Want to get involved and help us grow?

I grew up in a very small town in New Mexico. The kind of town where everybody is your neighbor and everyone comes together to cheer for the local teams or help a family in need.

After a corporate career that included a few too many days on planes, that need to connect with my community led me to found Lone Star Local. We are a hyper-local marketing services company focused on partnering with local businesses to drive growth affordably. We combine our one-of-a-kind print product with a growing portfolio of cross-media solutions encompassing mobile, digital, and social for powerful, ROI-driven marketing campaigns.

Our circulation areas are customized to each partner, and continually updated, to target local households with the most disposable income whether our partners want to reach the 20,000 homes closest to their business or 300,000 homes from Georgetown to San Antonio.

Our campaigns are affordable, trackable and most-importantly, they work!

We’ve belonged to the West Austin Chamber of Commerce for over 5 years. The chamber has been a key contributor to our success. It provides us with a community of supportive, creative business owners and a network capable of helping us tackle whatever challenges come our way. Our membership in the chamber aligns perfectly with our mission to help local businesses thrive.

My father was a financial advisor at Edward Jones for 20 years. Growing up, I saw the relationships he built with his clients and within Edward Jones. That mutual caring, service and respect became an unconscious measure for my future career goals.

I am a life-long learner and earned my bachelor’s and two master’s degrees at Trinity University, California State University, Chico and Texas State. I am an avid player of kickball, tennis and pickleball. You will often find me exploring new games and movies with friends. I find nothing more relaxing than reading a book, baking and spending time with family and people I care about.

After exploring forensic science and museum studies, I discovered my true passion in helping others through teaching. For 11 years, I taught high school science in Round Rock. When it came time to leave education, I realized that the only place I wanted to be was building those same community-based relationships that I saw growing up.

Edward Jones is a different kind of investment firm. To us, face time and think time make sense. We meet with you to learn your individual needs so we can develop a strategy to help you achieve your long-term financial goals. So, whether you want to plan for retirement, save for college, reduce your tax bills or ensure you have income to cover your expenses, you can expect personalized service and long-term investing strategies instead of the latest investment fads. Join the nearly 7 million investors who know. Contact me today to help develop an investment strategy that makes sense for you. 

Kate Leonard is the Chairman of the Chamber Ambassador Committee and a Risk Manager and Insurance Advisor at Higginbotham Insurance.

As a seasoned advisor, Kate helps businesses and individuals protect their assets by designing comprehensive coverage plans. Her focus is on education and risk mitigation, ensuring clients have the necessary funds and resources to recover quickly from catastrophic events. Whether providing training to employees to minimize losses or securing funds after a kitchen fire, Kate provides peace of mind when it matters most.

Kate says, "I love serving as an Ambassador to support the Chamber, an organization that has brought me great joy and enriched my life with incredible business leads and strong friendships."

In her role as Chairman, Kate leads the entire Ambassador group in its mission to connect, support, and mentor potential, new, and existing members. She is committed to ensuring the committee provides a warm welcome, helps members maximize their benefits, and fosters a truly supportive Chamber environment.

A resident of Pflugerville, Kate is deeply committed to giving back to her community. She volunteers her time at her church, supports the Brown Santa operation, and previously served as a hospice volunteer for four years. This lifelong passion for helping others is the driving force behind both her professional and community roles.

Kate looks forward to connecting with all members whether they are potential, new, or current, to ensure their Chamber experience is a rewarding success. 

Anita Mann is a Vice President of Business Banking with Hancock Whitney Bank, serving business owners throughout Austin, West Austin, San Antonio, and New Braunfels. With a passion for relationship-based banking, Anita partners with entrepreneurs to provide strategic lending and treasury solutions that support sustainable growth.

Having grown up in a family-owned restaurant, Anita understands firsthand the grit, resilience, and heart it takes to build and run a business. That early experience shaped her deep appreciation for small and mid-sized companies and fuels her commitment to being a trusted financial partner.

Anita is especially passionate about supporting women-owned and family-owned businesses and is actively involved in the West Austin Chamber community. She believes strong businesses create strong families and thriving local economies.

Outside of work, Anita is a proud mom who enjoys spending time with her children and staying connected to the Central Texas community she serves.

Dena is a community advocate dedicated to creating opportunities for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities through her work with The Arc of the Capital Area. The organization provides a wide range of services designed to help individuals build independent, meaningful lives, including employment services, day programs, life skills training, community integration, and campus-based programs that foster social connection and personal growth. Dena is especially passionate about building partnerships between employers and the disability community to help neurodivergent adults access meaningful and sustainable employment.

Outside of her professional work as The Arc's Mission and Impact Coordinator, Dena enjoys crafting—especially painting—playing games, traveling, and spending time with family and friends. She has been married to her husband, Scott, for 24 years. Together they were former foster parents to children with special needs and are proud parents of their adopted daughter, who is 18. Dena is deeply committed to strengthening her community through service and collaboration with other business and civic leaders who share a passion for making a meaningful difference.