By Amber Cline
Photography by BluDoor Studios
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Corporate businesswoman and philanthropicbrleader, Linda Clark, has a dual identity. By day,brshe manages large projects for Southlake-basedbrSabre Corporation, the biggest travel technologybrcompany in the country employing approximately 9,000brpeople in 60 offices around the globe. In addition to herbrcorporate responsibilities, however, Clark upholds anotherbrduty – one that's just as important to her. She's the VicebrPresident of Grapevine Relief and Community Exchangebr(GRACE) in Grapevine.br
Clark, who attended the University of North Carolinabrat Chapel Hill and holds a degree in industrial engineeringbrfrom North Carolina A&T State University, started workingbrfor American Airlines in 1990. Over the next 20 years, Clarkbrheld various roles at the company, including Senior Man-brager of Business Continuity and Disaster Recovery. Clarkbrwas in charge of enterprise IT projects for various businessbrgroups and was responsible for developing their Radio Fre-brquency Identification (RFID) strategy.
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For the past four years, Clark has thrived as a PrincipalbrProgram Manager at Sabre, which diverged from AmericanbrAirlines in 2000. She recently moved to the Security and RiskbrManagement division, which sometimes requires her to bebrsequestered to dissolve complex threats to data security.br
“We meet with people who are owners of systems, talkbrabout risk, mitigate them, and then automate the process sobrwe can give a report at the corporate level,” Clark says.br
Giving Back
Although her position at Sabre is a vital one, Clark takes herbrrole with GRACE just as seriously. You may think balancingbrwork and community involvement is tough, but it's some-brthing Clark has seen modeled from an early age. Clark grewbrup in a close-knit family in Durham, North Carolina (wherebrshe attended Sunday school with the current U.S. AttorneybrGeneral, Loretta Lynch). Her father was a school principal,brher mother a registered nurse. Her mom instilled in her thebrdrive to give back in whatever small way she could.br
“If I had clothes that I already used, my mother wouldbrmake sure we'd give them to a relative who didn't have asbrmuch or a friend at work who was struggling,” Clark says.br“She'd make time – even having three kids and working.brShe made time to do things for other people.”
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It's a determination Clark has never shaken over herbr25-year career – and those around her have noticed. In 2006,brClark received the American Airlines ITS OutstandingbrEmployee Award for her steadfast commitment to both thebrcompany and to giving back.br
“I boohooed like a baby because I was totally surprised atbrthe event,” she says. “The first thing the Senior VP, who wasbrannouncing the award, said to me was, ‘Your pictures arebrgoing to be so horrible!' He was right. But I'll never forget,bras he was reading the letters that people had written aboutbrme... they were noticing things I didn't realize people werebrnoticing.”br
At GRACE, Clark focuses on helping the organization staybrtrue to its mission: to serve people. She confers with otherbrboard members on matters relating to donations and ben-breficiaries. Clark also oversees various programs and eventsbrthroughout the year. One of her favorites, the ChristmasbrCottage, provides a shop full of donated items where parents,brusing a point system, can pick out gifts to take home, wrap andbrgive to their children. GRACE accepts donations for the eventbrall year long and is always looking for volunteers.br
“Oftentimes, it'll be a single parent or a parent who's hadbrmedical issues that have gotten them into some financialbrbinds,” Clark says. “But no matter what they've got going on,breveryone deserves to give their child a Christmas gift.”br
Although GRACE provides much to those in need, Clarkbrsays it truly wouldn't be possible without the generousbrcommunity in which GRACE is located. Around 700brpeople, including local town leaders, businesspeople andbrcitizens, participated last year in the annual GRACE Gala, thebrorganization's largest fundraising event.br
Packed with dinner, dancing, and live and silent auctions,brthis year's GRACE Gala on October 10 is expected to be biggerbrthan ever. In addition to raising money that GRACE can drawbrfrom throughout the year, Clark says, “The Gala is a fun eventbrthat makes people want to participate even more.”br
Knowing What's Important
When Clark isn't discussing IT security threats or helpingbrthose in need, she concentrates on the three Fs: faith, friendsbrand family. While she has no children of her own, she plays anbractive role in her niece, nephews and godchildren's lives. Shebralso serves at her local church, Cornerstone Baptist Church, where she's been a member since 2001.
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She recently started cycling with somebrfriends and has set a personal goal to bike 50brmiles. Her latest project? An ancestry photobrbook, a rigorous venture of creating docu-brments upon documents of family lineage.brBut Clark has loved every minute of it – it reminds her what's important.
“I can hear of a name as I'm going through my ancestry and say, ‘I remember my mombrtelling me about an Aunt Janey and howbrmuch fun they had at her house,'” she says.
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“That's what lasts generations – your relationships.” It's thatbrmentality she tries to have as she begins each day. “I want tobrhave a relationship with the people that work for me, withbrthe people I work for and with my coworkers. Same withbrboards, family – that's pervasive throughout all areas of mybrlife.”br
With the GRACE Gala coming up and Sabre keeping herbron her toes, Clark is in for a busy rest of the year. She saysbrshe's in the process of learning how to say ‘no' – “You're notbrbeing mean; you're setting healthy boundaries!” – and stayingbrfocused on what's important. That, she says, is also her ad-brvice to young women entering the workforce – go after yourbrgoals and don't mind what other people think. Oh, and alwaysbrremember what your mother taught you.br
“One person really can make a difference, for good orbrfor bad,” Clark says. “I'd like to be the person who makes abrdifference for good.”