“Fill your life with women that empower you, that help you believe in your magic and aid them to believe in their own exceptional power and their incredible magic too. Women that believe in each other can survive anything.”— Nikita Gill
The Inspired Women Luncheon Professional Development showed those that attended the beauty of having Grit & Grace. Each panelist was able to share their Grit & Grace story as well as answer a few questions by the audience. I am not sure there was a single person that walked out of that room unphased by at least one of the three women’s stories.
Our Moderator, Cindy Salter, and three panelists, Tarrant County Commissioner Devan Allen, Dr. Kimberly Cantu, and Shelli Walker, were absolutely phenomenal. They bared their soul on that stage in front of around 70 attendees.
If you didn’t know, IWL does have a Professional Development every year that starts and ends before the main event. It is an opportunity to be in a smaller group and hear even more stories about that year’s theme. I think this year was definitely one of the themes that led to more powerful stories. We got to hear a lot about these women and their trials and tribulations. It was almost like a behind-the-scenes look at some prominent Community Leaders and what they had to go through while also reaching their goals.
After a wonderful intro from Cindy Salter, each woman started to share her story.
Tarrant County Precinct 2 Commissioner Devan Allen was the first to speak. We got a little insight into who she was and her past through her bio.
Commissioner Devan Allen is a devoted public servant invested in the fight for our community in the areas of transportation, affordable housing, criminal justice, economic development and other critical issues. As a former Emergency Medical Technician (EMT) she is dedicated to expanding access to quality, affordable health care.
Devan has spent nearly her entire adult life in public service and is known for her passion, her diplomacy and keen ability to get to the root of complex problems to resolve them. She has served on a number of boards, commissions, and with a host of non-profit organizations, including: DRC Community Solutions to End Homelessness, Chair of the Arlington Community Relations Commission, inspirED Advisory Committee, New Leaders Council Advisory Board, Women Inspiring Philanthropy, and is a founding member of BRIDGE Young Professionals. In 2015, Fort Worth CEO Magazine named her one of “20 Women to Watch in Business.” Prior to launching her own bid for County Commissioner, she worked as the District Director in both the Texas Senate and House, served as Campaign Manager for State Representative Chris Turner, Chair of the House Democratic Caucus, and also served as a Council Aide to a Fort Worth Mayor Pro Tem.
She is Founder and Principal of Allen Realty Advisors, a proud UT Arlington Maverick (2010), and resides in the City of Arlington.
Growing up as the youngest child of incarcerated parents and experiencing homelessness at a young age, Devan never conceived that her path would lead to becoming an entrepreneur or an advocate for others. At the heart of her success is her core belief that success is attainable if one is willing to work diligently to achieve it.
Committed to celebrating the uniquely diverse community that is Precinct 2, Devan believes that what matters most, regardless of the issue, is treating people well and valuing their priorities. That is why Devan chooses to lead in a balanced and unifying way in doing her best to serve the greatest number of people in a way that is practical, equitable and sustainable. It is her honor to serve as your County Commissioner.
Her bio tells a lot of her story, yet until you hear Devan Allen tell her story, you will not believe how much strength this woman has. Commissioner Allen grew up in a rough situation as she had to deal with Domestic Violence in her own home from a very young age. After living in this toxic situation from birth, she then had to live a few years without her mother. Her mother was sentenced to ten years in prison for minor crimes.
“I know what it felt like to have my mother absent. I remember the paintings she would send me and I remember the day she came home.” said Allen. This experience fueled her need to help people.
Allen ended up starting her career in health care. She thought this would be the field that would feed her passion for helping people. She realized that health care was not where she was meant to be, thus she began her career in local and state politics.
Devan Allen is now the Tarrant County Precinct 2 Commissioner. Her entire existence on this court is historic. She is the only woman currently on the court and is the youngest member ever. Allen is also only the third woman and African American ever to hold this position.
After the Commissioner shared her incredible story, Dr. Kim Cantu was introduced.
Dr. Kimberley Cantu is in her 29th year of service in public school education with 23 years of service to MISD. She began her career as a teacher and coach at Llano High School in 1992. The following year, she accepted a teaching and coaching position at Mansfield High School where she spent five years in the classroom before becoming an assistant principal and then the academic associate principal of Mansfield High School. In a neighboring district, Dr. Cantu later served as a principal, a director in curriculum and instruction and executive director of human resources. She returned to Mansfield in 2012 as a director in human resources and held various leadership roles in human resources before being appointed as the district’s deputy superintendent.
After being named the lone finalist in the Mansfield ISD superintendent search, Dr. Cantu was officially named the superintendent of Mansfield ISD on December 17, 2019 becoming the second female superintendent in the district’s history. Dr. Cantu is passionate about preparing students to be college, career, military and life ready through her work with Vision 2030 and the national Redefining Ready cohort. Furthermore, her work on preparing all students to be socially and emotionally astute and cared for, both in and outside of school, not only supports her belief of having students be “life ready” but shows her desire to put the best interests of our students and families first.
After earning her Bachelor of Arts and Master of Arts degrees in English from Tarleton State University, Dr. Cantu obtained her Mid-Management Administrator certificate from Texas Woman’s University and received her Doctorate in Educational Leadership from Texas A&M-Commerce. She holds State Board for Educator Certification for secondary English, mid-management and superintendent. Dr. Cantu believes in giving back to the community and is an active member of the Mansfield Rotary Club and participates in Meals on Wheels, Habitat for Humanity and other service projects.
Kim Cantu shared with attendees that she grew up in Fort Worth where she said she was on the wrong side of the tracks. The expectations for success were very low and she was not given the chances to set herself up for the future. Cantu was inspired by her basketball coach and her German teacher. They both showed her that they saw her and they wanted her to succeed. Cantu’s true role model though was her grandmother or as she called her, Nanny. Cantu said, “When I turned 13, my Nanny told me that I had to get a job. I have been working ever since.”
After being the first college grad in her family, Cantu began her 29 year (and counting) career in the school system. For the first 5 years, she was a teacher and coach. She continued to grow into higher positions within the district and in 2019, Cantu became the second woman to ever be the MISD Superintendent.
Her success during hard times within the district has proven her strength and what she has to offer the district. A member of the audience even stood up to thank Dr. Cantu on her handling of security after the Timberview shooting. “Thank you, I watched how you secured our children and showed Grit when things got tough,” said Missy Johnson.
Lastly, we had Shelli Walker speak about her Grit & Grace story.
Shelli Walker is a Partner at PeopleResults, an organizational change consulting firm. Shelli has expertise in change leadership, talent development and team effectiveness. She and her team advise clients on creating positive change in their leaders and organizations.
Walker is one of the original women to kick-off Women’s Alliance and Shelli led the creation of the inaugural Professional Development Workshop a few years later, we called it “Business in a Box” – our goal is the same as today – women learning from & inspiring each other with our stories and experiences.
As a certified executive coach & facilitator, Shelli has led numerous workshops focused on leadership & team effectiveness.
Shelli grew up in Arlington, is a graduate of UT Arlington where she earned her BBA in Marketing. She received her Executive Coaching certification from Texas Christian University
Prior to joining PeopleResults, she was a Senior Consultant in the Change Management Practice at Accenture for 8 years. She fulfilled various leadership roles related to large-scale change projects brought on by mergers & acquisitions, new technology implementations and organizational change.
During the Professional Development, Shelli spoke on her experience of being betrayed by a trusted individual. She was laid off from her position as a marketing & sales person at an Austin company. She said, “Just because something is stripped from you, doesn’t mean you can’t pull up your boot straps.”
This setback in Shelli’s career helped her realize her true passion of leadership coaching.
Some memorable quotes from the Professional Development
“Policy matters, and who are in those positions matter.” – Devan Allen’s reply to how she chose to get into politics after her mother was unfairly sentenced.
“Stand tall, take up space and find your voice.” – Shelli Walker when asked if she could give one piece of advice.
“I’m stubborn.” – Devan Allen when asked if she had ever given up hope and how she pushed through.
“I had to go back to my roots, who was there before, during and after.” – Shelli Walker when asked if she had ever given up hope and how she pushed through.
“Grace is what helps you fuel your grit. My nanny would not let me backslide. Sometimes, someone has to show you what’s inside of you.” – Dr. Kim Cantu when asked is she had ever given up hope and how she pushed through.
“Remember your why.” – Dr. Kim Cantu while explaining her story of Grit & Grace.