On June 16th, 2022, Pass the Torch for Women Foundation hosted a virtual celebration to honor and celebrate the incredible work community members who have achieved success through connecting, mentoring, and empowering women to reach their full potential in their lives!  The organization honored their Project Grow graduates as they embarked on their new chapter and heard their inspiring testimonials, with a special keynote from Ashley Nora.

Listen to the recording and be inspired!

Julie Kratz is a highly-acclaimed TEDx speaker and inclusive leadership trainer who led teams and produced results in corporate America. After experiencing many career “pivot points” of her own, she started her own speaking business with the goal of helping leaders be more inclusive. Promoting diversity, inclusion, and allyship in the workplace, Julie helps organizations foster more inclusive environments. She is a frequent keynote speaker, podcast host, and executive coach. She holds an MBA from the Kelley School of Business at Indiana University, is a Certified Master Coach, and is a certified unconscious bias trainer. 

Her books include Pivot Point: How to Build a Winning Career Game Plan, ONE: How Male Allies Support Women for Gender Equality, and Lead Like an Ally:  A Journey Through Corporate America with Strategies to Facilitate Inclusion, and her children’s books The Little Allies and Charlotte Wants a BFF.  

Find Julie at NextPivotPoint.com, @NextPivotPoint, or on LinkedIn

Ashley Butler, Founder & CEO

Dreamer, Disrupter, and Creator. Ashley is on a mission to create a company that gives busy women valuable time back in their day for the people and projects that matter most.

She has built MySherri to be a premium, boutique in-home management company that employs and deploys an excellent in-home workforce. She helps women normalize getting support in the home while reducing the guilt and shame associated with asking for help.

Ashley’s experience with food and housing insecurity as a child propels her to ensure that her team is empowered to achieve their own balance by offering a true living wage, paid time off, extensive training, and professional development opportunities.

Prior to founding MySherri, Ashley was a physician that gained a profound understanding of what it means to need balance. Whether it be in medicine or business, Ashley has changed the lives of many by bringing authenticity and passion to every conversation.

A huge fan of real conversation and connection, she is always interested in engaging in meaningful relationships built on the foundation of making the world around us better.

As the Equity, Inclusion and Belonging Specialist for SPARK Learning Lab, I serve as an advocate, catalyst for change, and institutional resource focused on infusing DEI practices into all services provided by the SPARK Indiana team, tracking progress toward these goals, and communicating progress to an engaged community.

Amy Evans founded AlignWomen® because she wanted something different than traditional networking, something that was more intentional and was focused on increasing revenue for her health insurance agency. She also wanted a place where she and her female colleagues felt like they fit in, held a seat at the table and had a voice. She started the first Networking Mastermind in 2019 and began hosting The AlignWomen® Podcast later that year. Amy is passionate about empowering professional women to network more effectively.

Amy has more than 20 years of experience in the insurance industry simplifying employee benefits for employers and their employees. In October 2021, her insurance agency was acquired by Shorepoint Insurance Services, an Acrisure Agency partner, and is now operating under the Shorepoint name. As an Associate Vice President with Shorepoint, Amy continues to work with employers to help them navigate the complex world of employee benefits, business insurance and risk management.

Amy is a frequent speaker, writer, podcast guest and social media participant and you can find her engaging regularly on a variety of topics including health insurance issues, entrepreneurship, social media strategies, women’s empowerment and networking with intention.

Shannon Cohen is the founder and CEO of Shannon Cohen, Inc. -- a boutique firm with a mighty imprint and reputation for excellence. Shannon specializes in developing customized emotional intelligence, equity, and wellness colloqui for organizations across diverse sectors and industries. Her clients include: Electronic Arts [EA], The White House Office of National Drug Control Policy, Steelcase, Henry Ford Health System, United Way, The American Heart Association, Steelcase, The University of Michigan, The University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill, Gentex Corporation, Grace Hopper -- AnitaB.org; The Urban Core Collective, and Bissell. Using a head+heart approach, Shannon excels in engaging change agents in transparent conversations about the unspoken truths of leadership and self-care to nurture longevity in leadership. Shannon doesn’t just ‘speak’ to leaders; she speaks ‘into’ the lives of leaders. Shannon is an author, podcaster, and owner of an inspirational product line called Tough Skin, Soft Heart. Her Tough Skin, Soft Heart products are available at retailers across the country. Her #ToughSkinSoftHeart podcast is in its 2nd season and reaches subscribers in 12 countries with weekly grab-and-go inspiration + strategy for difference makers. Her 2nd book, “It’s Normal to Shake as You Soar” was released in October 2020. In February 2021, Shannon’s signature brand of greeting cards debuted at 1750+ Target stores nationwide via a partnership with American Greetings. In June 2021, Shannon’s products expanded into 200+ Meijer stores nationwide. Shannon is respected and renowned for empowering organizations to integrate innovation, research, emerging trends, and creativity to cultivate continuous improvement and spur ongoing learning. Shannon is the Founder of the global Rockstar Woman Brunch Experience, serving 600 women throughout the U.S and Canada annually. In November 2020, Shannon was named one of the 200 Most Powerful Business Leaders in West Michigan. Shannon is the 2020 YWCA Tribute Award recipient and was named one of the 2020 and 2018 50 Most Influential Women in West Michigan by the Grand Rapids Business Journal. Shannon is an alumnus of the prestigious W.K. Kellogg Foundation Community Leadership Network Fellowship and adjunct professor in the Grand Valley State University College of Community and Public Service. Shannon has authored two books, “It’s Normal to Shake as You Soar” [2020] and “Tough Skin, Soft Heart: A Leadership Guide to Growing Stronger, Better, and Wiser” [2018]. Shannon is also co-founder of Sisters Who Lead, [sisterswholead.com] a regional talent and wellness affinity movement designed to advance the well-being and career mobility of women of color to executive leadership. Shannon has co-authored two regional workplace climate studies entitled: “Invisible Walls, Ceilings, and Floors: Championing the Voices and Inclusion of Female Leaders of Color in West Michigan” and “From Knowing Better to Doing Better: Closing the Opportunity Gap for Women of Color in the Workplace through Transformed Systems Behavior”. Learn more about Shannon at: www.shannoncohen.com

Mrs. Evelyn Shaw Corley (Mrs. Evelyn Educates) is a visionary leader in the world of international education. She is an advocate for diversity, mental health, and equity in education. She is changing the face of education through 1:1 and small group teaching in which every learner is guided by a compassionate teacher mentor. She believes that all humans are beautifully designed and created with gifts and talents to share with the world. 

Currently, she serves as the CEO and Founder for both Mrs. Evelyn International Academy and Evelyn Educates Tutoring.

She began teaching in 2005 after attending The University of Georgia and obtaining a degree in Middle School Education. Her teaching experiences span from elementary school through high school, and she has stories of immense joy and tremendous pain. Her Masters of Education is from LaGrange College where she studied Curriculum and Instruction. After teaching for over ten years, Evelyn felt emotionally, mentally, physically, and spiritually drained. She began changing her life and coming into her own through starting small through tutoring and homeschooling her friends' children and teens 1:1 and in small groups. Her passion turned into an empire, and she now leads a team of loving, diverse teachers throughout the United States. 

Mrs. Evelyn has strong opinions about growing up, real feelings, embracing diversity, advocating for youth and mental health, and she also has a passion for music and the arts.

She is a believer that if what you wish to be does not exist, create it. Let us not complain; let us build our visions into reality.

Mrs. Evelyn appreciates and embraces your thoughts and opinions and looks forward to connecting with you. She believes the world is our beautiful, magical home filled with glorious, varying feelings and perspectives, and she serves with open arms and love in her heart.

Rachel Druckenmiller, MS - Founder, Speaker & Facilitator at UNMUTED

Rachel is on a mission to humanize the workplace by igniting resilience, connection, engagement and compassion in organizations, associations and their leaders and teams. Recognized as the #1 Health Promotion Professional in the U.S. in 2015, a 40 Under 40 Game Changer in 2019, and one of The Daily Record’s Leading Women of 2020, Rachel is a national thought leader in the field of wellbeing and employee engagement. 

Known for her refreshing, dynamic and relatable approach, she has reached tens of thousands of people through her in-person and virtual learning experiences as a keynote speaker, workshop facilitator and leadership trainer. Rachel has worked with organizations like Citizens Bank, Adventist Health, Deloitte, Sherwin-Williams, and the American Heart Association. Her work has been published on Thrive Global and mindbodygreen.

Rachel has a Master’s degree in Health Science and a Bachelor’s degree in Psychology and is a Licensed Thriving Workplace Culture Coach and Health Coach. She is also a Founding Member of the international nonprofit, Global Women 4 Wellbeing (GW4W).