Hey!
First and foremost, I’m so glad you are here! I hope you find something valuable for yourself while you are here. I also hope you find something valuable that you want to bring from yourself out to your world.
My name is Jaynee Beach, it’s so nice to meet you here!
I believe in family first. I have been married to my husband for two years. I have five daughters, one step-daughter and going on ten grandchildren. It makes for a full house. 🙂 I’ve lived in Texas for over 30 years, and in the Houston area for more than a decade. I was raised on a farm in the Willamette Valley, Oregon and spent my summers picking crops.
My career has been spent in IT for over forty years, first as a software developer and user experience designer (before there was a formal description for that role); later as a systems architect, engineer, and project manager. Have served in IT in small business, oil and gas, banking and and in aerospace. Have won national awards for cockpit design for the cobra and huey helicopters, and share patents for inventions in pilot-vehicle interface (aerospace), and well stimulation (oil and gas). Accomplishments I am so very proud of.
I’ve been called a bit of a Renaissance Woman. I have traveled the world, sung onstage at Carnegie Hall, jumped out of a perfectly good airplane, panned for gold, helped design the cockpit of an attack helicopter, rescued baby sea turtles, flown a Japanese war plane and patented an invention.
And I am an author! As you may have already seen, I authored and published a book – available on Amazon – called “The Pink House”. It is a memoir of my time as a single mother while going through graduate school at the University of Texas at Arlington. Working on a second book – an anthology of stories about strong, resilient women called “W.O.W! – Wonderful Ordinary Women”, which is currently in editorial review at the publisher.
I am personally passionate about making the world better for everyone, but focused on women and women’s unique issues and challenges. Strong supporter of Thistle Farms, Pioneers in Skirts, and the Cowgirl Museum.
When not spending time with my family, working, writing, or speaking, I love the outdoors, and can be found kayaking, hiking, camping, running relay races and sprint triathlons, and participating in activity-based fundraisers such as the MS150 and Bike-Around-the-Bay.
Why “Cowgirl?”
As I looked at my own life, I saw a distinction between the times when I passively waited for someone else to come along and fix whatever was wrong in my life – what I refer to as “princess” mode – and when I stood up, honestly faced my reality, enlisted true helpers who would work alongside me, and courageously stepped forward. Because that’s what a cowgirl does.
I’ve been a stay-at-home Mom. So I want to share hope and fun for other stay-at-home Moms. I’ve been a single Mom. So I want to share energy hugs and support for other single Moms. I’ve been a career woman. So I share career advice and mentoring for women who are trying to grow (or on some days, just survive without killing someone) in their careers. I’ve found my way through some HUGE life shifts, including divorce, moving to a completely different culture, leaving the religion of my childhood, and dealing with a significant health problem; so what I share here are resources and guidance and the shared stories of women who are also navigating uncharted waters. I’ve made more mistakes than I can count, so I remind you that there is grace and self-forgiveness here, for every woman out there who thinks that she has irredeemably messed up, I remind you that you are not.
And since I don’t know it all, I’ve gathered together the wonderful women in my life who have blessed and benefitted and inspired me and brought them together in the Cowgirl Consortium so that you can come into this space to be blessed and benefitted and inspired as well.
I believe that you also have something to bring to this space. So please, feel free to reach out, to engage, to come as you are.
My family is everything to me.
