Paula Lewis

Through a commitment to building authentic relationships, willingness to have hard conversations and true passion for kids, Paula is paving the way for a new generation of whole, healthy children in Oklahoma City.

What keeps you up at night?

A pending decision that will affect a human is likely to keep me up at night. I am a processor and I turn over information in my head for weeks and months prior to making a decision. The night is when I research and take in information from all angles. It has taken me a long time to make peace with the fact that big decisions, especially those around budget, will likely negatively impact some more than others.

What’s been the biggest obstacle in your life so far?

My own mind and my own self-talk. I'm the first in my family to graduate from higher education, the first born, the first to hold public office and the first to own my own business. As a young adult, my mind tended to tell me all the reasons that I should not try something in order to avoid failure. As I aged, I found that not trying to do more was more stressful than the fear of not succeeding.

One year from today, how do you hope you’re different?

I hope I've read many more books, broadened my knowledge in human relationships, business and in education. I want to have new friends and be nourishing current friendships. I'm not so sure I want to be different versus that I intend to be more of who I am today.

“I'm not so sure I want to be different versus that I intend to be more of who I am today.”

What’s the single biggest problem you’d like to solve in your community?

If I had a magic wand, I'd erase the ability of our society to dehumanize each other based on differences. I'd wish away fear from our minds and insert the courage to accept that feeling uncomfortable is necessary and not permanent and that it is how we become more unified as a community and country.