the maze of societal pressures, familial obligations and responsibilities. It took a while for me to realize that there isn’t an escape from life. No matter how many vacations you take, days off, hikes alone on the trail or mani-pedis you get, the allostatic load always shows up in one way or the other. What, then, can we do to find harmony?

52 | AUSTIN WOMAN | FEBRUARY 2022

CREATE SPACE TO UNDERSTAND YOUR LOAD.

It’s easy to say, “I’m stressed out.” But how often do we sit with the actual stresses in life to fully understand them? Deeper understanding always presents new ideas and perhaps ways of sifting through what can seem mucky, unstable or desolate. When you create a space to simply identify what and where the stress is, you can begin to plan harmony or outright stress elimination. CREATE SOMETHING YOU CAN GO TO CONSISTENTLY AND RITUALIZE IT.

Be your own healer! Discover what moves you. Does anyone have hobbies anymore? In a hustler’s economy it can be difficult to do things that don’t bring financial rewards. Tap into something new, or maybe dive into what once was. Yoga, painting, dance and writing are wonderful ways to start on a healing path. When you find what clicks for you, set up time and space and stick to it. From this place you’re creating a ritual for yourself and your life. No one can take this away from you because your healing belongs to you. GIVE MORE THAN YOU TAKE.

An abundant, healing life is one that allows you to receive from giving. This doesn’t mean give everything away, but rather find spaces to give more to yourself than you would normally take. For instance, if you tend to always be first to do something out of panic or feeling unsupported, give yourself more space than you would normally take. Be second or even third. Give yourself more time than you would normally take to do something. Urgency is never as urgent as we internally make it to be. While these ideas may seem easier said than done, it’s best that we say them over and over again so that they stick. When we practice them over and over until it becomes a ritual in our lives, it feels like less of a routine. The healing and care that we look for as Black women are inside of us. Sometimes we need a nudge, or even a big push, to tap into them.

Photo courtesy of Tierra Denae.

I remember the stress I felt in 2014 when I

Photo courtesy of Texas Lifestyle and Travel Magazine

Special Travel Section in partnership with

ATXWOMAN.COM | 53

Texas Three Step

Whether you’re looking to book a last-minute Valentine’s getaway or plan for a Spring Break outing, here are three very different and very comfortable Texas tourist gems full of Texas charm! By: Marika Flatt

Miraval Austin

In the hill country west of Austin, Miraval Austin, now owned by Hyatt, is all about intentional health for mind, body and spirit. They are hosting the Miraval Austin Bluebonnet Festival Feb. 15 – March 31, where they celebrate the iconic Texas flower and offer wildflower-themed programming. Exclusive offerings include Wildflower Meditation, Be Like the Bluebonnet: Fostering Resilience and Renewal in the New Year, Beauty in the Garden: Finding Beauty in Imperfections and more. You’re encouraged to really slow down and notice the beauty around you, such as the birds singing in the trees and the rosemary growing along the path. Design your personalized itinerary upon arrival with the concierge (Experience Planner). Keep in mind that it’s great to try classes that you’ve never experienced, but don’t fill up your schedule so that you can’t enjoy the property and downtime at the pools. You’ll also sign up for dining reservations.

54 | AUSTIN WOMAN | FEBRUARY 2022

We all know how important sleep is to our overall health. The beds at Miraval are like soft clouds, allowing guests to sink into their marshmallow abandon. The slumbering perfection makes it hard to roll out when your alarm goes off for your first class. (The cutest aspect is the cell phone sleeping bag, which tucks snugly in the wooden cell phone bed on the chest of drawers in your room.) Hilltop Crossings Kitchen, a throwback to the original property, which was a wellness retreat called The Crossings (later, Travaasa), is the onsite restaurant where the food is fresh, healthy, delicious and hearty. Enjoy classes like Low Back Love, Yin Reiki, Digital Mindfulness workshop and Floating Meditation. Take advantage of their spa, ideally booking your appointments toward the end of the day. Treat yourself to a spiritual warrior facial or deep-tissue massage, both of which will be gifts to the body that you ask so much of on a daily basis. Outside the spa, there is a tranquil outdoor pool that looks over the hill country, with a hot tub nearby. The quiet setting adds to the relaxing ambience of the spa experience.

Photo courtesy of Texas Lifestyle and Travel Magazine.

The Stanley in Austin

It’s sometimes hard to mix history and comfort when it comes to home rentals and travel destinations. Taking up a large corner lot in the heart of Austin, Lodgewell’s The Stanley is a historic home between South Congress and South First Street. This uberinteresting home also features a one-room cottage in the backyard, a great courtyard for dining and chilling and an above-ground pool. Take a trip back in time and get transported to Tuscany with this lavish 1894 home that sleeps 12. The original stone walls and beautiful woodwork throughout the 3600-square-foot property will make your stay one of unique charm and comfort. The main bedroom has a French-inspired design, with a stately chandelier, bookshelves abounding and intricately designed doors. On the main floor, you’ll find a full kitchen and dining area. One floor below, guests will enjoy a cave-like room with a double bed, a full bath and a living area. Above the main floor is an open loft bunk room, offering four single beds and one king-size bed, also with a full bathroom. If the design and style of this historic four bed, four bath home isn’t enough to entice you to book your stay, the house cocktail, The Texas Tea, is sure to bring you home. At The Stanley, you’ll feel like you’ve traveled all over the world (without leaving Austin) and still have that Texas charm.

Camp Comfort

Camp Comfort, named in the April 2021 issue of Southern Living Magazine as one of the South’s best places to visit, is one of only two listed from Texas. I was immediately impressed with this property, tucked into a beautiful spot along Cypress Creek in the quiet small town of Comfort, a place that just sounds like somewhere you’d like to cuddle up. A stylish take on a camping experience, Camp Comfort has so many aspects of Texas coolness that other places and states would love to emulate. Originally an athletic camp, Camp Comfort pays homage to the heyday of camp sports. (You can view black-and white images of the good ’ol days in their Social Hall.) When you walk onto the property, you think “rustic,” seeing the vintage van mascot sitting in front. There are wooden structures throughout, from the aforementioned Social Hall, to the bandstand stage overlooking the

large courtyard and the refurbished two-lane bowling alley, dating to 1910, that’s been converted to four Alley Suites. These lined-up Alley Suites boast a shabby-chic interior featuring chandeliers made from wire and glass bottles and other fun and funky furnishings, a large “motel type” room with sitting area and plenty of space for relaxing. They offer a super unique Texan aura with the old Texas ghost town exterior and rooms filled with colorful modern furniture and luxuries like air-jet tubs that put the “comfort” in Camp Comfort. Nearby, you’ll find five cabins offering beds of all sizes. Cabin six has a loft with two twins, cabin five has two queens and there are three Bunkie cabins with a queen and two bunks. For an even more unique experience, there’s the Airstream Bambi with a full bed. Fire pits pepper the courtyard, giving Camp Comfort its namesake. If you’ve got a group of 10, the three-structure compound on the backside of Camp Comfort is absolutely ideal, giving you some thrill with your chill. Surrounded by a fence, there’s a house (531 Water St.) with three bedrooms (a king and two queens), a full kitchen with living room and one bathroom. In the backyard, there is a small cabin with a set of bunk beds and one small bathroom. The third structure is the Gypsy Rose Airstream with two twins. All three are fantastically accommodated with comfortable bedding (high thread-count sheets) and surround a large fire pit and a small concrete below-ground pool (for the Texas summer months). This courtyard overlooks the beautiful banks of Cypress Creek.

Marika Flatt, named Outstanding Austin Communicator 2021, is the travel editor of Texas Lifestyle Magazine. She can be seen on TV shows across Texas offering travel tips, in addition to her long-running “Weekend Trip Tip” on NPR’s Texas Standard.

This travel section is a collaboration of Austin Woman and Texas Lifestyle Magazine.

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ATXWOMAN.COM | 57

SIPS AND TIPS

REINVENTING THE BEER TOUR FOR A DIVERSE, INCLUSIVE AUDIENCE

AirBrewNB Founder Elle Thomas advocates for women owning their spot in the beer industry. BY RUVANI DE SILVA

For Elle Thomas, starting AirBrewNB was a way to fuse her

passions for learning about and appreciation of beer with her goals of supporting local craft breweries and diversifying the industry. “Although I don’t produce beer professionally, it’s my calling to assist bringing new individuals into craft beer appreciation,” she says. Thomas launched AirBrewNB in 2018 with the goal of offering bespoke beer experiences in Austin hosted by women beer professionals. She pivoted the business online with the onset of COVID-19 and plans to offer both in-person and virtual tours in the future.

“” When I used to visit taprooms I didn’t see many other women, so I decided to be proactive in changing craft beer culture.

What inspired you to start AirBrewNB?

Photo by Justin Brummer.

When I used to visit taprooms I didn’t see many other women, so I decided to be proactive in changing craft beer culture. AirBrewNB is designed for groups, specifically women and women of color, who may not feel included in traditional beer culture. [We] offer an environment where they can feel comfortable asking questions and learning about beer.

58 | AUSTIN WOMAN | FEBRUARY 2022

AirBrewNB is a way for me to continue to cultivate my relationship with beer, both educationally and socially. I really wanted to move away from the traditional idea of beer tourism, which is often associated with party buses, and [instead] offer smaller settings to discuss history, culture and beer education as we explore local breweries. My virtual tours encourage individuals to explore craft beer in their own neighborhoods, supporting local businesses.

What has it been like for you as a woman, and a woman of color, in beer?

My beer journey started off with people being surprised that I like beer, then being surprised I was knowledgeable about beer, then being surprised that I own a business in beer. I look forward to continuing to surprise people. Since I started AirBrewNB, the number of women in craft beer, specifically in Austin, has grown significantly. Austin Pink Boots (a society for women in beer) is one of the largest chapters in the U.S., which says a lot about how things are changing. Of course, there are challenges on both sides, race and gender, but these are things I face every day, and not just in craft beer. I think there have been some great discussions in Austin about making the industry more accessible, but there is still a lot of work to do. I’ve been encouraged to see many new appointments of women working in brewery production in Austin, proving they can brew just as well as men and win awards. This is something I highlight as part of my tours.

What are your thoughts on the Central Texas beer scene, its growth and development?

One of my biggest motivations when I moved AirBrewNB into a virtual space was to help support craft beer during COVID, especially breweries without distribution and taproom-only sales. In Austin I’ve been impressed at our breweries’ resilience. I think it says a lot about how strong our craft beer community is. I’m proud of how well our breweries have handled the challenges of the pandemic, but they still need our support, so I continue to encourage people to buy local.

What community have you found in beer?

As a community, AirBrewNB creates a unique forum to redefine beer tourism both virtually and in-person. I love that I am a part of supporting the beer community by bringing people to the table to learn and appreciate both local beers and beers from around the world. A big part of what I do is sharing beer knowledge with individuals who may not read beer publications, and take them beyond current trends and help them explore further into beer culture. It’s great to showcase different aspects of the industry, from history to packaging to hop production. Building a beer community outside the parameters of whom beer marketing is traditionally targeted at is crucial to my work, and helping people make connections with beer and with one another is one of my favorite things about AirBrewNB.

What are your thoughts on sustainability in beer?

One of the things I love about craft beer is how it is always pushing innovation and looking for ways to get better. Unfortunately, making beer does create a lot of waste, but lots of breweries now are looking for ways to minimize their environmental impact and benefit the community. In Austin lots of our breweries compost and reuse their spent grain as animal food (which benefits local farms), use recycled materials and try to source ingredients as locally as possible. It’s great to see how the industry is developing in this direction. If you care about the environment, drink local beer!

What advice do you have for other women wanting to join the beer industry?

Just start. It doesn’t have to be perfect. Just do it. The beer industry can seem intimidating, especially for women, but don’t be discouraged because you think you don’t know enough to start out. It’s enough to be enthusiastic and willing to learn. Whatever you’re passionate about, whether it’s production, design, marketing or hospitality, get behind it and talk to people who work at breweries. The Austin community is tightknit and has lots of opportunities, and people are very willing to offer help and encouragement, including at AirBrewNB!

ATXWOMAN.COM | 59

TASTEFUL ART

CAKES, COOKIES AND PIES, OH MY!

Shelesa “Sugar” Tennon creates treats that go beyond even her wildest imagination. BY MCKENZIE HENNINGSEN

From minimalist wedding cakes to cookies featuring her clients’ faces, Shelesa “Sugar”

“” I enjoy it the most just for healing my inner child and letting her play and be creative, but also for making other people happy. 60 | AUSTIN WOMAN | FEBRUARY 2022

Photos courtesy of Pink Sugar Treats & Eats.

Tennon’s preferred art form only requires two things: creativity and lots of sugar. With a business as unique as she is, Tennon’s Pink Sugar Treats & Eats isn’t your typical bakery. The local Black female-owned bakery seeks to make a positive impact through its commitment to sustainability and providing opportunities for local food entrepreneurs. The business’ storefront, opening this year, will make all of this possible for Tennon, who began baking to bring joy to herself and those around her. “I’ve always been artistic and creative, and baking just allows me to be creative,” Tennon says. “I call it healing my inner child because I get to play with my food, [which] I was never allowed to do. Now I get to do that in a way that makes other people happy and adds to their celebrations. I enjoy it the most just for healing my inner child and letting her play and be creative, but also for making other people happy.” Tennon began her baking journey in 2015, when she decided to bake a cake for her mother after watching an episode of Cake Boss. But after failing to let the cake cool and secure it to the plate, it slid onto the ground.

“I sucked,” Tennon says. “[My mother], as graceful as she is, picked it up, still ate it and said it was the best cake she ever had. I spent the next year teaching myself everything there was to know about cake and cookie decorating so that I could make her cake better and right the next year. Almost everything I know came from YouTube and just watching copious amounts of videos over and over again. It was a great resource and a great tool, but [it took] a lot of trial and error because you can watch somebody else do something all day long, but until you do it yourself, you don’t really know.” After months of watching tutorials and taking requests for family and friends’ parties, Tennon’s baking skills improved. However, one sugary experiment she conducted on her own led to the creation of The Face Cookie, a cookie with an edible photograph of an individual’s face on top. “It really just started with me sending my face to my friends because I missed them,” Tennon says. “Then it just kind of blew up to where I made it its own brand. It’s funny, and it’s also a little weird to put somebody’s face on a cookie and then eat it.

ATXWOMAN.COM | 61

“” You get to laugh, you get to smile and you get something sweet. I think that’s why people love it. It’s not so weird that you are repulsed by it, but it’s just weird enough that you’ll buy it and keep buying it because of the reception. It’s just enough. You get to laugh, you get to smile and you get something sweet. I think that’s why people love it.” When transitioning her hobby into a business, Tennon decided to focus on the social and environmental impact of Pink Sugar. Tennon has plans to launch a program called More than Cake, which will teach young food entrepreneurs how to start their own businesses under the Texas Cottage Food Law. Tennon’s other main focus for her company is sustainability, specifically through strictly baking in small batches. “Sustainability and being planet aware are things that are important to me personally, and it just makes sense that I carry that through to my business, especially since a lot of food waste comes from retail food businesses, like bakeries,” Tennon says. “I’m committing to being safe. Small-batch [baking] is going to be a challenge, but it will be for the greater good. I really hope that Pink Sugar becomes a catalyst for making other food entrepreneurs and other food businesses rethink mass producing food and letting it perish in a case or a trash can.”

62 | AUSTIN WOMAN | FEBRUARY 2022

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I AM AUSTIN WOMAN

STILL STANDING

JuiceLand’s newest Chief People Officer, Angela Shaw, revels in the hope of her home city. BY ANGELA SHAW

what we say or what we say we believe.” Showing who I am by what I do has not always been easy, fun or popular, but I am determined to know who I am through my actions. My entire life in Austin has been burdened with being Black and living in a society that does not always give value to me as a human being worthy of opportunity and justice. I have carried this heavy load for as long as I can remember: When I watched TV and did not see any people who looked like me, when my parents talked about their tribulations, not too far removed from Jim Crow laws, and when I joined the workforce, rarely seeing any representation of myself in leadership. I have been determined to refrain from allowing that burden to hold me back. My early life was relatively normal. I had the privilege of growing up with two loving parents and my siblings in a house with a backyard. We were poor but had all the necessities. I was grounded early on. Growing up religious I was taught the power of prayer and the mercy that we are shown every day as imperfect human beings. My upbringing and beliefs are the basis of the values that I hold dear to this day. I am extremely blessed that my parents are still together, holding me safely in their arms. I cherish the time we’ve had together. It is because of my parents that I gained the resilience and tenacity to keep going despite what may be happening to or around me. It is in how hard they worked to give their children stability, showing us what having faith meant and loving us to no end. I always knew that I could be somebody, but it was not until I was an adult that I defined it. It meant never giving up on doing what I set my mind to, helping others, building generational wealth for my family and fighting for equality in an inequitable world. Reaching all the goals I set for myself required a career path, not just a job. I started working in human resources and discovered it was a field I could excel in. It also led me to other ways in which I could “be somebody.” I set off on the journey of always being on the list of people mentioned when anyone in Austin would talk about the HR greats. Whether they loved or hated me, I would be mentioned. At the time I set off on this path, I was working in the state government. I was not making much money, but I was gaining important experience. Next, I wanted credibility. I went after my first HR certification and obtained my Professional in Human Resources certificate in 2001. I was working two jobs and gaining more experience. It was then I started to encounter obstacles toward my growth in HR. Everyone said it was because I did not have a degree, which was the only feedback I began to hear. So, I started working on my degree at the age of 30. It took me seven years, but I graduated from Capella University in 2012. 64 | AUSTIN WOMAN | FEBRUARY 2022

From then until now, I have been on a trajectory I could not have even predicted for myself. Despite different obstacles, I know hard work pays off. I have had the opportunity to grow my career to the highest levels doing everything I set out to do as a senior certified, award-winning HR leader currently serving as chief people officer at JuiceLand (which, like myself, is another Austin original). In my role, I get to work with our entire organization on what it means for us to show that equity and inclusion is a team sport in which we all play a position. No one gets to just sit on the bench and yell at the coaches. In addition to my continued work in HR, I serve on local boards and share my experiences as a Black woman speaking publicly around Austin and engaging as an adjunct instructor teaching HR. What I initially considered to be a burden has now become what I lead with. I have really committed myself to Austin, the city I live in. I have reveled in hope alongside others who also want to have a positive effect on the city known not only for being the capital of Texas, but also the live music capital of the world and home of the weird. I have seen movement. I have seen change, and I am excited about how I can continue to be a part of Austin’s desire to be a city of opportunity for everyone. The time is now.

Photo courtesy of JuiceLand.

Author Bell Hooks said, “What we do is more important than

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February 2022

Articles inside

TASTEFUL ART Shelesa “Sugar” Tennon

I AM AUSTIN WOMAN JuiceLand’s Chief People Officer Angela Shaw

SIPS AND TIPS AirBrewNB Founder Elle Thomas

ON THE MONEY Free Tech Certification Opportunities

WAITING ROOM Tierra Denae

GIVE BACK No More No Mas

GIVE BACK The Notley Moontower Ball and Changemaker Awards

SEE HER WORK Calligraphy Artist Amanda Reid

FROM THE DESK OF Vasavi Kumar

STAFF PICKS Who Do You Consider Local Champions

COUNT US IN The Health Care Disparity