SRQ Magazine | March 2026: Women Who Roar

WOMEN WHO ROAR INITIATIVE

SRQ Magazine formed the Women Who Roar Initiative as a year-round program engaging the participants in the annual Women Who Roar Competition to create highly-dynamic personal networking that catalyzes community leadership through the science and art of mentorship. Every year, we host the Together We Roar Leadership and Awards Luncheon recognizing the past years’ Women Who Roar Leadership Circle Class and announcing the honorees of the current year’s Women Who Roar Competition comprising the new inductees to the Leadership Circle. We celebrate the nominees, honorees and judges of the competition in the December edition of SRQ Magazine in a special awards section. Programs powered by the Women Who Roar Initiative include SkillSHARE: Mentorship at the Speed of Life and SMARTgirl: Mentorship Summit and Luncheon.

SAVE THE DATE

2026 WOMEN WHO ROAR LEADERSHIP & AWARDS LUNCHEON FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 6, 2026

MICHAEL’S ON EAST BALLROOM

POP-UPS OPEN: 10:30AM REGISTRATION: 11AM LUNCHEON: 11:30AM

2026 LEADERSHIP CIRCLE HONOREES

GERI CHAFFEE

Founder, Director Community Engagement Dreamers Academy + Por Nuestros Niños radio show & podcast

ALEXANDRIA DAVIS

Owner

AGA Tax and Accounting Services

ERIN DIFAZIO

Program Director

Sarasota Alliance for Historic Preservation

ALEXANDRA ELMAN-FOLEY

CEO

Lighthouse Vision Loss Education Center

ERICA GREGORY

District Director

The Congressional Office of Greg Stuebe

JENNIFER INFANTI

Co-Founder/Team Captain Holiday House

HEATHER KASTEN

President/CEO

Greater Sarasota Chamber of Commerce

VICKIE OLDHAM M.F.A.

President/CEO

Sarasota African American Cultural Coalition, Inc.

AMANDA PARRISH

Partner, Chief Operations Officer Fawley Bryant Architecture

CHRIS PFAHLER

Vice President of Philanthropy

Plymouth Harbor on Sarasota Bay

MEGHAN SERRANO

Partner

Shumaker, Loop & Kendrick LLP

VERONICA THAMES

CEO

Manatee Community Foundation

PRESENTING SPONSOR

LEADERSHIP SPONSOR

TRANSPORTATION SPONSOR

FLORAL SPONSOR

HAIR & MAKEUP SPONSOR

MICHELLE GRIMSLEY SHINDANO

MANATEE COUNTY HABITAT FOR HUMANITY

“Women Who Roar reflects the truth that women’s leadership, especially when they build together, can change a community for generations.”

AS CHAIR OF BOTH THE MANATEE HABITAT BOARD AND THE WOMEN BUILD INITIATIVE, MICHELLE LEADS A MOVEMENT THAT BRINGS TOGETHER WOMEN FROM EVERY BACKGROUND— professionals,community leaders, mothers, students, and volunteers—around a shared mission: lifting up a local single mother through homeownership. While Women Build is a homebuilding effort, it is also a celebration of the strength, resilience, and collective power of women to transform communities.

Michelle’s leadership is shaped by her own lived experience and years of service, from supporting families at Manatee Elementary School to advocating for vulnerable residents through nonprofit and legislative work. Those experiences gave her a firsthand under-standing of the challenges many women face: economic barriers, caregiving responsibilities, and the persistent gap in access to affordable housing. Women Build, she believes, is a platform for women to lift one another and to show what is possible when they unite with purpose.

Michelle Grimsley Shindano: A Homegrown Leader Building Homes and Hope for Women. Michelle Grimsley Shindano believes that when women come together, entire communities rise, and she’s spent her life proving it right here in Manatee County. A third-generation Bradenton native, Michelle has spent her career advocating for equitable opportunities and strengthening the systems that support local families. Today, she channels that lifelong purpose into one of Manatee County Habitat for Humanity’s most inspiring annual campaigns: Women Build. Manatee County Habitat for Humanity’s Women Build campaign is a powerful movement that empowers women from all walks of life to come together and provide a single mother and her family with a safe, affordable place to call home.

Under Michelle’s guidance, Women Build continues to grow, inspiring hundreds of women to donate, volunteer, fundraise, and champion Habitat’s mission. Her vision is clear: empower women to take action, deepen their sense of community, and help create lasting change one home at a time. We proudly recognize Michelle Grimsley Shindano, a leader who embodies service, compassion, and the unwavering belief that women, working together, can build the future.

Women across Manatee County are invited to get involved and join this powerful movement at: manateehabitat.org/ womenbuild.