2021 VTNEX Speakers

Mina Starsiak Hawk co-founded the home renovation company, Two Chicks and a Hammer, with her mother in the late 2000s, with the goal to revitalize Indianapolis, one house at a time. Now, the ladies are the stars of the hit HGTV show Good Bones, currently filming its sixth season. With over 90 homes rehabbed and over 13 million viewers per season, the show has proven to be one of the network’s breakout hits.

In addition to Good Bones, Mina also starred in a couple of other tent-pole shows on HGTV including theVery Brady Renovation series which premiered to the tune of 1.4 million viewers and Rock the Block. She also appeared in the reboot of While You Were Out which aired on both HGTV and TLC last year.

When she is not working, Mina is a mom to two beautiful children, Jack and Charlotte. She has been a dedicated mom while running her business, filming TV shows, and working on national campaigns. She is currently working on her first children’s book and her own design memoir. Mina resides in Indianapolis, Ind., with her family.

Maddie took her first yoga class at the age of 19 after finishing her first year of college. She initially stepped into hot yoga as a way to get in shape, but quickly she noticed a difference in how she felt both physically and mentally following a hot, powerful, breath-focused practice; immediately she was enchanted. It wasn’t until about 4 years later, after graduating from college and moving back to Nashville, that she began practicing yoga regularly and made it an integral part of her life. Initially a fan of the Bikram style, Maddie was hesitant to switch to vinyasa, fearful that it wouldn’t be as challenging or transformative. But when she took her first class at Shakti, she left feeling more physically energized and mentally shifted than ever before. She noticed herself dialing inward, working through emotional blocks, and gradually feeling lighter overall. She enrolled in teacher training in the summer of 2013 and almost immediately after completing her 200-hour training, began classes teaching at Shakti. Today, yoga is a daily part of Maddie’s life, both in teaching and practicing, on and off her mat. She finds true joy holding space for her students to sweat, work, grow, laugh, and love.

Leigh Brown is a member of NAR President Charlie Oppler’s 2021 leadership team, serving as Vice President of Advocacy. She is one of the top-selling REALTORS^® in the Charlotte, North Carolina market. With the 2020 launch of One Community Real Estate^®, Leigh continues her mission to support and develop REALTORS^® who are both leaders and advocates in their own communities while still striving to serve buyers and sellers as their REALTOR^® advocate. She’s in the RPAC Hall of Fame times 2. And she is so much more than that.

“Originally licensed as a real estate agent in 1998, I am the former Agent Development Director for the Ohio NRT companies. After 14 years in brokerage leadership and training, I decided to jump back into a sales role with Coldwell Banker King Thompson serving Buyers and Sellers throughout Central Ohio as well as expand my speaking to a wider audience. With over 100 appearances over the last two years, I have become a popular speaker across the nation focusing on sales topics of creating memorable customer experiences, maximizing social and digital media, as well as business planning and leadership. Formerly recognized by Inman News as one of the Top 100 Most Influential Leaders in Real Estate, I was named as one of the Top 20 most influential people in social media for the real estate industry by The Swanepoel Report for the third year in a row. Recognized by the Columbus REALTORS^® as their 2017 Instructor of the Year, my speaking appearances have included numerous state REALTOR^® Conventions, Women’s Council of REALTORS^® event and various REALTOR^® and leadership events around the country.”

Shay Hata is an Ivy League grad, mom and residential REALTOR^® in Chicago, IL with Berkshire Hathaway. She moved to Chicago in 2012 and jumped into real estate in a brand-new city where she didn’t know anyone and was new to real estate. Within three years she was averaging $30M a year in real estate and now has a small team consisting of three other agents and four assistants.  In 2020 Shay’s husband, Nobu Hata, became CEO of the Denver Metro Association of REALTORS^®, so Shay now splits her time between Denver and Chicago. Shay is passionate about animal rescue as well as making sure every child has access to a quality education; therefore, she donates a portion of each commission to local animal-rescue groups and local schools.

Cheryl Knowlton is Chief Energy Officer and CEO of Dynamite Productions. She has traveled the United States since 2011 to present to live audiences. Holder of 16 NAR Designations and Certifications, author of two books and countless courses, Cheryl has held a real estate license since 1999. She delivers energetic and engaging expertise, brings the magic to the most mundane, and energy to the most draining of topics. Get ready for some fun! You can find out more about Cheryl on her website HERE. Connect with her on her Dynamite Productions Facebook and Instagram pages, as well as her YouTube channel.

Juanita is an international speaker and educator. Every year her training firm delivers 200+ seminars to entrepreneurs, corporate employees, and associations across the globe. A former Engineer and Global Sales Executive, she speaks on topics such as Goal Setting, Communication, and Customer Service. Businesses and associations that have hired Juanita include AT&T, LG, the CDC, and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. Her expertise has been published in Fast Company magazine and Investor’s Business Daily. Juanita is a YouTube Partner with over 2.5 million views on her videos. She’s also a member of the National Speakers Association and she volunteers as a Technology Partner for Habitat for Humanity.

Sher Powers is 2021 First Vice President for Tennessee REALTORS^® and is the owner/Managing Broker for Urbane Residential Specialists in Nashville. She has served on a variety of committees at the local, state and national REALTOR^® associations and is a President’s Circle/Golden R Major Investor Hall of Fame member. As an educator, Sher has presented programming on real estate investing for state and national conventions, and participated as a subject-matter expert in creating the 2018 National Association of REALTORS^® REBAC course on Real Estate Investing. She has written this course in response to attendee feedback at the Tennessee REALTORS^® Think Tank in fall 2018, led by the Diversity Inclusion Committee. The goal of this class is to inspire conversation on a difficult topic and provide practical and immediately useful tips for REALTORS^®, firms and associations in their efforts to create diversity inclusive practices and policies.