The Women Who Inspire Me

March is women’s history month in the United States. We celebrate International Women’s Day on March 8 globally to highlight women’s achievements. We honor Equal Pay Day on March 26 to raise awareness of the persistent and growing gender wage gap. We remember on March 31 for International Transgender Day of Visibility to celebrate our trans community.

While I love all these celebrations of women, we must recognize that the gender gaps are widening at an alarming rate. Women continue to lose basic human rights in the United States, such as the right to vote. Black women are losing jobs at three times the rate of other women in the workplace. A core reason for the widening gender pay gap is the caregiving penalty. A lack of affordable and accessible care from cradle to grave has forced too many women to leave the workforce entirely due to costs. It feels bleak.

That’s why I’m focusing on the list of women who are inspiring me right now. When the world feels overwhelming, I try to lean into community – past, present, and future. I’m sharing a list of women who give me hope and show me how to live into the future with courage during these difficult times. For this month in your workplace, I encourage you to identify the women that inspire you and let them know. A simple template is:

Dear (insert name),

I wanted you to know that I appreciate how you have taught me to (insert lesson). Because of this learning, I have (insert what you are doing differently as a result). Thank you for (investing in me, connecting with me, or being a part of my life). You matter.

Sincerely,

(your name)

I challenge you to send five of these notes in March. Gratitude helps me with grounding us and sharing that gratitude can multiply goodness in the world. You got this!

Abby Wambach is a retired U.S. women’s soccer player. I first started following Abby when she released her biography Forward in 2016. I admired her willingness to share the struggles of an aging athlete going into retirement. Now Abby has multiple podcasts and invests in several women’s sports teams. She is an advocate for women.

Alice Wong was a disability activist. Unfortunately, she died in November 2025 at age 51. I first encountered Alice in 2020 when exploring disability rights. Through her anthology books (Disability Visibility and Disability Intimacy), I learned about the expansive harm of ableism throughout our society and my own contribution to this harm. Alice taught me that humor exists everywhere and every person deserves to be heard.

Alicia Roth Weigel came to my attention while I was learning more about the intersex community in 2022. She starred in the documentary Every Body (which I highly recommend) and wrote the book Inverse Cowgirl (my 2023 book of the year). I had never heard anyone’s story about being intersex, and she continues to educate me.

Amanda Gorman is a poet that first caught my heart at the 2021 Presidential Inauguration. My brain doesn’t really understand poetry, so I’m always amazed when I’m touched by it. Her 2021 book Call Us What We Carry: Poems is a beautiful yet difficult look into the COVID-19 pandemic. I love learning from people younger than me. Read more.

Anna Julia Cooper was an author, activist, and educator who was born and buried here in North Carolina. She was born into slavery in 1858 for one of the families who started the University of North Carolina. Cooper used her experience as slave and her education to write about civil rights and women’s rights. At the age of 65, she became the fourth Black woman in American history to earn a PhD, and she is one of the founders of Black feminist history.

Audre Lorde was also an author, activist, and educator. Most often publishing her work in the mid-20th century, Lorde exposed the erasure of queer Black women in racial and gender discussions in the education system while also creating a new future of healing from her own cancer journey. She was a co-founder of Kitchen Table: Woman of Color Press. She’s one of my idols. Read my study of her.

Belkis – my Dominican 3rd mother. When I first moved to the NC Mountains, a mentor of mine said that I must see Belkis, a local small business owner. I thought that I was going to get a pedicure and manicure; however, I got so much more. Over the last 13 years, Belkis has taught me about being a Hispanic woman in business and mother to many children. I let her speak truth to me in ways that no one else can. I’m grateful to be part of her expanded family.

Bell hooks was a scholar, activist, and author based. Born as Gloria Jean Watkins, hooks was born and raised in Kentucky. She was an author, scholar, and activist, who focused on the intersections of race, gender, capitalism, and class. While hooks grew into a renowned scholar and professor at Ivy League schools, she decided to return to Appalachia and teach full-time at Berea College in Kentucky. She taught me about the true meaning of love.

Beyonce is the queen. Need I say more? Seriously, Beyonce reached into my soul with her album Lemonade. The themes of betrayal and reconciliation resonated in my bones. Now I enjoy watching her manage a business, be a family member, and create lifechanging events while growing with every moment. Please let this be the year that Act III comes out. We need her!

Billie Jean King is a tennis champion and long-time advocate for women’s equal pay. While she’s been around my whole life, I didn’t notice her work until I plunged into pay equity work. King travels the world speaking with countries and sports associations about opening up new pathways for women’s sports from new leagues to equal pay in tournaments to investing in groups supporting women’s sports. Truly, King is one of my queens.

Connie Chung is an American journalist who I remember from growing up. I didn’t lean into her work until I listened to her biography Connie: A Memoir in 2024. She broke the glass ceiling for women and specifically Asian women in journalism. While many know her as the wife of Maury Povich, Connie was the second woman to co-host a network newscast. Her work as a journalist speaks for itself.

Dolly Parton is a musician, songwriter, business woman, and overall American hero. I grew up listening to Dolly because my grandmother admired her “country roots and sense of humor.” As I grew older, I saw how Dolly started her Dollywood business while also helping her own community through the Imagination Library. She has donated millions to East Tennessee where she grew up. She’s my true idol. Learn about her in this podcast series.

Gloria Steinem is an author, activist, and speaker for women’s rights. Most often, she is known as the face of the 1970s women’s liberation movement in the US. While she is famous, people often overlook the crux of her work – getting women together in small groups to learn about each other and identify similar struggles. Even in her nineties, Steinem continues to bring women together now.

Ilona Maher is an American rugby player. She came into my view during the 2024 Summer Olympics when the US women won bronze. Since then, Maher has become a huge advocate for body positivity, specifically normalizing different body shapes as women age. You may have seen her compete on Dancing with the Stars, and she is now a social media influencer. The little Sally inside me loves every word she says about the beauty of women.

Women as labor activists are just a whole category for me. As a pro-employee consultant, I’m always looking for ways to bring employee voices forward. Most often I find my ideas from women in history, specifically Dorothy Lee Bolden and Addie Wyatt. For current perspectives, I follow the work of Ai-Jen Poo, Sarah Jaffe, and Michelle Chen. Plus, I read Dissent Magazine for international experiences.

Lady Gaga is a musician, songwriter, and performer. I became a Little Monster (name of her followers) back in 2009 when I heard an interview with her about sexuality. I was blown away by her thoughtfulness and insights in navigating the late teenage years and early twenties as a young woman. At the same time, she was also vocalizing support for the LGBTQIA+ community when too many were silent.

Liliʻuokalani was the first and only queen of the Hawaiian Kingdom until the US overthrew her government. I have just started my learning about Liliʻuokalani this year, and I’m amazed at the difficult decisions she faced every day of her rule and afterwards as a political prisoner in her homeland. Liliʻuokalani was also a composer and author. Unfortunately, she remains forgotten as we ignore the history of the Hawaiian Kingdom.

Mary Martin Sloop was a teacher, activist, and leader for healthcare and education in North Carolina.  When she and her husband rode through the mountains of Avery County, NC, she saw that young girls were being married off and denied an education. In 1913, Dr. Mary Martin Sloop opened The Crossnore School for girls seeking higher education. Sloop worked with the Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR) to fund the school, and she hired local weavers to teach weaving as a vocation to the students. Over 100 years later, her dream is still alive through Crossnore Communities for Children.

My mothering mentors include Cathryn Walling, Betty Weiland, Susan McAlister, Gretchen Dowdy, and Karen Bryan. These women invested in me when my children were little, and I felt a HUGE gap in my parenting. I read books and followed mom influencers who seemed so happy and content as mothers of little ones. I did not feel that way. These women (who I met in religious community) got in the gutters of parenting with me and guided me deeply when I couldn’t find my way.

Black queer feminists have transformed my thinking and my heart. People like adrienne marie brown, Prentis Hemphill, Toshi Reagon, and Alexis Pauline Gumbs have taught me about listening to my body, navigating organizing spaces, holding change in an emergent world, and the power of nature in teaching us about life. I especially love the history of Black queer feminists (like Pauli Murray) in North Carolina.

Rebecca Lowe is an English sportscaster living in the United States. She hosts the Premier League shows for NBC Sports, and most recently, she served as the daytime host for the 2026 Winter Olympics. I never thought that I could make it as a woman in sports broadcasting, therefore I didn’t pursue it. So I love other women doing it now! Lowe is smart, funny, and engaging. You can see her next on Fox for the 2026 World Cup.

Women in the arts have always baffled me. Arts have always been part of my life, but they became amplified when I served as the HR Manager at Penland School of Craft. I saw how women wove stories into their work that reflected our experiences. Artists that inspire me now include Shan Goshorn (who passed in 2018), Bisa Butler, and Tawny Chatmon. Each of these artists take the hurt of their people and mold their stories into compelling pieces.

Women as nonprofit Executive Directors are some of my favorite people. I’ve worked with a lot of them over the years, and they are often breaking glass ceilings without any fan fare. These women endure harassment and criticism that their male counterparts don’t have. Plus, they have led through a global pandemic, loss of government funding, and general chaos in the world. Shout out to Dana Pauley, Maegan Scott, Tara Libert, Sherry Stanley, Jeannette Butterworth, Ariel Child, Amanda North, Phoebe Stein, Bonnie Clark, Dionne Lacey, Angelica Diaz, Erica Palmer Smith, and so many others!

Women leading in philanthropy also deserve high praise. Like the female nonprofit Executive Directors, they are leading organizations when many peers and officials are blatantly attacking women for just existing. These women are directing more funds to the communities and people that need it most while also advocating for people with less influence. They are just rock stars. Shout out to Carmen Rojas and Zeeba Khalili at the Marguerite Casey Foundation, Jennifer Roller at the Wean Foundation, and Rebecca Holt at Charlie’s Heart Foundation, plus many more!

Women leading in Helene recovery completely blew my mind. From creating supply sites overnight to commanding federal officials on delivery drops to organizing help across states, women just showed up and showed out right after the storm hit our region and continue to do so. These women did not flinch when danger surrounded them; they just got to work. Here I am with one of my older friends who led a meal ministry for 12 months after the storm, serving 150 people daily.

My grandmother Stella has inspired me from day one. I am named after her best friend, and her charge over my life has been constant. I lived next door to my maternal grandparents while growing up. My grandmother would tell me stories of picking cotton in the fields and using an outhouse in her childhood. Some of her favorite sayings still guide me while she has been gone for 10 years. I wouldn’t be me without her.

·   “The bigger the house, the more you have to clean.”

·   “Don’t get too big for your britches. Everybody puts their pants on the same way each morning.”

·    “An apple a day keeps the doctor away.”

·    “Always put your face on before you leave the house, especially your lipstick. Otherwise, you look dead.”

For the record, it’s hard to produce a list without missing critical people in my life and maintain some level of privacy. I could give you 26 more women easily. I’m giving you these women’s stories so you can gain inspiration, strength, and hope.

Looking for more inspiration? Access the tools used in this post. Book a free call with me. Attend the live event.