As workers outside prepared for professional golfers and fans to descend on Colonial Country Club, a tennis legend was in the spotlight inside the clubhouse.
"Ladies and gentlemen, Martina Navratilova," NBC 5 anchor Deborah Ferguson said, introducing the tennis legend and keynote speaker.
Executive Women's Day is an effort for local women executives to support other women and help them advance their careers and lives. They call it 'Help a Sister Up.'
"I love this about women, you know? You're going to hear today the phrase 'Help a Sister Up' multiple times, and we really emulate that at Colonial," Executive Women's Day Chair Julie Butner said.
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"What I really love about Martina speaking today is she's pretty tough and has accomplished a lot in her career and overcome many obstacles, but in addition to that, she is 'helping a sister up' because Kris Everett was scheduled to speak today and was not able to make it, so Martina is filling in for her dear friend."
That longtime friendship with her former tennis rival was among the discussion topics. The friends have helped one another through cancer treatments.
"We had such empathy and connection that you can only get with a fellow athlete at the same level, and it's pretty special," Navratilova said of Everett. "Friends come and go, but this one stayed. Always."
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For Navratilova, the visit to Fort Worth is a homecoming of sorts.
"I chose to live here after I defected in '75," Navratilova recounted of her early U.S. homes in Dallas and Fort Worth.
The tennis great also talked about the strides made in women's sports.
"Women's sports is really coming a long way. I love seeing that, obviously, cause we stood on the shoulders of the women that came before us, Kris and I," Navratilova said, pointing out more needs to be done to level the playing field. "The number one college player that signs with the NBA, they get a multimillion-dollar contract, and Caitlin (Clark) got like $76,000, which is a joke. They need to rethink that...a rising tide lifts all boats."
The Executive Women's Day luncheon benefits two local charities: the Boys and Girls Club of Tarrant County and The Women's Center of Tarrant County.
