Dee says life is unpredictable, and that was no more true than in February 2020 when her husband, Todd, was diagnosed with cancer. He died six months later. Countless doctors’ appointments and long hospital stays marked those months, with Dee becoming a full-time caretaker. She says it was an honor to have the role for her husband – and to have the business community rally alongside her in that fight. Dee recently left her role at Guaranty Bank and took a leap into the nonprofit world, a dream she’s long held. This month she was named chief of staff at Burrell Behavioral Health. It’s a cause close to her heart, as therapy has been a lifeline on her own grieving journey.

Francine wears many hats. She’s the outgoing director of Prosper Springfield, the executive director of the Missouri College Access Network and the co-owner of Queen City Soul Kitchen. Francine says her love of cooking sparked the concept, along with the opportunity to bring the community together through soul food. Francine says in recent years she’s gone through an identity crisis of sorts, analyzing her childhood and how the themes of race and class impacted her. She says that it wasn’t until she moved to Springfield that she discovered biases within herself, and how coming to terms with those and understanding her identity has shifted her perspective.

Christie Snelson is an artist and the gallery director at Obelisk Home. She says her work evolves as she does. At one point, it was as a self-employed artist taking commissions for people and pet portraits. She’s since taken on landscapes and paintings depicting scenes of life on social media, but her most recent work is abstract art. She completed a show in May with over 70 pieces. We’ll talk about how painting is her therapy and what it feels like to put herself on display through her work.

Debbie Shantz Hart has had a trailblazing career. The first female lawyer at Husch Blackwell, and attorney to iconic developer John Q. Hammons. She was the fourth woman to chair the Springfield Area Chamber of Commerce board, and the first woman outside of the Turner family to serve on the Great Southern Bank Board of Directors. Her career took an unexpected shift after her work with John Q. ended. She got into affordable housing development. But with a long history of nonprofit volunteer leadership building up communities, it’s no wonder the job stuck.

Angie Mullings is the broker/owner of Century 21 Integrity Group. Real estate wasn’t Angie’s first choice for a profession, but it’s one she made a career out of. She bought the business just before the Great Recession hit and took the legs out from the industry. The years that followed tested her professionally and personally, but the lessons learned stuck and sharpened her skills. Today, Angie is focused on giving back to her profession, and creating paths of success for new realtors. 

Krista Peryer is the president and co-founder of The Geek Foundation, a revamped idea on school that’s accelerating graduates into the technology workforce in just 6 months. Krista was inspired to start the nonprofit, which provides its education at no cost, after running into barriers to get into the industry herself. She was a single mom who’d struggled with poverty and the thought of years in college seemed out of reach. Today she’s partnered with companies like O’Reilly Automotive, Jack Henry and Pitt Technology Group, and she has a vision for taking The Geek Foundation nationwide.

Joselyn Baldner is the new president and CEO of Central Bank of the Ozarks. Joselyn started her career in banking as a teller, but earned her first manager role at just 22 years old. Joselyn says leadership is a trait she and others identified in herself early on. When she was tapped as a possibility to take on leading local bank operations, she said she took time to discover if it was what she really wanted and leaned into what it would look like for her to lead as her authentic self. 

Heather Hardinger is one of the newest members of Springfield City Council after winning 41% of votes for General Seat A during the April 2021 election. Heather has devoted her career to workforce and economic development, while also pursuing passion projects by volunteering with equity commissions and national hunger relief initiatives. As a child growing up in Alaska, there were times when her family didn’t have stable housing and her mom applied for public assistance. Heather says those experiences give her the understanding and empathy to be a leader for all people in the community.

Saehee Duran is the lead pastor of Life360 Intercultural, a church on a mission to celebrate cultural diversity of its members by making everyone feel at home. Saehee didn’t grow up religious, but she says an introduction to Christianity by an former stepfather led to her life’s calling. As a young female minister, she’s says she’s intentional about creating space and opportunity for others who feel a similar pull to ministry. We’ll also talk about her work to reach the community outside of the walls of the church as a police chaplain.

Katie Towns is acting director of the Springfield-Greene County Health Department. As part of the leadership team, she’s spent the past year educating the community on staying healthy and safe amid the COVID-19 pandemic. The path to this role is one she didn’t expect, but now she says it’s her calling. As she vies for the director position, Katie says she’s learning to embrace her own style of leadership while also raising two young kids as a single parent. She says taking care of herself is one way she’s made it through the past year.