“Because we know that an investment in a woman is an investment in her family and in her community.”

Karen Hughes White
President and CEO
Texas Women’s Foundation
…speaking at the organization’s Leadership Forum and Awards Celebration earlier this month.

Karen Hughes White wasn’t speaking in theory when she recently addressed the crowd at the Omni Dallas Hotel. She was drawing on decades of proven impact—and a piece of advice from Texas Women’s Foundation founder Harryette Erhardt that goes back to Ann Richards‘ 1990 gubernatorial campaign.

“Just do what Ann Richards did,” Erhardt once told White when asked for fundraising advice. “She asked us to look at our shoes, our dresses, our handbags, and our jewelry and to add it all up and write a check in that amount.”

The nonprofit’s May 8 event, co-chaired by Oncor’s Debbie Dennis and Alvarez & Marsal’s Brooke Hopkins, honored five Maura Women Helping Women Award recipients and two Young Leader Award winners—women who have dedicated their careers to lifting others.

From left, 2025 honorees Dr. Carine Feyten, Haleigh Jones, Dr. Rupa DeSilva, Anne Chow, Jennifer Bartkowski, and Cristal Retana Lule with Carrie Freeman Parsons, Brenda Jackson, Karen Hughes White, and Debbie Dennis at the 2025 Texas Women’s Foundation Leadership Forum & Awards Celebration. [Kim Leeson and Guy Rogers/TXWF]

This year’s honorees included powerhouse leaders like former Dallas Mavericks CEO Cynt Marshall, Texas Woman’s University Chancellor Carine M. Feyten, and Girl Scouts of Northeast Texas CEO Jennifer Bartkowski, along with rising stars like attorney Haleigh Jones and Children’s Health’s Cristal Retana Lule.

Just one of the ways the foundation is investing in the next generation: the day began with programming designed to strengthen teen girls’ leadership, communication, and well-being—the kind of early impact White says can create a ripple effect.

“We know that when a woman rises, she lifts everyone and everything around her,” she said. “We know an investment in women creates a ripple effect.”

For more of who said what about all things North Texas, check out Every Last Word.

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