If Judy Cara has one thing to lament, it's that her mother did not live to witness the boundless accolades bestowed upon her daughter during the last five years.
"Mummy would never even believe that I spoke in front of 5,000 people," said Cara, community relations manager for Intel Corp. and one of this year's Women of Influence honorees.

Heather Carroll not only works in the field of philanthropy, she lives it.
As the Joseph Henry Edmonson Foun­da­tion's first full-time employee and executive director, Carroll dedicates her intellect, skills, leadership, time and moral energy to move the community forward.

Iris Clark didn't begin her career with the intention to achieve success and influence.
It just found her.
Clark, who is vice president of business lending at Vectra Bank and a member of several business boards and organizations, said a defining point in her life was 10 years ago when she decided she wanted a change.

She prefers to focus on getting the job done rather than on who gets the credit.
She's created hundreds of jobs during her lifetime as a for-profit and nonprofit entrepreneur.
Not surprisingly, Lyda Hill says her greatest satisfaction comes from "making it happen."

When Judi Lakin was a child, she was told that girls grew into mothers and wives – not executives with a passion for community service.
But Lakin ignored the standard, went to college and became a driving force in the Colorado Springs' volunteer and professional community.

If you've lived in Colorado Springs for any of the last 20 years, you know who Mary Lou Makepeace is.
She served six years as the city's first female mayor and was a member of the City Council for 12 years before that. She has served as chairwoman for Colorado Springs Utilities' board of directors and led an oversight committee for Memorial Hospital.

Murder and mayhem are a normal part of Diana May's life. The chief deputy district attorney is an expert in prosecuting violent crimes – and she shares that expertise with police, domestic violence advocates and the courts.
In the midst of death and brutality, May never forgets her primary motivation: justice for the victims of those offenses.

Some women make achievement look effortless.
Wendy Pifher, managing partner of the Colorado Springs office of Holland & Hart, is one such individual.
During her tenure with the law firm, the office has grown from eight to 13 attorneys and has expanded into new markets, including military law, space law, government contracting, employment law and intellectual property.

Sharon Raggio has completed a few 26-mile foot races over the years, but she has yet to cross the finish line on her longest-running marathon: a career in mental health.
Raggio sprinted through miles of professional twists and turns to become the senior vice president of clinical services at Pikes Peak Mental Health. Since 1979, she has served in various capacities in the mental health field, including positions as a social service representative, an alcohol counselor and community educator and a family and marriage therapist.

Her grandfather, Leonard Flores, was an activist who hosted a radio show on the Spanish-speaking station in Pueblo. He read poetry and made political speeches. His brother, Timothy, was a Washington lobbyist based in Denver. Uncle Tim was one of the founders of the AFL-CIO, a national federation of labor unions. Timothy Flores’ face is [...]