With Women’s History Month approaching, the Women’s Foundation of Arkansas has announced the 2026 honorees for its signature event, Power of the Purse. The organization will recognize Marsha Martin as Woman of the Year in Business, Lottie Holt Shackelford as Woman of the Year in Public Service and Mandy Macke as Woman of the Year in Philanthropy.
Now in its 28th year, Power of the Purse will take place Thursday, Oct. 1, at 11 a.m. in downtown Little Rock. The annual luncheon celebrates Arkansas women whose leadership creates opportunity and opens doors across the state, while also raising funds to support the foundation’s year-round work advancing economic opportunity for women and girls.
“Power of the Purse is about powering progress in Arkansas,” WFA CEO Anna Beth Gorman says. “Each of this year’s honorees has moved our state forward through bold leadership, service and generosity. We are proud to celebrate women whose influence strengthens communities today and creates opportunity for the next generation.”
Marsha Martin, Woman of the Year in Business, is a creative product designer, entrepreneur and philanthropist best known as the founder of Onyx Brands, a professional-quality beauty company. Her career began at Walmart’s corporate office, where she worked alongside Sam Walton before pivoting into cosmetology and later entrepreneurship. Martin also leads Dream Big Investments, serves on the board of the Razorback Foundation and has long supported the American Heart Association.
Woman of the Year in Public Service honoree Lottie Holt Shackelford has spent more than four decades in leadership roles spanning local, national and international arenas. She made history in 1987 as the first woman elected mayor of Little Rock after serving three terms as a city director. In 1993, she was appointed by then-President Bill Clinton to the board of the Overseas Private Investment Corporation, becoming the first Black woman to serve. A longtime leader within the Democratic Party, Shackelford later spent two decades as vice chair of the Democratic National Committee and now holds emeritus leadership roles within the party’s women’s caucus.
Mandy Macke, named Woman of the Year in Philanthropy, serves as executive director and vice chair of the board for the Willard & Pat Walker Charitable Foundation. Over more than 20 years with the foundation, she has helped guide significant investment-level gifts to nonprofits statewide, with a focus on health care and education in northwest Arkansas. Macke also volunteers extensively, including service on the board of the Arkansas Children’s Foundation and as vice chair of the Winthrop P. Rockefeller Cancer Institute at UAMS.
Co-chairing the 2026 event are former Woman of the Year in Philanthropy honorees Alisha Curtis and Ellon Cockrill, both of whom have made lasting impacts through public service and community leadership.
Tables and sponsorships for Power of the Purse 2026 are available now. Visit the WFA website for more information, and follow along on Facebook and Instagram for updates.
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