Making waves It was
Making waves It was sheer grit and determination that made Merrilee Kick’s packaged cocktail business a resounding success. As founder and CEO of BuzzBallz/ Southern Champion, the country’s largest woman-owned winery and distillery, Kick (Executive MBA ‘09) never lost sight of her struggles, which fuels her philanthropic streak. In 2020, she paused production at her plant to make 18,000 gallons of hand sanitizer, which were donated to pandemic front-line workers. He’s a physical therapist, a decorated U.S. Army veteran, author and entrepreneur, but to many people in the Houston area, Sterling Carter, DPT (MSPT ‘07) is a civic leader who provides mentoring and internships to college students interested in physical therapy. Carter is active in the community and brings jobs to the neighborhoods where his clinics are located. 16
Sophie Rydin had a love for students and teaching, but her engagement with the university goes much further. She secured housing for students displaced by a hurricane, funded gathering areas and research spaces at the Houston campus and organized acute care workshops for students. After her death in 2020, her husband, Mike, gave TWU million in Sophie’s name to support scholarships for OT students and faculty programing. Angeles González (BA ’93) elementary principal Launched TWU’s first Latina sorority, ΣΛΑ Jamie Covey (PhD ’21) U.S. Navy Reservist American Sign Language teacher Women Who Lead Virgina Chandler Dykes Leadership Award recipient Cynt Marshall has been a dynamic force for inclusion and diversity efforts. She brought that energy to the Dallas Mavericks, where she is now CEO. 17
