29 Dec 2023 Outstanding Women in Nonprofit Winner: Mary Lackie

By Rita Halter Thomas and Stefanie Brazile

The annual Sissy’s Log Cabin Women in Business Luncheon honors individuals in the Conway area who have excelled in leadership and community service and have inspired others on both a personal and professional level. The annual awards are overseen by the Conway Area Chamber of Commerce and presented by Baptist Health-Conway and Insight Enterprises. The awards luncheon was hosted Dec. 12 in the auditorium of Conway Christian High School.

Mary Lackie was humbled, honored, and surprised by how emotional she felt when she learned of her Outstanding Women in Nonprofit nomination and award. “I lost my mom in 2019, and I immediately … wished she could be here to see me receive this honor.”

Lackie is Vice President of University Advancement at the University of Centeral Arkansas as well as President of the UCA Foundation, Inc. Lackie, who has served 30 years in higher education, touted the leadership and staff at UCA as the best overall of anywhere she’s been. She finds fulfillment working with people who are passionate about helping others they may never meet. “These are people who have good hearts, and I am humbled and grateful to get to know them,” she said of the generous philanthropists she works with.

Besides her work at UCA, Lackie is a member of Rotary Club 99 of Little Rock, Kiwanis Club of Conway, and PEO (Philanthropic Educational Organization) International Chapter CA, and a founding board member for the Arkansas Hat & Glove Society. She is also involved in the Council for the Advancement and Support of Education (CASE), the Association of Fundraising Professionals (AFP), Arkansas Chapter, the Association of Governing Boards (AGB), and Leadership Arkansas Class XII.

Lackie and her husband, Bill, have four children and two grandchildren. She lauds Bill’s support for making it possible for her to get her doctorate when they both worked full time and had four kids at home. Today, she is inspired by two strong, accomplished women who set the bar high for positive, giving, and courageous leadership styles: Dr. Patty Poulter and Dr. Marta Loyd.

To her younger self, she’d say, “Find mentors in all stages of your life and career. Seek people out who are where you want to be or who do what you want to do; cultivate a relationship with them; and ask them to mentor you.” To others, she says, “No matter what your job is, give it your all every day.”