Phillips Murrah Directors Nikki Jones Edwards and Marc Edwards
Phillips Murrah Director, Nikki Jones Edwards, who heads up the Firm’s Family Law Practice Group, was honored Thursday, October 26, at The Journal Record’s “Woman of the Year – 50 Making A Difference” awards gala.
The event, and accompanying morning forum and post-event magazine, highlights prominent female business and community leaders in Oklahoma. The honorees, selected among hundreds of nominations from across the state, are recognized for their professional and personal contributions in Oklahoma communities.
This year, which marks the 37th year of the Woman of the Year gala, featured keynote speaker Shannon Miller, Olympian gold medalist and health and fitness entrepreneur. It was Nikki’s first time to be honored as a part of the Woman of the Year event.
“The ‘Making a Difference’ list not only displays the important professional work of Oklahoma women, but also the personal investments they are making to positively impact every sector of our state,” she said.
Nikki is involved in numerous Oklahoma community service and philanthropic projects, including Leadership OKC’s Signature Program Class 36, which educates civic-minded business people on how to develop greater capacities for local leadership. She is also a board member of both Positive Tomorrows, an educational non-profit developing programs for homeless children and their families to stop the cycles of poverty, and the Oklahoma Single Parent Scholarship program, which awards scholarships to low-income single parents to help them achieve self-sufficiency through post-secondary education.
Family Law Attorneys Nikki Jones Edwards and Monica Y. Ybarra
Nikki also helped pioneer a program to develop the next generation of law and leadership in Oklahoma. A founding advisory board member for the University of Oklahoma, Women and Gender Studies program, Nikki routinely guest lectures on important topics such as women in leadership programs, women in law, gender equality in the legal field and family law. Accordingly, Nikki was honored with the Journal Record’s “Leadership in Law” award in both 2008 and 2017.
“The Women and Gender Studies program is unlike anything in the state of Oklahoma,” she said. “It is important to further the public support and education of such programs, fostering all generations of women in the legal field, and beyond. “
Nikki endeavors to have a lasting influence on the future leaders of Oklahoma through positive mentorships in her professional and personal life.
“It is about paying it back and then paying it forward,” she added. “Establishing local networks of mentorships, accessible to individuals from all backgrounds and sectors in Oklahoma, can help prepare the next generation of leaders. I’ve been fortunate to have great mentors in my life and I want to contribute to a proactive, public service-minded environment by being a positive mentor to others in my community.”
Phillips Murrah is proud to sponsor The Woman of the Year endeavors, and we congratulate Nikki, and all of this year’s honorees. Thank you for all you do to make Oklahoma the best place to live and work.