From Jill...
WOMAN is deeply personal to me.
At 34 years old, I went from being a full-time homemaker and homeschool mom to divorced with no job, no college degree, and no traditional “workforce” experience. To say I had to reinvent myself is an understatement. I immediately shifted into survival mode - determined to build a career, grow the small business I had started, and prove that I could make it. I threw myself into entrepreneurship and pushed forward with everything I had.
But there was one thing I held back: my past. I didn’t want people to know that the “only” thing I had done was raise my children. That I had spent years managing a home, educating my kids, planning meals, coordinating schedules, and holding together a family through incredibly difficult seasons. I didn’t want people to know how much I had carried emotionally, mentally, and physically all while showing up every day as the best mother I could be.
Sound familiar?
So many women undervalue themselves. We’ve been conditioned to believe that what we’ve done doesn’t “count” - that caregiving, motherhood, and the realities of living in a woman’s body somehow make us less valuable in the world.
But the truth is the opposite.
Being a woman is not a limitation. It’s a qualification. The physical and mental strength it takes to live in a woman’s body - to navigate cycles, pregnancy, birth, recovery, and the ongoing demands of caregiving - is unmatched. We learn resilience early. We learn how to push through. We learn how to show up, even when everything in us is exhausted.
That is not weakness. That is power.
And when you take that same strength into the workforce, into leadership, into community - you have someone who knows how to build, sustain, and get things done.
WOMAN was born out of this realization. It’s about redefining value. It’s about helping women see themselves clearly - not through the lens of what they lack, but through the truth of what they already are.
Because when a woman understands her value, everything changes.
And when enough women understand their value we change the world.
About Jill
Jill Stalnaker is the Founder and Board President of The WOMAN Initiative, where she leads a mission to unite and empower women across all backgrounds through storytelling, community, advocacy, and creative programming. The initiative is designed to bring women together from all walks of life, creating shared spaces where connection, growth, and opportunity are accessible to all, while also developing creative programming that intentionally supports women facing the greatest barriers. Through this work, Jill is committed to advancing system-level change and supporting policy and legislative efforts that improve outcomes and expand opportunities for women.
She is also a Business Development Representative at Cumberland Heights, working to expand access to addiction treatment and recovery resources.
In addition to her leadership roles, Jill is the founder and host of The WOMAN Podcast, a platform dedicated to sharing real stories of resilience, healing, and transformation. She serves on the board of Independence Again and contributes to the innovation board for Tennessee Voices, where she collaborates on initiatives that strengthen mental health and recovery systems across Tennessee.
Through her work, Jill builds meaningful partnerships, invests in ideas that support women’s advancement, and creates spaces where women—regardless of background—can grow, connect, and recognize their shared value.