More than 700 attendees gathered at The Statler Hotel in downtown Dallas on March 20 for the Fourth Annual Women of Influence Luncheon, where nonprofit Soul Reborn raised $125,000 during the event, including major contributions from corporate sponsors.
The sold-out event, hosted by Soul Reborn founder Cheryl Polote-Williamson and co-hosted by community leader Adrienne Barrett during Women’s History Month, honored 17 women from across the country under the theme “Victory.”
“It is mind-blowing to be quite honest with you,” Polote-Williamson said about the event’s growth. “I want women to feel seen and heard and loved and valued. When I walk in and see the beauty that people will experience, it makes me feel like I’m a part of people’s breath if just for that moment.”
Historic Award and Major Funding
During the VIP post-event reception, Kelley Cornish, president and CEO of the T.D. Jakes Foundation, surprised Polote-Williamson with the Champion for Change Award, making her the first woman in the foundation’s history to receive the honor. The foundation also pledged $25,000 to Soul Reborn.
Earlier, honoree Sharyn Ellison, co-founder and president of The Ellison Foundation, announced a $50,000 contribution from Lowe’s. Texas Capital contributed an additional $50,000 toward Soul Reborn’s new six-month incubator program.
Personal Mission Drives Recognition Criteria
For Polote-Williamson, selecting honorees goes beyond professional titles. She focuses on observing acts of service that often go unnoticed.
“When I see a woman that can change people’s thinking just by the way that she lives her life, that’s what identifies them to me as a woman of influence,” she explained. “Most of the women that come on the stage don’t know why I picked them until they walk on the stage.”
She cited examples of honorees who have quietly supported her mission, including one woman who purchased 100 books for giveaways six years ago and another who helps students at historically Black colleges get their films distributed.
“There has been so much loss for people, whether it’s been jobs or loss of loved ones,” Polote-Williamson said about choosing ‘Victory’ as this year’s theme. “I want people to come in and raise their hands and feel the victory of being alive and fighting another day.”
Soul Reborn Expands with Free Business Training
The funding will allow Soul Reborn to offer its new six-month incubator cohort free of charge when it launches April 25. The program will accept 50 participants and provide comprehensive business training, including wellness, scaling, website development, marketing, social media, branding, and business structure guidance.
“We’re accepting 50 people into the six-month program, and it’s absolutely free for them,” Polote-Williamson said. “My goal is by the end of 2027 to have put 150 women through this program.”
Soul Reborn, now eight years old, serves disadvantaged, disenfranchised, and formerly incarcerated women through what Polote-Williamson describes as a “wraparound” approach covering mental health, mindfulness, wellness, money management, business development, and accountability partnerships.
Focus on Second Chances
The organization’s emphasis on formerly incarcerated women stems from Polote-Williamson’s background as a probation and parole officer after college.
“I realized how hard it was for women when they got out of prison to be able to take care of their kids because nobody would hire them,” she said. “I don’t want women from prison to feel like they can’t have a good life or that they’re less than anybody else.”
The program teaches participants to transform their experiences into speaking opportunities, book publishing, and sustainable business ventures. Soul Reborn also conducts pitch contests, providing funding to winners for business development.
National Leaders Address Sisterhood and Advocacy
The 2026 honorees included White House correspondent April Ryan, Black Lives Matter Global Network Foundation Board Chairwoman Cicley Gay, and New York Times bestselling author Kimberla Lawson Roby, among others representing healthcare, finance, faith, philanthropy, media, and the arts.
Gay delivered remarks emphasizing continued advocacy: “To the women in the room I hope to one day encounter, I want you all to be reminded that Black lives still matter, always, in all ways.”
Dr. Karri Bryant, first lady and executive pastor of New Birth Missionary Baptist Church in Atlanta, highlighted the spirit of sisterhood that defines the luncheon.
“You are literally the blueprint for sisterhood,” Bryant said of Polote-Williamson. “You embody what it means, and you are an example to all of us.”
Among other honorees, T.D. Jakes Foundation President and CEO Kelley Cornish discussed bridging generational gaps in the workplace.
“I bridge that gap by hiring younger women,” Cornish said. “It’s a lot of reverse mentoring, where they’re teaching me, and I stay open.”
Sisters Sharan Allen and Karan Staggers, co-founders of ALMS Community Health Center, spoke about their healthcare approach during the pandemic. The center treated more than 500 COVID-19 patients with no fatalities, according to Staggers.
Navigating DEI Challenges Through Relationships
Addressing current challenges facing diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives, Polote-Williamson emphasized the importance of relationship-building over transactional approaches.
“What I’ve done is honed in on the relationships that I built prior to DEI,” she said. “I planted seeds in certain areas and spaces that are now coming to harvest. When it’s always been based on relationship, people find ways to work with you.”
She advises others to adapt by finding ways around current policy constraints while maintaining business operations.
Co-host Adrienne Barrett noted that the gathering was a clear demonstration of being “stronger together” and that the data proves that diversity, equity, and inclusion will always lead to better outcomes in all aspects of our lives.
Media Platform Amplifies Overlooked Voices
Polote-Williamson’s five-year-old Cheryl Magazine focuses particularly on women over 50, a demographic she believes is often overlooked.
“Women who feel like their life is over because they’re 50—that’s what I’m most passionate about,” she said. “I want them to know that as long as we’re breathing, it’s never too late to be great.”
Book Deal and Global Vision
At the event, Polote-Williamson announced her upcoming book deal with Storehouse Voices, an imprint of Penguin Random House, set to launch at next year’s luncheon. She also presented a surprise recognition to her mother, Gretta L. Polote, who received the Dream Pusher Award.
Her ultimate goal extends beyond local impact: “I want to have enough resources to travel the world gifting people anonymously. If I read a story in Nevada about a woman that needs money to pay her rent, I don’t want that woman to have to fill out 15 pieces of paper.”
The event was supported by sponsors including American Airlines, Lowe’s, Simmons Bank, and the T.D. Jakes Foundation. Dallas City Manager Kimberly Bizor Tolbert, a previous honoree, delivered the invocation.
For those interested in supporting women in their communities, Polote-Williamson offers this advice: “Decide what it is that you want to help them with and master that. Teach what you know, not what you think you know.”
Reflecting on her mission and the legacy she hopes to leave, Polote-Williamson said, “I have more time behind me than I do ahead of me, so I want to finish well. I want to make a difference so that when I’m gone, somebody can look and say, because she cared, I was able to move forward.”
Valese Jones | Photo Credit: Marcus Owens, Mo the Storyteller
