From the Publisher | Summer 2021
To single out only a few successful Central Texas women in business today is nearly impossible because there are so many from which to choose. That number grows each year along with appreciation of the role women play in business and leadership. I personally have watched this change and the numbers grow since 1987 when I became editor and publisher of the Temple Daily Telegram and the Killeen Daily Herald, and president of Frank Mayborn Enterprises, with many of those years as president and owner of KCEN-TV.
Having so many great business women in our area fortunately makes the publication possibilities for this annual theme limitless, and in our Summer 2021 issue we found new ones as well as some familiar ones to share with you.
Meet Karen Clos, director of communications at Texas A&M–Central Texas, whose inspiring story (here) exemplifies the meaning of the kindness of strangers and paying good deeds forward to help others in achieving their education and career dreams.
Find the story of Royce Crawford and her sister-in-law, Valerie Crawford, of Cherished Memories Pet Cremation Services LLC, who work together to keep the memory of precious pets alive for families in the form of custom-made beads worn on a charm bracelet or necklace here.
Denise Ayers, the director of Career and Technical Education at Temple High School, matches learning skills with business needs, helping students discover career options at a state-of-the-art center here.
Tonya Autry, vice president of Colonial Property Management in Harker Heights and a Stage IV breast cancer survivor, pulls her family together to help their tenants make their houses homes here.
Angela Jourdain of TLC Matchmaking in Killeen provides a better, safer, more effective, stress-free way to date in an extremely complicated world, as well as mentorship, guidance and education about how to have meaningful, lasting relationships here.
Allison Finney, owner of Finney Insurance in Belton, tells the tale of her journey from working in a West Texas beef packing house to helping Central Texans make the right choices when it comes to insurance coverage and property protection here.
Come see how Leah McHorse, estate sales planner and owner of Darling Décor & More and A Darling Thrift Store in Temple, has expanded her business of “upcycling” and recycling décor and antiques here.
Meet our Fort Hood Friend, Staff Sgt. Samantha Escamilla of the 502nd Dental Company Area Support, 1st Medical Brigade, 13th Expeditionary Sustainment Command, Fort Hood, who turned tragedy into a career triumph for herself here.
Brooke May caters delicious food and brings her family tradition to Central Texans with her La Luncheonette restaurant and Hecho en Queso food truck here.
Kristin Wright and Killeen Creators volunteers work together to eliminate food deserts for Central Texans in Killeen, here.
Speaking of food, find out what foods are best for staying hydrated in the summer heat here.
Find beach and poolside reading choices, Easter eggs and trains, and a great place to take the family on an educational day trip here.
At Tex Appeal Magazine, we love bringing you the stories of your friends, family and neighbors, but we can’t do it without your story tips. If you have a story suggestion, contact editor Janna Zepp at editor@texappealmag.com or call 254-774-5266.
Sue Mayborn
Tex Appeal publisher