Women Veterans Day is designed to educate, validate, and commemorate women who have served or are serving in the military, with a focus on their unique history and experiences. Women Veterans Day is not a substitute for Veterans Day—it is an opportunity to unite military women and our brothers-in-arms on this day of awareness and celebration.
Women Veterans have served our country with honor, and now it’s time for us to serve and celebrate them! This celebrations is open to women veterans, our brothers in arms and community of patriots.
Come, Connect, Collaborate & Celebrate Women Veterans!
Virtual Celebration Agenda
10:00AM - 10:30AM - Main Zoom Platform & Facebook Live – Opening Ceremony
OPENING REMARKS: VR SMALL, FOUNDER/CEO Veteran Women's Enterprise Ctr.
WELCOME: City of Dallas - Veteran Employee Resource Group (VERG)
Dr. Katina Robertson, President
Rafeal Arredondo, 1st Vice President
Brenda Sparks-Washington, Secretary
POSTING OF COLORS: Naval Air Station Joint Reserve Base Fort Worth
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS:
State Representative Victoria Neave
State Representative Toni Rose
EVENT OVERVIEW & TRANSITION TO BREAKOUT ROOMS
10:30AM – 11:45AM - BREAK OUT - ZOOM ROOMS
Zoom Room 1. - Women Veteran Owned Business Pitch Competition
SPECIAL GUEST:
Larry Stubblefield, SBA Associate Administrator, Office of Veterans Business Development:
Mr. Larry Stubblefield is the Associate Administrator for the Office of Veterans Business Development (OVBD) at the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA). In this role, Mr. Stubblefield oversees the OVBD team in formulating, implementing, administering, and promoting policies and programs that equip veterans, service members (active duty, National Guard, Reserve), and military spouse-owned small businesses with counseling and education, access to capital, and contracting opportunities.
Mr. Stubblefield joined the SBA in 2016, serving as the Assistant Administrator for the Office of Diversity, Inclusion and Civil Rights, and most recently as the Acting Associate Administrator for OVBD. Prior to the SBA, he held numerous leadership positions with the US Army, including Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Army for Diversity and Leadership and Functional Chief Representative for the Army’s Equal Employment Opportunity Career Program.
Mr. Stubblefield has first-hand military experience, having served 30 years as an enlisted soldier and active duty officer in the US Army. In 2005, he retired from the military as a Colonel and was appointed to the Senior Executive Service. Mr. Stubblefield is the recipient of the Distinguished Presidential Rank Award, holds an MBA from the University of Tennessee and a BS in Business Management from Embry Riddle Aeronautical University.
OUR DISTINGUISH PITCH JUDGES:
Starr Corbin, Commissioner, Governor’s Commission for Women
Starr Corbin of Georgetown, Texas, is a Commissioner on the Governor’s Commission for Women, which is a division of the Office of the Governor. The Commission for Women serves as a resource and champion for women throughout the State of Texas. Corbin is the founder and Managing Partner of Corbin Solutions Group, a technology operations and vendor management advisory firm. She began her career in the U.S. Army Signal Corps and is a former technology executive at iHeartMedia. An ardent advocate of servant leadership and bringing more diversity into tech, Starr also writes about the tech industry and how to expand the field for women. She is an alumna of Texas Christian University and The University of Texas at Austin.
Ana I. Hernandez , Senior Vice President & Senior Loan Officer, PlainsCapital Bank
Ana I. Hernandez is Senior Vice President and Senior Loan Officer for PlainsCapital Bank. She is a leader in her field, with over 24 years’ experience in Commercial Lending. She is experienced in providing innovative financial solutions to businesses on gaining access to capital to help them achieve their businesses goals.
She received her B.A. from the University of Texas at El Paso and holds several banking / financial credit certificates. She is a strong advocate for education and the importance of empowering women with financial literacy. She is an active mentor to young women attending Dallas-area middle and high schools, and to young Latina professional women. She has served and led numerous boards and committees over the years. She currently serves in several committees with CREW Dallas and chairs the Irving Hispanic Chamber’s Women’s committee called WE3. She has been recognized with numerous awards throughout the years, most recently she was recognized by the Texas Women’s Foundation with the Leadership Women Helping Women Award, by the Dallas Business Journal with the Minority Business Leader’s Award and Hispanic Women’s Network of Texas–State Chairman’s Award.
Michelle "G-I" Gardner-Ince, Director of Women Veteran-Owned Small Business Initiative (WVOSBI), Office of Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization (OSDBU), Department of Veteran Affairs
Michelle "G-I" Gardner-Ince, Director of Women Veteran-Owned Small Business Initiative (WVOSBI), leads the Department's efforts to develop programs that connect and enable underrepresented target groups with VA, the federal and commercial marketplaces to increase educational, employment and economic opportunities. She is the architect of the Department of VA's inaugural Women Veteran-Owned Small Business (WVOSB) Initiative. The program brings together like-minded female veteran and non-veteran entrepreneurs to position and enable their success and to remove obstacles that often stand in the way. The effort is known in the veteran and small business community as" VetBizLady or VetBizLadies."
Ms. Gardner-Ince has successfully led several Directorates within OSDBU. As the Director of National Veterans Small Business Engagement (NVSBE), Ms. Gardner-Ince led the NVSBE is the Department's premier event for Veteran-Owned Small Businesses (VOSBs) to connect with Procurement Decision Makers and contracting experts from the federal and commercial marketplaces. She simultaneously served as Operations Director, where she led the management and delivery of services and products to OSDBU directorates, enabling 242 federal and contract staff to help veteran businesses. She oversaw the human capital, financial, security, administrative, logistical, information technology, and support functions that are critical to its mission. Focusing always on "people, process, and technology," her vision brings significant value to the federal government's largest Office of Small Disadvantaged Business Utilization (OSDBU).
Before being the Director of Operations, she was the Director of the Center for Verification and Evaluation, formerly known as The Center for Veteran Enterprise (CVE), within the OSDBU at the Department of Veteran Affairs (VA) from December 2011 to November 2015. As Principal of the only Federal Government program that audits and verifies ownership and control of Veteran-owned businesses for the Department of Veteran Affairs and other federal agency contract set-asides, CVE enabled $3.8B in contract set-asides making the Department of Veterans Affairs the leading supporter of Veteran small businesses. Under her leadership, CVE was certified as one of three ISO- 9000-1 registered organizations in the entire Department of VA. Further, she successfully led the historic transformation of the new CVE to achieve historical precedence: 100% of applications processed within the Veterans First law timelines for the "first time" in the history of the Veterans' First Program. The CVE program is known within the supplier diversity and veteran small business communities as VetBiz.gov and is recognized as the "Gold Standard" for Veteran Small Business certifications.
Ms. Gardner-Ince is a highly decorated Air Force Veteran and a retired Colonel, having served 27 years supporting Veterans, military troops, and their families. Before the creation of her own small business, G-I Strategic Solutions LLC., an advisory and consulting firm, she held numerous executive-level positions. Her experience spans customer-centric business operations, training, consulting, strategic collaboration, and directing award-winning complex global operations. One of her most significant leadership roles was as the Commander (Senior Vice President) of the Army and Air Force Exchange Service (AAFES), Pacific Region where she led a $1.8 billion-dollar retail, food, and services business, with full profit-loss responsibility, that employed 7000+ associates who provided goods and services to over 350,000 military, U.S. government civilian and State Department patrons and their families. While in command, her leadership led to the top highest grossing military exchanges in the world two years in a row. AAFES is the U.S. military's largest retail operation.
Ms. Gardner-Ince's mission is to be "About the business of America's Veterans – serving those who continue to serve America." Ms. Gardner-Ince has a unique perspective in that she has never been without a military ID Card. She is not only a veteran, a military spouse, but she grew up in an Army family and is originally from Albany, Georgia. She was commissioned by her father and Vietnam Veteran, Colonel Arthur Gardner. She holds a bachelor's degree from Tuskegee University, Tuskegee, Alabama, and a master's degree from Troy State University, Troy, Alabama. She is a Dale Carnegie and John Maxwell leadership coach/trainer. She resides in the Metro Washington DC area and is married with two children.
Zoom Room 2. - Women Veteran Resource Fair & Panel Discussion
Resource/Service Organizations:
Hosted by Catherine Smith, Veterans Employer Liaison, North Texas, Texas Veterans Commission
Keri Wilcox, CLC, Inc, Veterans Counselor,Founder, Valor Ranch.
Dianne Gibson, Dallas City Hall, Community Courts Division Section Head
Diane Gibson, Section Head, Community Courts Division, City Attorney’s Office, City of Dallas: Dianne is currently employed with the City of Dallas in the City Attorney’s Office as the Community Courts Division Section Head, overseeing five Community Courts within the City of Dallas. Ms. Gibson has over 25 years of experience in working with the community to provide the general public with social services and housing. She is an experienced public relations and media professional who have developed programs throughout the community.
Ms. Gibson has been the recipient of numerous awards recognizing her volunteerism and community services, including the Women Who Make a Difference Award, National Council of Negro Women, Incorporated Volunteerism Award, National Sorority of Phi Delta Kappa, Incorporated Commission on Civil Rights, Education and Legislative Affair Award, the Greater Dallas Urban League 2011 Whitney M. Young Jr. Humanitarian Award, the 2015 recipient of the C.B. Bunkley Community Service Award and most recently she was presented with the 2016 Dream Forward Award at the 35th Annual Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Awards Banquet, the 2016 recipient of The Blake Anderson Public Service Award and the 2018 F. Banks Community Award Recipient at the Home Grown Honors Awards Ceremony. Dianne Gibson has served on several Boards and Commissions such as the South Dallas Fair Park Trust Fund, Martin Luther King Jr. Recreation Center Advisory Board, St. Philip’s School & Community Center and the Dallas Branch of the NAACP.
Nikki Taylor, Health Care Advocacy Program, Texas Veterans Commission, Dallas TX VA Hospital
Jay Gasmen, CBA, Texas Veterans Commission, Office Supervisor, Dallas VA Medical Center
Workforce Commission Panel:
Hosted by Cynthia Lend, Women Veterans Coordinator West Texas, Texas Veterans Commission
Larry D. King, Veterans Resource Coordinator, Texas Workforce Commission, Texas Veterans Leadership Program
Richard Perez, Research Manager at Workforce Solutions Greater Dallas
Bonnie Arrington, Program Manager, Workforce Solutions for North Central Texas
Steven Bridges, Account Executive, Workforce Solutions for Greater Dallas
Employer Panel:
Hosted by Sharron Stewart, Women Veterans Coordinator, Central and South Texas, Texas Veterans Commission
Dr. Katina Robertson, City of Dallas – VERG (Veteran Employee Resource Group), Communications Manager, US Navy Veteran
Grace A. Moody, Executive Assistant to Katherine Cary, Chief of Staff Veterans Liaison (LNC (SW/AW) (Ret., USN), Office of the Attorney General
Grace Moody, Office of the Attorney General, Executive Assistant to the Ryan Bangert, Deputy First Assistant Attorney General, Executive Assistant to Katherine Cary, Chief of Staff Veterans Liaison (LNC SW/AW) (USN,Tet.) Grace Moody is the Executive Assistant for the Chief of Staff for the Office of the Attorney General of Texas, Deputy Attorney General for Criminal Prosecutions and the Deputy Attorney General for Legal Counsel/General Counsel. She also serves as the Veterans Liaison, assisting approximately 300 Veterans employed by the Office of the Attorney General of Texas. She has held her current position since April 2016.Grace is a retired Legalman Chief Petty Officer (E-7), having served 20 years active duty in the U.S. Navy within the JAGC community. She served on active duty from February 1985 – May 2015. Grace’s first active duty station was Guantanamo Cuba. She spent 9 years on the east coast at various commands, deployed on a 6-month Mediterranean Cruise with the USS Frank Cable (AS-40) and served as Senior Court Report for the Tailhook Court Martials at the Naval Legal Service Office, Norfolk, Virginia. Grace then transferred to the west coast aboard the USS McKee (AS-41) as the Leading Petty Officer and Chief Petty Officer of the Legal Office, served as the Legal Chief at Naval Special Warfare Center (BUD/s) and served her twilight tour as the Clerk of Court for the Navy Marine Trial Judiciary for the west coast. After retiring from the Navy in 2005, Grace used her Post 9/11 Education Benefits to pursue her degree in Human Services (Counseling and Addiction) to work with Wounded Warriors and Veterans.Volunteered as a Peer Mentor since 2015 with Military Veterans Peer Network (Capital Area) assisting Texas Veterans transitioning
Lakeitria Luter, Sr. Manager of Strategic Sourcing, Service King Collision Repair Centers
Javier Valencia, Talent Acquisition Manager – North Texas, Service King
Nikki Howe, Liberty Mutual Insurance, Recruiting Manager, Experienced Talent Acquisition
Nikki Howe is a Recruiting Manager for Liberty Mutual Insurance and has been working in Talent Acquisition for over 20 years. Nikki joined Liberty Mutual in 2012 and prior to Liberty worked in Talent Acquisition in multiple industries such as Human Resources Outsourcing, Finance and Staffing. Nikki has lead multiple Military and Veteran recruiting initiatives within Liberty Mutual and has served as Lead within the Career Committee for their Veteran ERG, Valor@Liberty. Nikki’s passion for helping our Veterans stems from her family’s long Military lineage, as well as being a Combat Veteran Spouse. Her husband served in the 82nd and deployed to Iraq in 2003. She resides in the DFW area with her husband and three children.
Eric Amstutz, Liberty Mutual Insurance, MBA Director, Project Management, Global Retail Markets, US Property Claims, US Army Veteran, Plano Valor@Liberty Co-Chair
Eric Amstutz has had a long dual career that continues to this day. He joined the Army National Guard in 2001 just days before 9/11 and continues to serve today as a Commander for an Airborne Unit out of Fort Worth TX. Eric deployed in support of Iraqi Freedom in 2006 and has done several state side missions. Today while not deployed, 75% of his Amy unit is deployed in support of COVID throughout Texas. Eric joined Liberty Mutual in 2011 after obtaining his MBA from Kaplan University. His first position was a front line Catastrophe adjuster, traveling the country and serving our customers during times of devastation. 6 roles and 8 years later, he is now Director of Capacity Management for Liberty Mutual Personal Lines Property. He currently manages the short and long term capacity strategy for a department of 1800+ employees ensuring that they have the right staff, in the right markets, at an optimal cost. In addition to his day job, Eric has served as the Co-Chair for the employee resource group, Valor, in the Plano campus for 3 years. His work there includes working with Veteran organizations, enhancing current service member benefits, and bringing general awareness to Liberty’s current & Veteran population.
11:15AM - 11:45AM - Main Zoom Platform & Facebook Live – WVD Recognitions
11:45AM - 12:30PM - BREAK OUT ZOOM ROOMS
Zoom Room 1. - Women Veteran Owned Business Pitch Competition
Zoom Room 2. - Women Veteran Resource Fair & Panel Discussion
12:30PM - 1:00PM - MAIN ZOOM ROOM & FACEBOOK LIVE – Closing Ceremony
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS: City of Dallas - Veteran Employee Resource Group (VERG)
Vanessa Gray, VERG HR Advisor
Michelle Whalen, Army Veteran, Lt. Dallas Fire & Rescue
Dr. Katina Robertson, President
RECOGNITION OF WVD 2020 - PITCH JUDGES:
Adam Davies, City Leader, Bunker Labs DFW
ANNOUNCEMENT OF WVD 2020 - PITCH COMPETITION WINNERS:
Larry Stubblefield, Associate Administrator, SBA Office of Veterans Business Development
AWARD SPONSOR REPRESENTATIVE:
Michael Bailey, SVP & Chief Compliance Officer, American First National Bank
Commissioner, Star Corbin - Acknowledgement for the Governor's Office
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT OF RESOURCES FAIR PANELIST:
Catherine Smith, Women Veterans Program, North Texas
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT OF THE WVD PLANNING COMMITTEE MEMBERS
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT OF TEXAS' WOMEN VETERANS
All sponsorship contribution checks should be made out to:
Veteran Women’s Enterprise Center
FOR: WOMEN VETERANS DAY 2020
We thank you in advance for your support of Women Veterans Day 2020.