Charlene Lake and Ali Mize took distinctly different paths to service. Yet it is their shared passion for fostering change in the world that brought them together.

Charlene is now a United Way of Metropolitan Dallas Board member and senior vice president of Corporate Responsibility and chief sustainability officer at AT&T. She began her career as a newspaper reporter in Kansas.

Ali, who was recently promoted to vice president of ESG, Belonging and Philanthropy at Neiman Marcus Group, got her start as a program manager with Fulbright Belgium.

The two North Texas change makers were connected through our March Tocqueville Fellows Initiative made possible by Carol March and Kevin March.

As a March Fellow, Ali desired to be paired with a C-suite leader—ideally a woman—who understood her challenges and shared her passion for growth in the sustainability field. With that in mind, we connected her with Charlene. The rest is history.

“I learn just as much from Ali as I could ever teach her,” says Charlene. “When you approach a mentorship this way, seeing it as a two-way exchange, you gain the ability to both enrich your own life and drive impact in society.”

And for Ali, who’s the first person on her dad’s side to go to college, and the first person in her family to pursue a corporate career, being a mentee is all about seeing what you want to be.

“Charlene helps me see the opportunities in my career,” Ali says. “She also gives me a safe space to ask questions in my pursuit of those opportunities.”

To learn how you can become a March Fellow or give back by mentoring a local young professional, visit our March Fellowship Program page.