Community pillars Devasthali, Brown, Bowman, Hubbard honored on International Women’s Day

“There are so many amazing women in this community. They showed up every day, they worked and they did it,” said Las Cruces business owner, entrepreneur and The Association co-founder Marci Dickerson.

The Association, a women’s professional development and networking group that Dickerson and business owner and entrepreneur Sumer Rose-Nolan started in Las Cruces in 2021, honored four of those women at a special lunch, “International Women’s Day: Women Who Paved the Way,” held March 8 at the New Mexico Farm and Ranch Heritage Museum.

The four honored are: New Mexico State University Board of Regents President Ammu Devasthali; national American Association of University Women Board Chair and former Doña Ana County Manager Julia Brown; Las Cruces business owner Wanda Bowman; and retired Pan American Center Venue Manager Barbara Hubbard.

“Be flexible in how you navigate through life,” said Devasthali, a long-time community activist and philanthropist. “You don’t know when an opportunity will come your way. Or, if not, create your own opportunity.”

“I learned very early on a sense of community and how to care for my fellow man,” said Brown, who grew up in a segregated neighborhood in Oklahoma.

Brown, who has served at every level of government and in corporate America, including as a soldier, a Girl Scout, auto mechanic, carpenter and gourmet cook, advised The Association audience to “learn how to think strategically” and to “think several steps ahead. Planning and preparation are everything,” she said. She also advised women to “look for an opportunity to open the door to let someone else in.”

Bowman said she was a housewife raising three children 52 years ago in St. Louis, Missouri when she and her husband decided to move to Las Cruces and open a business. Today, she is the owner of Ashley Homestore in Las Cruces.

“Take the risk,” Bowman said. “You can do it. It’s attitude. You have to know you can step out on that limb. I have expected from life the very best. I have tried to give the very best to life.”

Hubbard, 95, is a “legendary promotor and trailblazer for women in the entertainment industry,” Dickerson and Rose-Nolan said.

“The biggest thing is, believe in yourself,” Hubbard said. “Be yourself. Set your goals. Know your limitations. You will become the winner.”

Hubbard said the ACTS Scholarship program that she founded now has 19 endowments at NMSU and in four other states.

“Celebrating women in all of their facets is the driving force behind The Association,” Rose-Nolan said. “We were honored to host such a well-accomplished panel and give them a space to share their stories. They are all inspirational women, who are advocates for themselves and others. They truly have paved the way for the rest of us!”

Those attending the lunch included NMSU Chancellor Dan Arvizu, NMSU Vice President of Student Success Renay Scott, NMSU Chief of Staff Leslie Cervantes, state Rep. Joanne Ferrary and Las Cruces City Councilor Yvonne Flores.

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