Tenacity, discipline and diligence are only a few of the qualities of the 2021 Top 30 Influential Women of Houston honorees. These women have defied limitations and broken through glass ceilings in their respective fields while forever changing the landscape of business and community service in the city of Houston.
Friends, family and colleagues celebrated the accomplishments of these outstanding leaders during the 8th Annual Top 30 Influential Women of Houston Awards Gala. This year, the gala moved to the Royal Sonesta Galleria Hotel and KHOU-11’s Shern-Min Chow returned as the Mistress of Ceremonies. The honorary co-chairs were Dr. Heather Brown (2013 Honoree, Dr. Heather Brown Orthodontics), Johnte’ Archer, JD (2017 Honoree, J. Archer Insurance Group) and Paula McHam (2017 Honoree, Cigna).
Elected Officials and Special Guest Attendees included: Consul General of the State of Qatar – Rashid bin Abdullah Al Dehaimi, State Rep. Dr. Alma Allen, State Rep. Shawn Thierry, State Rep. Ron Reynolds, Commissioner Adrian Garcia, Houston City Council Member Edward Pollard, Houston City Council Member Robert Gallegos, Missouri City Council Member Jeffrey Boney, Honorable Judge Engelhart, Lone Star College Trustee Art Murillo, Fort Bend ISD Trustee Jim Rice, Harris County District Clerk Marilyn Burgess, Humble ISD Board President Martina Lemond Dixon, HCC Trustee Dr. Cynthia Lenton-Gary, HCC Trustee Ronda Skillern Jones, HCC Trustee Dr. Pretta VanDible Stallworth, HCC Chancellor Dr. Cesar Maldonado and Lone Star College Chancellor Dr. Steve Head.
Highlights from the awards gala included special remarks from Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner and a call-in from Washington, DC from Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee. The honorees were also serenaded with a vocal compilation from Houston artists, Grammy-nominated Mary Griffin and Broadway star DeQuina Moore. The artists wowed the 600 award gala attendees.
Sponsors of the Top 30 Influential Women of Houston Awards: UPS, Cigna, Comerica Bank, MCA Communications, CDM7, H-E-B, American Red Cross, Houston Airports, Industrial Welding Academy, TLC Engineering, The Alfred Firm, Cadence Bank, Logical Innovations, Inc., Scrubs to the Rescue, Houston Community College, Rice & Gardner Consultants, Inc., Anderson & Smith, P.C., Elect Dianne Curvey Campaign, LaneStaffing, Jerrold & Co., Kay Davis Associates, ConocoPhillips, Sunshine Personnel Services, AUTOARCH Architects, Dr. Heather Brown Orthodontics, Troy B. Smith Professional Services , West Houston Airport, University of Houston HUB, Branwar Wines, Trez Art and Wine Bar, Waste Management, JDDA Group of Companies, University of Houston Clear Lake, Change Happens, Kevin Murray Attorney At Law, Marshall Wealth Management, Simply Sweets, The Popcorn Bar, Boys and Girls Club of Brazoria County, Accurate Security, Bee Fit Foods, EbSax.com, and Subcontractors USA-Texas.
For additional information, please contact Kimberly Floyd (operations@top30women.com) at (713) 373- 5577.
About The Top 30 Women:
Presented by d-mars.com, The 8th Annual Top 30 Influential Women of Houston Awards celebrated the hard work and dedication of female trailblazers and icons in the professional, philanthropic and nonprofit arenas. For more information, visit www.top30women.com.
2021 Top 30 Influential Women of Houston Honorees:
The Honorable Sheila Jackson Lee – Community Achievement Award
Dr. Janice M. Beal – President, Beal Counseling Associates / Beal Behavioral Health
Honorees:
Saba Abashawl – Chief External Affairs Officer, Houston Airports
Talia Alfred – Director of Operations, The Alfred Firm
Dr. Patricia K. Allen – Trustee District IV, President – Houston ISD
Marna Graham Arvie, CPA – Franchise Owner, Mobility Plus Pearland
Dr. Vanessa T. Barrow – Founder & Owner, Sole Aesthetic
Dr. Ira K. Blake – President, University of Houston-Clear Lake
Cindy Clifford – Founder & Owner, The Clifford Group
Glenda Demas, MA, LPC, ACTP – Lead Practitioner and Owner, Pearls of Change Wellness, LLC.
Shelly Lesikar deZevallos, Ed.D. – President, West Houston Airport
Raynese Edwards – CEO/Chief Strategy Consultant, OutsideIn Consulting
Melinda Faust – Managing Director, Detring Energy Advisors
Dr. Charlene Flash – President and CEO, Avenue 360 Health & Wellness
Dr. Reagan Flowers – Houston Community College, Board of Trustees
Lauren Haller Fontaine – Senior Director & Legal Counsel – Operations, Pattern Energy
Eureka Gilkey – Executive Director, Project Row Houses
Cynthia Ginyard – Chairwoman, Fort Bend County Democratic Party
Dr. Cherry Ross Gooden – Retired, Texas Southern University
Veronica Chapa Gorczynski – President, East End District
DeAnna Green – CEO and Founder, The Nydan Group, LLC.
Teneshia Hudspeth – County Clerk, Office of Teneshia Hudspeth, Harris County Clerk
Jenifer Jarriel – President and CEO, DePelchin Children’s Center
Tennille Johnson – Co-Founder, Co-Owner & CEO, Scrubs to the Rescue
Jamie Jordan – Family Law Attorney and Owner Community Service Advocate, Jamie Jordan, PLLC
Vivian R. King – First Assistant/Chief of Staff, Harris County DA’s office
Linda Leto Head – Senior Associate Vice Chancellor, Lone Star College
Cassie A. Levy – CEO, Emmit Moss Trust
Melanie Miles, Esq. – Board Certified Family Law Attorney and Real Estate Professional, The Law Office of Melanie Miles, P.C.
Amber Mostyn – Co-Founder, Mostyn Law
Denise Navarro – President and CEO, Logical Innovations, Inc.
Andrea Nguyen – Director of Community Relations, Executive Director of Education Foundation, Pasadena ISD
Tamla Oates-Forney – Senior Vice President, Chief People Officer, Waste Management
Rani Puranik – Co-Owner and Global CFO, Worldwide Oilfield Machine
Linda M. Rhodes – Executive Director, Women’s Fund Health Education & Resiliency
Karen Carter Richards – Forward Times Publishing Company, Inc.
Dr. Shirley Rose-Gilliam – Secretary, Fort Bend ISD, Board of Trustees
Erica Davis Rouse – Trustee, San Jacinto College District Board, Co-Founder of ReachOne713
Tasha Royal – Founder, The Royal Agency
Dr. Reem Sabouni – REI Physician, Director of Infertility and Oocyte Cryopreservation, Houston Fertility Institute
Dr. Roberta Grace Scott – Director Social Emotional Learning &Student Discipline, HISD
Tracy T. Smith – CEO, Taylor Smith Consulting, LLC
Lenora Sorola-Pohlman – Broker Consultant, Navarro Insurance Group
Helen Stagg – Chief Executive Officer, Change Happens
Tiffany D. Thomas – Councilwoman, District F, Houston City Council
Molly Waits – Chief Marketing, Air Service Development and Communications Officer, Houston Airports
Janice Weaver – Director of Community Relations, City of Houston – Mayor’s Office