Kathy Taylor
Kathy Taylor co-founded the Lobeck Taylor Family Foundation in 1997.
Working her way through college after losing her parents, she experienced firsthand the stress of financial instability, an experience which has guided her work. After a career in law and business, she served as Oklahoma’s Secretary of Commerce, Tourism and Workforce Development. In 2006 she was elected Mayor of Tulsa. She focused on reviving downtown Tulsa through the completion of the award-winning BOK Center and developed a public/private partnership to build a new multi-sports venue for the Tulsa Drillers. She launched the city’s first entrepreneur business competition and led the city through the worst recession in 70 years.
Kathy served on the Board of Sonic Corporation, until its $2.3 billion sale to Inspire Brands in 2018. She has served on the board of Reading Partners, a literacy organization for children. She is co-founder of ImpactTulsa, a nonprofit aimed at improving education outcomes. She serves on the board of 36 Degrees North, Tulsa’s basecamp for entrepreneurs and on the advisory board of StitchCrew, a business accelerator. In 2020, she became a founding member of VEST, a network of C-suite women working together to expedite the pathways for women in positions of influence.
She has been honored by numerous state and local groups including the 2018 Anna C. Roth Legacy Award from YWCA Tulsa, the inaugural Order of the Owl from the OU Oklahoma College of Law, the Oklahoma Women’s Hall of Fame, University of Tulsa College of Law Hall of Fame, the Oklahoma City Public Schools Wall of Fame, the Tulsa Historical Society and the Oklahoma Center for Community and Justice.
Kathy enjoys spending time with family and friends – and is frequently seen playing with her grandchildren. Fun follows her everywhere she goes whether sailing, painting, gardening and traveling, cataloging many cooking classes along the way.
