40 minute read
COVER STORY
The SUMMER of
The uniquely empowering journeys of 25 incredible ladies
12 hopeforwomenmag.com SUMMER 2022
You are a child of God. Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won’t feel insecure around you… And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.”
– MARIANNE WILLIAMSON
Photo by Faith Blackwell
ANGELA B. FREEMAN
Patent Attorney at Barnes & Thornburg, LLP
ANGELA is a Partner and Intellectual Property/Patent Attorney at Barnes & Thornburg, LLP in Indiana. She is a member of the firm’s Intellectual Property Department and Life Sciences Practice Group.
Angela assists clients in procuring patent rights in the U.S. and worldwide for highly technical subject matter, particularly in the food, agricultural, pharmaceutical and renewable energy industries. She also prepares contractual agreements and opinions, performs IP due diligence during sales, mergers and acquisitions as well as procures trademark and copyright registration to protect her clients’ interests.
She began her practice as a law clerk while attending Indiana University’s Robert H. McKinney School of Law at night, despite her background of over 15 years as a “bench” biologist. Prior to her legal career, she spent the majority of her scientific career as a genetic researcher and clinical scientist at Eli Lilly & Company.
Throughout her career, Angela has been a staunch advocate for more women, especially diverse women, to join the STEM fields and has been recognized as a STEM and legal diversity champion.
Angela was recently recognized on the 2021 and 2022 Best Lawyers in America Inaugural Ones to Watch List for Patent Law and the 2020 Lawyers of Color Hot List with a Minority Achiever’s Award in Science & Technical Disciplines. She was also a law finalist for the Indy’s Best and Brightest Award.
In her workplace, Angela has been recognized with Barnes & Thornburg’s Camille B. Conway Diversity Award and the Lilly Chairman’s Ovation Award for Global Leadership in Diversity. In her community, she is currently an Emeritus Member and was also named as a Trailblazer at the 2020 Torchbearer Awards from the Indiana Commission for Women, the most prestigious recognition of women by the state.
In 2021, Angela started her podcast The Freedom Forum with Angela B. Freeman, exploring the intersection of business, race and gender in the Hoosier state by interviewing influential leaders and executives making an impact in the diversity, equity and inclusion space. The podcast was honored by the Society of Professional Journalism as a third place winner of the 2021 Best in Indiana Journalism Awards for Best Podcast.
In addition, Angela is a wife and mother to two young adult sons. In her limited spare time, she is a supportive basketball mom and an avid water and beach baby who loves to sunbathe and snorkel as much as she enjoys boating, swimming and fishing at the lake.
hopeforwomenmag.com SUMMER 2022 13
AMINA TAYLOR
CEO of Amina’s Beauty College, CEU Sponsor, Master Educator
AMINA is a licensed Cosmetologist and Cosmetology Educator and has earned her Doctorate in Trichology. She enjoys all things hair and education, and has used her 30+ years of art, instructing and styling to follow her dream of opening her own Cosmetology School in the summer or fall of 2022.
As a continuing Methodology Coach, Education Sponsor and Technical Trainer, Amina is excited to be a part of the Loreal family as a Mizani Artist and a John Amico Keratin Specialist. She also has an educational platform called I Am My Brand that provides technical training for beauty professionals and students as well as methodology coaching for licensed educators.
Amina is a forever student and her mandate is to educate winners and create an environment conducive for learning. She loves being able to help people while God inspires her and keeps her going. For Amina, the thought of being able to touch someone’s life by conversation, mentorship, teaching or just her presence is a gift from God. She is inspired by growing, evolving and becoming the woman God has called her to be and her daily prayer is that her light will shine to become an inspiration to others.
Everybody is Somebody and that somebody is you.”
14 hopeforwomenmag.com SUMMER 2022
Successful products spring from a passion to improve people’s lives.” – RICHARD BRANSON
Photo by Shae Gist
KELLI N. JONES
Co-Founder and Co-CEO of Be Nimble Foundation, Co-Founder and General Partner of Sixty8 Capital
KELLI is Co-Founder and General Partner for Sixty8 Capital, a seed stage fund for Black and Latinx entrepreneurs. Through the Be Nimble Foundation, she has also led the transformation for a more diverse tech ecosystem in Indiana over the last five years.
Since starting Be Nimble, Kelli has trained more than 40 Black and Latinx founders through her accelerator and invested nearly $1M in capital and start-up resources. Before launching Sixty8 Capital, she was Program Manager for Techstars Heritage Group Accelerator as well as Director of People, Culture and Brand for Givelify.
Kelli is on the board of IMPACT Central Indiana, Employ Indy, Vanguard Collegiate of Indianapolis, Indiana Technology & Innovation Association as well as The Venture Club’s NextGen group. Prior to relocating to Indianapolis in 2017, she lived in New York and Los Angeles, where she was the founder of an experiential marketing company specializing in start-up go-to-market strategy, lead sales, events and marketing for digital media brands like HipHopDX and Blavity.
Kelli lives by the above quote by Richard Branson. She is motivated by anything that allows people to eliminate barriers and create equitable access to the capital and resources they need. Kelli loves that she can do something she is passionate about that is one hundred percent about other people every day.
hopeforwomenmag.com SUMMER 2022 15
Fight for the things that you care about, but do it in a way that will lead others to join you.”
– RUTH BADER GINSBURG
DR. ANINDITA SEN
Senior Director of Regulatory Affairs at UCB and Creative Director of Nrityangan Kathak, Inc.
Photo by Jennifer Driscoll
ANINDITA moved to the U.S. in 1990 as a graduate student. She took the leap of faith alone and left everything that was familiar to her in India to pursue her dream of being the first PhD in her family. While in graduate school at University of Iowa, she met her husband of 29 years and followed him to NC. She completed her PhD in Biochemistry at East Carolina University followed by a Howard Hughes post-doctoral fellowship at Duke University Medical Center.
After brief stints at two start-up biotech companies, Anindita moved to Indiana with her family in 2003. She started her career at Eli Lilly & Company and worked there for over 18 years in various roles. During her time at Lilly, she mentored junior scientists and associates and was a DEI Ambassador for which she received the Lilly Research Lab President’s Diversity Award in 2019.
Anindita was also named as one of the Top 100 innovators within Lilly for pioneering the use of real-world evidence to solve regulatory problems. In post-Covid 2021, Anindita joined Zogenix Inc, which is now a wholly owned subsidiary of UCB, to follow her passion of working in rare and ultra-rare diseases to bring therapeutic options to patients who have no medicines available to them.
In addition to her role as a scientist, Anindita is a dancer, dance-teacher, choreographer and the Founder and President of Nrityangan Kathak, Inc. The mission statement for this non-profit organization is to promote diversity and educate the broader Indiana community in the north Indian classical dance form of Kathak. She currently has sixty students who are training in this dance form ranging in age from 6-60 years and has also served as a faculty for the Academy of Gregory Hancock Dance Theater. Anindita and her students actively participate in many cultural programs in the community and serve as ambassadors of Kathak. They have also performed at DePauw University’s Diversity event and as part of the Kalashram Kathak troupe at Madison Square Garden, NYC. Anindita currently serves as the Vice President of the Board of Directors for Gregory Hancock Dance Theater in Carmel, IN.
Another one of Anindita’s significant roles and proudest achievements is being the mother to their son Aakash, a recent Purdue University graduate.
16 hopeforwomenmag.com SUMMER 2022
DINAH “MUFFY” ALLEN
Owner of Muffy SkateTastic Training
Photo by Greg Buck
MUFFY is Owner of Muff y SkateTastic Training. An Indianapolis native, she fell in love with the art of rhythm skating during adult nights at the local skating rink. After witnessing skaters perform synchronized skate dance routines, she joined a skate club called Naptown Real Rollers and began traveling around the U.S. to national skate jams and performing in parades.
Muff y is a true visionary. During the middle of the pandemic, she decided to create SkateTastic Training to off er roller skating lessons. Th is idea came after receiving several requests from women in her community to teach them how to skate. Little did she know how well it would take off .
With over 15 years of roller-skating experience, Muff y has taught roller derby teams, children and adult lessons. With the growing demand for roller skating, she continues to educate and inspire skaters worldwide through her Instagram profi le, YouTube and her blog, muff yskates.com.
I’m only in competition with my last level.”
– ERYKAH BADU
18 hopeforwomenmag.com SUMMER 2022
A moment of clarity awakens power.”
– FELICIA JOHNSON MCGEE
Photo by Keith “KJ” Glover
FELICIA JOHNSON MCGEE
FELICIA is a Stress Resilience Educator and Natural Hair Culturalist, along with being a Texture Style Cultivator, Scalp Wellness Specialist and Maternal Self-Care and De-Stress Support Coach. It is her belief that clarity awakens power, fueling her unrelenting passion to help women learn strategies which soothe their “react and protect” brain so they can reclaim their energy, time and joy for living.
Felicia’s desire to become a Stress Resilience Educator began with a personal journey to soothe stress. Doing her inner work led to conversations with other women who were facing similar issues. An intrinsic motivation to heal the disruptive patterns of overwhelm, worry and anxiousness with herself deepened Felicia’s empathy and growing awareness around how these concerns contribute to women’s mental health issues and overall wellness.
Experiencing the journey of her own transformation, Felicia is inspired to continue to influence change in the lives of those around her. Utilizing her gifts to serve others and support their efforts to improve their lives, she keeps teaching the importance of people making themselves a priority in order for them to take care of others in a healthy way with healthy coping mechanisms, boundaries and mutual respect.
hopeforwomenmag.com SUMMER 2022 19
NASTASSJA “NAS” LEWIS
Professional Flight Attendant and CEO of th|AIR|apy, Inc.
Photo by Chantel Massey
NAS used her experience to found her non-profit to advocate for the mental health of Flight Attendants.
Having experienced the effects of mental health illness personally and in members of her family, Nas has a deep compassion for Flight Attendants who are impacted by the pain and chaos of mental health illnesses and the overall effects of the aviation industry. She knows how important mental health is for long-term preservation and has invested the last three years of her career to put mental wellness back into the lifestyles of Flight Attendants all over the world.
Nas saw the need to create a platform that would not only help Flight Attendants achieve mental wellness, but to also work through the concern of Flight Attendant suicide. Since then, she has developed the first a 24/7 aviation text line, th|AIR|apy Helpline, to assist Flight Attendants who are in mental distress.
Nas received a Bachelor’s of Science in General Studies with minors in Sociology and Psychology of Human Development from Ball State University. For the last 8 years, she has worked for the largest airline in the world where she has made an incredible impact in the aviation community. Nas has been featured in Business Insider, The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal and the National Business Aviation Association speaking about the mental health plight and struggles of Flight Attendants.
Nas loves the culture of Indianapolis where she has been living with her son, Ian and dog, Chappie. In her free time, she enjoys eating an occasional bowl of pasta in Rome, spending time with family and brainstorming ways to take up impactful space.
If you can’t fly then run, if you can’t run then walk, if you can’t walk then crawl, but whatever you do you have to keep moving forward.” – MARTIN LUTHER KING, JR
20 hopeforwomenmag.com SUMMER 2022
You are precious beyond measure, and you are worth defending.” – PAM TURNER
Photo by Nathan Milks
PAM TURNER
Women’s Self-Defense Instructor and Kuk Sool Wan Assistant Instructor
PAM is a second degree blackbelt in Kuk Sool Won and a licensed Self-Defense Instructor through the Specialty Fitness Institue, even after a late start in martial arts only nine years ago.
A Muncie resident for over 30 years, Pam began teaching women’s self-defense workshops with one of her daughters a year ago, and she was forever changed. The more she learned about the insidious and pervasive nature of violence against women and young girls, the more driven she was to prepare them for verbal, emotional and physical threats. Pam has trained women as young as 12 and as old as 72, and each one has taught her about the character, drive and strength women are born with. She wants women to know their worth and how to defend it.
In the past year, with the help and support of her Kuk Sool instructor, PSBN Ken Ring, the love of her life and husband Andy and her amazing daughters Annabeth and Katie, Pam has trained 80 women and young girls in basic self-defense. And they have only just begun.
Initially, Pam was inspired by a simple request to teach a women’s self-defense workshop. The process of researching and planning this workshop opened her eyes to a fairly hidden but common reality among women as well as opened up a Pandora’s box of buried personal experiences that had chipped away at her self-esteem for decades.
Confronting the common, heinous reality of violence toward women completely changed Pam. She continues to be inspired by seeing women and young girls stepping toward healing, learning to stand up for themselves and growing into the truth that they are precious and worth defending.
hopeforwomenmag.com SUMMER 2022 21
When one woman rises, we all rise.”
SARAH BOUTWELL
CEO of B.O.W (Beauty of Women)
Photo by Chandra Lynch
SARAH got to know many different kinds of people growing up on the eastside of Indianapolis. It was the biggest blessing and is where her love for mother nature and the nature of people started.
Being a woman who has struggled with lifelong psoriasis, childhood trauma and all the other trials females go through, Sarah found her calling by combining her love of photography with vulnerable conversations that help connect us deeply and see our growth in real time.
B.O.W came from Sarah’s desire to show women they are never alone and sometimes all it takes to get through a rough time is real talk with another lady willing to listen. Helping women feel safe, loved, seen and heard is what she lives for. She believes everyone is worthy of being empowered to be completely themselves. With 17 years of photography experience, she loves using her skills to allow women to see who they truly are and to be confident in the energy they are bringing to the table.
As she finishes up writing the book that inspired B.O.W., Sarah continues to provide one-on-one and group sessions for her community as well as host events that feature ALL women vendors and artists. She believes that as one woman rises, we all rise, creating a strong divine sisterhood. She is honored to continue to watch it grow as we all allow ourselves to get weirdly vulnerable.
Since 2015, Sarah has also been running a local art non-profit. Re-Generation Indy has about 20 established professional artists who teach a variety of workshops to the youth, hosting Youth Art Shows to give them opportunities to talk about their creations and sell their work. The organization was created from her love of Indy’s art community and admiration for the unbelievable talent right here. Sarah hopes to have their own location one day soon that will act as not only a local art supply store, but also a gallery, workshop space, artist studio and so much more.
Sarah is living proof that dreams are attainable with hard work, community, vulnerability and the willingness to let yourself dream big.
22 hopeforwomenmag.com SUMMER 2022
JUSZINA KENDRICK
CEO of Classy Diva Caters, Chef and Cookbook Author and Owner of Juszina Kendrick Shelter Agency
Photo by Haley Lewis
JUSZINA is the mother of two sons she absolutely adores, but will tell you unequivocally that cooking is her life. The author of Fava: The Cookbook Made to Feed Your Soul, she feels blessed that God gave her the opportunity to cook for and serve others. She has a real passion to help people and volunteer for a good cause.
Juszina is inspired by the fear of the unknown. As no one knows how much time they have on Earth, she believes that if we did, we would live out our dreams and live life with no regrets. What keeps her going is knowing that she has inspired so many women to step out on faith and trust God no matter what their situation in life is.
Faith without work is dead.”
– JAMES 2:17
hopeforwomenmag.com SUMMER 2022 23
SHAKEETA TORRES
Photo by Ty from J&J Photography
SHAKEETA is a number one Best Seller Co-Author, non-profit Founder, Entrepreneur, Licensed Clinical Worker, Certified Life Coach and Licensed Minister. She loves to help Christian leaders unpack their pain and discover their passion so they can walk boldly in their God-given purpose.
Shakeeta is driven and empowered to continue to do what she is called to do as someone who has transitioned from “pain to purpose” as a survivor of physical and sexual childhood trauma. Since 2007, she has been serving others in the areas of Hospice, Elderly Care and Child Protective Services as well as Mental Health.
She is known for being transparent, being able to connect with others easily, having a joyful spirit and being full of life, drive, passion and compassion. These qualities along with Shakeeta’s education and continued growth spark a light within her clients to embrace the process of healing, become their authentic selves and to live on purpose.
Shakeeta is firstly inspired by God as He is truly the director of her life and has healed her from so much. People also inspire her through their stories and triumphs. She believes everyone has a story. What are you going to do with yours?
Heal on PURPOSE so you can walk boldly in your GOD-GIVEN PURPOSE!” – SHAKEETA TORRES
24 hopeforwomenmag.com SUMMER 2022
In order to get the things you’ve never had, you have to do the things you’ve never done.”
– RASHEDA WILLIAMS
Photo by Quatiece Salter
RASHEDA KAMARIA WILLIAMS
Chief Empowering Officer and Founder of Empowered Flower Girl
RASHEDA is an award-winning Mentor, Speaker and Author of Be EmPOWERed: How to Live Above & Beyond Life’s Drama. She is also a staunch youth advocate. For more than a decade, Rasheda has been committed to making a difference in the lives of women and children.
She is a graduate of Detroit’s Cass Technical High School and holds a B.A. in Journalism from Wayne State University’s Journalism Institute for Media Diversity. She also has extensive training in youth development, community relations and interpersonal communication.
For more than a decade, Rasheda has been committed to making a difference in the lives of women and children in communities throughout southeast Michigan as a mentor, speaker and workshop facilitator.
Her passion and advocacy for youth and social change have earned Empowered Flower Girl numerous accolades and media highlights. She was named one of 29 Inspirational Female Entrepreneurs Who are Positively Impacting The World and featured in Exeleon Magazine as one of 15 Dynamic Entrepreneurs of 2020.
hopeforwomenmag.com SUMMER 2022 25
To whom much is given, much is required.”
– LUKE 12:48
ANITA HAWKINS
Multi-titled Author, Entrepreneur, Global Philanthropist, Model and Mentor
ANITA transcends beauty, brains and business know-how with a fierce determination to succeed at whatever she does. As a servant first, she has dedicated her life’s work to helping other people.
She is known for her global impact advocacy, contributing more than $1M to purpose-led work that supports domestic violence survivors, homelessness and poverty. She was inspired years ago by her father and grandmother on the importance of giving back.
Anita watched her father create his D.A.D.S. Organization where he taught students carpentry, brick laying, plumbing and electrical skills. It was important for him to give those students who weren’t college bound another outlook on life and a chance to learn a trade and even launch their own businesses. Her grandmother clothed and fed thousands of the homeless. As a little girl, Anita was taught to give back and have agape love for all God’s people. She started as a candy striper, served in nursing homes and alongside her grandmother and sorority sisters with Sigma Gamma Rho.
As a Global Philanthropist, Anita has been able to touch, reach and change the lives of over one million individuals and families and she is still working. It means so much to her to be able to give back to her community and those abroad. Recently coming back from Zimbabwe and installing two new water wells in remote areas where people walk 20 miles for water, Anita saw there is always more work needing to be done.
This is what continues to inspire her to keep going. For the Word says, “For what you have done for the least of my people you have done for Me.” Anita is thankful every day the Lord has chosen her to be His vessel to be a blessing in the lives of people.
Photo by Kauwuane Burton
26 hopeforwomenmag.com SUMMER 2022
JENNIFER LOPEZ-REED
Speaker, Author, Dancer and Fitness Instructor
JENNIE embodies “bring yourself to work” in everything she does. She empowers diversity and engages employees and organizations to achieve new heights.
Jennie’s superpower? Her authenticity! She realized her strengths are a combination of her Latinx heritage, passion and things learned from being a mom. Intentionally using her strengths has been the secret of her personal and professional success and growth journey.
Originally from Puerto Rico, Jennie moved to the U.S. to complete her Master’s Degree in Chemical Engineering. Her engineering career has included roles in both manufacturing and quality, including Site Head roles, and on the business side as a Global Brand Leader, Sr. Leader and Chief Operating Officer.
She is currently the Associate VP and Head of Global Recruiting and Talent Acquisition for Eli Lilly & Company. Jennie is an Executive Board Member for the Organization of Latinx at her company, focusing on developing and accelerating Latinx talent. In 2021, she also joined the Board of Directors for Genesis Research.
In parallel, Jennie has also found success in her dancing and fitness careers. Her experiences include being a backup dancer for artists like Julio Iglesias and Ednita Nazario and a Super Bowl Winning NFL Cheerleader/Captain as well as being a Fitness Instructor, Presenter and Zumba Master Trainer.
Jennie is a featured author of Hispanic Stars Rising Volume 2. She is frequently invited as a guest speaker at many local and national organizations. Awarded 2020 Working Mother of the Year from Eli Lilly & Company, she enjoys making intentional fun memories with her husband Brad and two children, Izzie and Ethan – they are the WHY and the fuel for everything she does.
“Do not spend any energy trying to be someone who you are not, instead channel all of your energy into giving the best of YOU.” – JENNIFER LOPEZ-REED
hopeforwomenmag.com SUMMER 2022 27
Photo by Dr. Lydia Kearney Carlis of C-Suite Pics
DR. RACHEL-YVONNE TALTON
CEO of Synergy International Limited, Inc Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us…. You are a child of God. Your playing small does not serve the world… We are all meant to shine, as children do. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It’s not just in some of us; it’s in everyone. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same.”
– MARIANNE WILLIAMSON
DR. RACHEL is CEO of the award-winning Synergy International Limited, Inc., a firm founded to help organizations enhance the intersection of employee leadership, inclusive culture and consumer needs using a unique combination of expertise in psychology, research, leadership development, diversity, equity and inclusion.
She is also Co-Founder of the BOW Collective, and CTO of Flourish Leadership, LLC and the Flourish Conference for Women in Leadership, which provides high-achieving female executives and entrepreneurs with executive coaching and masterminding cohorts.
Dr. Rachel serves on the corporate board of directors for Tori Soudan and on the boards of Cuyahoga Community College Foundation, the Akron Community Foundation, In Council with Women, and JumpStart Inc. She is an Advisory Board Member of the national Women Business Collaborative and a member of Cleveland Bridge Builders Class of 2002 and Leadership Cleveland Class of 2005.
Dr. Rachel has been recognized by a number of global, national and local organizations for her leadership, has been featured across news platforms, and has been honored by organizations across the globe.
She earned her Doctorate in Management from Case Western Reserve University’s Weatherhead School of Management, where she has served as Adjunct Professor of Marketing. She also holds a Diversity & Inclusion Training Certificate from Cornell University. Her research is focused on the impact of perceptions of trust, satisfaction and value on consumer loyalty in dynamic-industry environments. She holds an MBA with a concentration in Finance from Cleveland State University as well as a BA in Psychology.
Dr. Rachel’s personal passions include international travel, community service, public speaking, writing, art and music.
28 hopeforwomenmag.com SUMMER 2022
Be so good they can’t ignore you.”
– CAL NEWPORT
DR. DENISE MOSE
Award-winning Author, Podcast Host, Red Carpet Guru and Globetrotter
DR. DENISE had been a Professional Educator for more than 14 years. However, being eager, effervescent and engaging, she realized there was more to do.
So, she dropped everything and moved to China as a Foreign Professor for the self-discovery of a lifetime. Losing her “mojo” in her career is what spurred her to self-discovery, and moving to Asia was refreshing. It was a revelation for Denise to meet people who did not look, sound, dress or even act like her, and she encourages everyone who can to try live abroad.
Young people really inspired Denise. They know what they want and are eager and ready to make it happen and she believes the future is in good hands. Her 12 year old niece also inspires her. As she watches her, it is critical that Denise’s example is attainable for anything her niece wants in this life. Every day is different and this keeps her going. As an Entrepreneur, Denise’s life is a roller coaster and she loves it that way. Dedication to her craft and knowing her worth means there is nothing Denise can’t accomplish.
Visit her website to see how Denise earned the title “Globetrotter” and read about her life as a Celebrity Correspondent on the biggest red carpets in the world. Join her podcast Self-Discovery on Sunday with Dr. D every Sunday at 5 p.m. EST, streaming everywhere.
hopeforwomenmag.com SUMMER 2022 29
ALENA ANALEIGH
CEO of The Brown STEM Girl, Phenom, Prodigy and Whiz Kid
Photo by D Lacy Photography
ALENA started college at 12 years old and is currently a Junior Pre-Med Biological Science student. At 13, she is the youngest person in U.S. history to be accepted into medical school.
With a bold dream, Alena became the youngest girl of color to work and intern at NASA. Using her own voice, she launched The Brown STEM Girl, The Brown STEM Girl Foundation and Brainiac World Media. Through The Brown STEM Girl, she has received eight proclamations declaring April 30 as STEM in the City Day, honoring women of color in STEM.
Alena’s accolades are numerous including being named a 2022 Times Kid of the Year Top 20 Finalist, recognized as a 2022 Global Child Prodigy of the World and being honored as an HBCU STEM Queen in conjunction with Olay and Ebony Magazine.
Alena has also received international acclaim through her features on Good Morning America, The Kelly and Ryan Show, Black Entertainment Television, and a host of news outlets throughout the world. In addition, she has also been honored by the Phoenix Mercury (WNBA) as part of their Believe in Women campaign.
Alena was not only both traditionally schooled and homeschooled, but she was also world schooled. She is an experienced world traveler which enabled her to attend school in Amman, the capital of Jordan in the Middle East.
LEGO® sets, Robotics and NASA are the things that excite Alena ever since age 4 when she began traveling to NASA sites to fuel her passion. Her intellectual brilliance is only a glimpse into who she is. It’s the depth of her warm-heartedness, quiet spirit and gracious nature that sets her apart even more. With a clear vision, Alena is on the path to knock down doors for other brown STEM girls, just like her.
30 hopeforwomenmag.com SUMMER 2022
#womenwednesday
Across all Hope’s social media platforms, this biweekly series will highlight inspiring women to know. Hope Magazine
is a team of thinkers, seekers and creatives who find inspiration in movement, exploration and sisterhood. We want to create meaningful relationships inspired by real women and their stories - all designed for the way you live today! Only at www.hopeforwomenmag.com
hope
EVOLVING TOGETHER
hopeforwomenmag.com
hopeforwomenmag.com SUMMER 2022 31
NETTE STOKES
Non-profi t Founder and Executive and Women’s Employment Advocate
NETTE is the Founder and Executive of JustLiving Advocacy and a Women’s Employment Advocate. She has a strong purpose to help families, especially women-led households, out of poverty through sustainable work. She has passionately served in advocating to improve and enrich the lives of women with access to life-changing opportunities.
She believes opportunities, promoting positive thinking and believing in oneself are how one will achieve their goals. She has a heart for all people, especially for single mothers living below or just above the poverty threshold who are in need of a helping hand. With the plight of single mothers continuing to increase and worsen, she believed it was time for her to speak and act on their behalf.
In 2016, Nette founded JustLiving Advocacy, a community non-profi t in Howard County, Maryland, to do just that after a career in corporate and federal government. She thrives on being the voice for the voiceless single parents just seeking an opportunity. Her faith and belief feels that if the door of opportunity just opens, single parents and single moms will help themselves to that door and experience – which is one of the best gifts that anyone can give.
Nette’s passion has a powerful eff ect, especially when it comes to seeing single parents moving out of impoverished circumstances. She is living a purposeful life in service.
We can’t help everyone, but everyone can help someone”
– RONALD REAGAN
32 hopeforwomenmag.com SUMMER 2022
For we walk by faith, not by sight.”
– 2 CORINTHIANS 5:7
Photo by QRoss Photography
DENISHA FERGUSON
Business Idea Strategist, Creator of Indiana Fashion Week & CEO of UnZip & Create
DENISHA is the Creator of Indiana Fashion Week and CEO of UnZip & Create. She combines 20 plus years of Health and Research and Business and Non-profit Management to cultivate community, capital and confidence for entrepreneurs and start-ups. She specializes in Business Idea Strategy.
She is also the author of Year of the Creator. Her work has been featured on TV, in magazines, on websites like Thrive Global, Elephant Journal and Forbes and on MTV’s Ridiculousness.
Denisha is inspired by the many ways of creating. She believes if we can speak it, be it, leave it and, if we deem appropriate, do it. This brings perspective to her life and shows her how to best navigate the creator in her, knowing there’s not only one path to the goal.
hopeforwomenmag.com SUMMER 2022 33
DR. LISA J. WICKER
Global Business Leader, HR Expert, Advisor to C-Suite and Board of Directors
Photo by Santanna Hayes
DR. LISA is a seasoned Human Resources Executive and Women’s Leadership Expert with extensive global automotive manufacturing experience. She has strategic perspective and knowledge of industrial manufacturing industries, multi-million dollar big-box retail, hospitality organization capital allocations, and licensure/gaming management.
Lisa is respected as a credible voice in decision-making. With over 30 years of HR experience, she is currently a member of the Advisory Board for STOPIt, a $20M start-up emerging technology company specializing in risk mitigation software.
Following a prominent Human Resources career with Fortune 50 Companies, Lisa established Linwick & Associates, LLC with offices in Detroit and Charlotte. The mission of the company is to create organizational value and business results through people.
Lisa is inspired by the joy of life itself and the ability to wake up each day because of God’s mercy and grace, knowing that He has divinely ordered her footsteps to help her help women create and build capacity.
Faith, hope and her family’s support are what keep Lisa going. Her husband of 42 years, her sons and her grandchildren are the center of her life. With their support, she uses all of the capacity God gives her each and every day.
You have the power and capacity to do it now!”
– DR. LISA LINDSAY WICKER
34 hopeforwomenmag.com SUMMER 2022
Being our authentic selves allows us to joyfully show up and use our strengths, gifts, and time to create a positive experience and impact for others, our organizations and communities.”
– REBECCA BORMANN
Photo by Faith Blackwell
REBECCA BORMAN
Connector, Speaker, Technologist, STEMinist, Servant Leader, Activist for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion & Co-Founder of R.A.D Networking
REBECCA is currently the Managing Director of Sales & Service for Bell Techlogix, a national leading IT Managed Services firmed headquartered in Indianapolis.
She has also served on the Board of Directors for Women & Hi Tech since 2017 and is currently their Past President. It is the largest non-profit membership organization in Indiana, changing the landscape of women represented in STEM to be equally inclusive to all. Rebecca has helped grow the organization and expand its diversity of the board, membership and community partners, with the goal that ALL women in STEM know they belong and have a community to connect, support, mentor and encourage one another.
Rebecca is a mentor, a Pass The Torch For Women Legacy Leader and a volunteer and coach at Zarvos Leadership and Coaching. Additionally, she Co-Founded R.A.D. Networking, a local Indianapolis professional networking group. She is also an investing member of the Start Up Ladies and an active member of Heartland Church. She is passionate about empowering others to reach their full potential and lead a purpose-filled life. She is involved in the community and enjoys serving others.
Rebecca completed her BA in Business Management and received a certificate of Communications from Indiana Wesleyan University. Rebecca holds several certifications including ITIL Foundation, Cisco CSE, Axiom Sales, Presentation Advantage, 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, and Vision in Action. She is also a two time finalist for Indy’s Best & Brightest Technology award.
Rebecca loves spending time with family and friends, taking her dogs on walks, traveling, shopping, cooking and reading. As a Milwaukee, Wisconsin native, she loves football and the Green Bay Packers. Go Packs go!
hopeforwomenmag.com SUMMER 2022 35
Photo by Faith Blackwell
FAITH BLACKWELL
CEO of Faith Blackwell Photography
Feel the fear and do it anyway.”
– SUSAN JEFFERS
FAITH has been a full-time photographer since 2011. She believes photography chose her, as she picked up a camera and discovered her passion for it while working in marketing for the International Masonry Institute. She currently has a studio at the historic Stutz Building.
Faith is now a published photographer specializing in business, commercial, event and fashion photography. She is the official photographer for and on the board of Dress for Success Indianapolis and was the 2015 Featured Artist for Dress for Success Indianapolis Stepping Out In Style, the premier fundraiser for the organization. She has also been part of art exhibits at Saks 5th Avenue for the past 2 years.
Faith is also the Event Photographer and on the Operations board for Indy Maven, a digital connector for women in central Indiana through captivating and rich storytelling, crazy fun events and an audience of highly engaged badass women. She is even on the board of Indianapolis Zoo.
Inspiration comes in all shapes and forms. Faith is a child of the 80s and uses this in her work and thrives when she is able to be creative. People tend to think of her work as whimsical and smile whenever they view it. Many of her passion projects show this. She loves to create works of art that promote female empowerment.
36 hopeforwomenmag.com SUMMER 2022
hopeforwomenmag.com SUMMER 2022 37
Photo by Michaela Dureson
For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans of no harm but for you to prosper, plans to give you hope and a
future.” – JEREMIAH 29:11
AUTUMN CARTER
Stage 4 Breast Cancer Survivor and Breast Cancer Advocate
AUTUMN, a native of Indianapolis, IN, was diagnosed with breast cancer in July 2019, which progressed from stage I to stage IV within a month of her surgery in September of that year.
She is now 33 and in remission. Along her healing journey, her life has changed in the most amazing way.
Prior to Autumn’s diagnosis, she worked in the community as a Finance Director for the Marion County Democratic Party. She has also worked at Ice Miller as a Legal Assistant, where she was able to learn more about her passion, purpose and political law.
Once Autumn found out she was 30 years old with stage IV breast cancer, she did not stop fighting. In the midst of it, Autumn grew closer to God and His plan and purpose for her life.
Autumn is now a strong advocate for educating others around breast cancer, breast self-examinations and what your next steps should be with your provider if you are younger than 40. She is also the mother of 9 year-old Ava, motivating her to share about self-care and tips for being a young mom with breast cancer or in remission.
Autumn has also been featured in Have You Herd’s Highlight for Breast Cancer Awareness Month published by Denise Herd and an art gallery for Breast Cancer Awareness amongst peers in 2019.
In 2020, she was a special guest at the Cancer Community Center for ‘Laughing Matters’, a program to raise money for cancer patients to receive free services from the organization such as therapy, financial assistance and programs.
In 2021, Autumn was featured in the Indiana Business Journal, highlighting Breast Cancer Awareness as well as with the American Cancer Society. She was also a keynote speaker for Mom’s Time Out, discussing her journey and tips for young mother’s on self-care. Autumn received the Glitz and Glamour Breast Cancer Foundation Award in 2021.
38 hopeforwomenmag.com SUMMER 2022
I‘ve learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget whatyou did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.” – MAYA ANGELOU
TENITA JOHNSON
Authorpreneur, Publisher and Book Bully
Photo by Tyrone Holmes
TENITA is a warrior of words with a fi erce passion for guiding authors to expand their brand by showing them how to earn multiple streams of income from just one book. As the author of more than 20 books, seven of which have been Amazon bestsellers, she is living proof that sharing your story leads to your destiny.
Familiar with rising from numerous fi res and coming out unscathed, Tenita has triumphed over suicidal thoughts, depression, low self-esteem, marital storms and blended family woes. She has also endured miscarriages and the still birth of twins the day after she married her husband. Each of these tragedies has added indelible layers to her resilience.
With more than 25 years in journalism, writing and editing, Tenita has a knack for creating narratives that are authentic and raw, yet endearingly relatable. She is a vessel with the ability to change lives and impact the world, thus she is a proud “book bully,” who relentlessly urges others to “write the book and get paid for the pain!” Transforming pain into purpose is a gift that she gives to everyone she encounters.
hopeforwomenmag.com SUMMER 2022 39
The Lord will fight for you; you need only be still.”
– EXODUS 14:14
AMBER BOYD MOORMAN
Employment Law Attorney representing employees of Thirty8, LLC
AMBER founded her own law firm, Amber K. Boyd Attorney at Law, in Indianapolis in 2013. She is a versatile professional with strong experience in managing complex litigation matters.
She specializes in employment law with a focus on discrimination cases. Her goal is to hold corporations accountable for inflicting any pain on their employees, providing representation for workplace discrimination, retaliation, severance agreements, sexual harassment, wage and hour issues as well as probate.
Amber believes there is no reason for anyone to handle these difficult situations on their own and people are deserving of an attorney who will listen to them, examine the facts thoroughly and provide the best possible solution.
In every situation, she works hard to ensure real connections with clients are made, treating them with respect and spending the time to make sure they completely understand the process they are going through, putting complex legal issues into easily understood terms.
Amber also loves spending time with her husband and daughter, eating delicious food and reading.
40 hopeforwomenmag.com SPRING 2022
