Written by Kim Kaselionis

Who She Was

The woman who opened doors for me long before I even knew they existed was my mother, Kit M. Cole. She was a pioneering force in advancing opportunities for women—particularly in the areas of equal pay, economic empowerment, and financial independence.

Known publicly for her leadership in the real estate and financial sectors, she built a career defined by breaking barriers in male-dominated industries. Through her work, including her leadership roles in lending, investment strategy, and property development, she championed women’s ability to control their own financial futures.

She believed deeply that economic agency was the foundation of equality, and she dedicated her life to creating access, education, and opportunity for women to claim that power. Her advocacy challenged the limits imposed on women during a time when affirmative action was still reshaping access and opportunity—proving that women belonged in boardrooms, in finance, and at the helm of their own enterprises, even when the system said otherwise.

What She Did

For me, her influence was both personal and profound. She didn’t just tell me I could do anything—I watched her live that truth every day.

She was my model for how to dream boldly, make intentional choices, and carry myself with the quiet confidence of someone who knew she was limitless. She created opportunities for me to lead in business from a young age, inviting me into real conversations and real decision-making long before most young people would ever be given that trust.

She offered space for me to contribute, to take risks, to try, to fail, and to try again.

How It Changed My Trajectory

She demanded of me only what she had already mastered in herself: a standard of courage, clarity, and conviction that left no room for half measures.

Those early experiences became the bedrock of my leadership journey. Because she expected me to rise, I learned to trust my own capacity to do so. Because she lived her values with principled, fearless consistency, I grew up seeing not just what I could do—but who I was capable of becoming.

Her life revealed, with a kind of quiet certainty, that dreams are realized through the steady alchemy of hard work, unwavering determination, and—every so often—the grace of a little luck. She impressed upon me that leadership is both a responsibility and a privilege, and that the work that matters most is the work that lifts others.

The trajectory of my life—my choices, my ambitions, my drive to create impact—was shaped by her unwavering belief that I was capable of extraordinary things. She didn’t just open doors; she taught me to walk through them with purpose and to hold them open for others.

And as I carry her lessons forward, I’m reminded that none of us rises alone. The doors she opened for me are now mine to open for another woman—to widen the path, to lift her toward the future she dares to imagine.

When we choose to elevate one another, we honor the women who shaped us and become the women who shape what comes next.