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I stood on the purple carpet, dressed in emerald green, surrounded by women whose stories could fill volumes, women who had endured, overcome, and rebuilt. And somehow, I was among them. One of Nexstar’s 2025 Remarkable Women.

Even now, I still sit with the weight of those words.

Remarkable.

It’s a powerful label. One I used to believe was reserved for women with polished resumes and perfect records. But sitting in that ballroom, surrounded by brilliance, grit, and heart, I realized something deeper: remarkable doesn’t mean perfect. It means resilient. It means you kept going. It means your story was worth fighting for.

This experience wasn’t about fame or fanfare—it was about being seen. Fully. Authentically. And maybe, for the first time in a long time, without having to prove anything.

From the moment I arrived, I felt wrapped in celebration, not just for accomplishments, but for the journeys behind them. We weren’t just honored, we were embraced.

Each woman carried her own powerful testimony. Stories of grief, healing, passion, and purpose. Women who turned adversity into action and pain into power. And for the first time, I truly allowed myself to believe I belonged among them.

That was the magic.

This wasn’t just a ceremony. It was a mirror. A reminder. A healing moment. Everything I’ve done, the work at Persevere, the hard conversations, the rebuilding, the advocating, I do it because I’ve lived it. Because I know what it means to be written off. And I know the joy of being given a second chance.

As we left the ballroom, some headed back to our rooms, others toward the after party, we were handed our plaques. And something about receiving it then made it even more special. It wasn’t about being on stage. It was about walking away with something that affirmed: You are seen. You are valued. You are part of something bigger.

We sat together afterward, not as strangers, but as sisters. Sharing hugs, swapping contact info, celebrating not just what we’d done…but who we had become.

To every woman who thinks she’s disqualified from being celebrated…please hear this: you are not.

You are not too far gone.

You are not invisible.

You are not disqualified.

You are becoming.

And that is what makes you remarkable.

Thank you, Nexstar Media Group, for creating this space , for lifting our stories and honoring our journeys.

And thank you to the women I now call friends. I will carry your voices with me always.

This was more than a moment. It was a shift. And I’ll never forget it.