Shandra works as a Regional Diversity Equity and Inclusion Coordinator for USDA Forest Service in Oregon and Washington. Shandra is also a Type 2 Public Information Officer. In 1997, Shandra founded Standing Ovations Entertainment. Shandra has been a lovely lady of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc. for nearly 30 years. Shandra is the bestie of my sorority sister Deborah Moore (Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc.). Shandra likes live music as much as I do. Shandra is the gorgeous Sistah on the One More Time Around Marching Band color guard/flag team featured during Rose Festival parades. She is the loving wife of Otha and the proud mother of Brooklyn and Solomon. Shandra is an Arkansas native and her alma mater is University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff (Golden Lions). She and Good2Know’s Aasha share that connection. When I met Shandra many years ago we quickly learned about our shared Arkansas roots and that my great-uncle C.N. Toney was her speech coach and sponsor for the Elks Grand Oratorical Scholarship Contest. One of Shandra’s greatest accomplishments during her early life was advancing to the international level of that contest and winning 2nd place. Her $10,000 winnings (That was a grip of money now and then!) helped finance her college studies. It’s such a small world and I am so honored to have the opportunity to share Shandra with our Good2Know family. –Darcell
What is the first thing you wanted to be when you grew up?
A news anchor on the evening news. I used to watch Barbara Walters and I would pretend I was her. I also wanted to be an actor. I love stage theater the most, but I’ve appeared in commercials and tv shows, including Grimm (NBC) and The Librarians (TNT).
What’s your favorite season and why?
The fall is my jam. There are so many diverse colors. I really love the fall for so many reasons; for the spices in the air, pumpkin spice, sweet potato pie and turkey and gravy. It is a time to light some candles, just kind of cozy up, enjoy the nip in the air and family.
What career advice would you give to your younger self?
My mother would always tell me, “A closed mouth doesn’t get fed.” I believe if I had articulated exactly what I wanted I wouldn’t have waited so long to ask for it.
What is your biggest pet peeve – what gets on your last nerve?
People who chew ice out loud and crunching ice in my presence.
What’s a favorite way to spend a day off?
I like to go to the spa for a facial or for a pedicure and a manicure. I really like to listen to music like Barbara Striesand, Loretta Lynn, old Patti LaBelle and Bonnie Raitt. If I’m with my family we play some board games or we have jam sessions with me on the keyboards, Solomon on the drums, Brooklyn on the tambourine and Otha on the acoustic guitar.
What song always gets you out on the dance floor?
Blow the Whistle
What makes you feel at peace?
Knowing that my pantry is full and that I’m prepared for a disaster makes me feel at peace. That was taught to us when we were younger. Cooking and baking brings me peace. Preparing desserts for people like peach cobbler, banana pudding and pound cakes. Meditating on the Word of God brings me peace and talking to my mama on the phone and singing hymns with her brings me back to center.
What’s your go to midnight snack?
Haagen Dazs Vanilla Milk Chocolate Almond Ice Cream Bars. I also have a cup of coffee at night with my husband.
Is there a product you couldn’t live without?
A fan. I have to have a fan… a hand held or electric. If I didn’t have a fan I would be in a world of trouble. Fans are essential when you are a woman of age. Sleeping with a fan in your face is heaven. It gets me to sleep in a most comfortable way.
Shandra’s 5 favorite things
- Laughter of my family brings me absolute joy.
- Love for my parents (bio dad, mom, and step-dad) and siblings.My parents were guideposts for me. It is an honor to be the eldest of 11 children and I love each and every one of my siblings so much.
- Love for my alma mater UAPB (University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff) and my hometown of Pine Bluff, Arkansas. My roots are there and at the 1st Trinity Church of God in Christ.
- I love my relationship with God. My current church family of Emanuel Church of God in Christ has definitely been a pivotal part of my relationship with God.
- My sorority Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc. and the Divine 9.
Bonus: All things horses! I collect horses and read about horses. I loved horses as a girl and attended rodeos and rode horses with my cousins in the country. I also rode horses when I lived in Medford, Oregon.
Standing Ovations Entertainment is a Motivational Public Speaking Company that Shandra founded in 1997. The company is known for Shandra’s historical portrayals of African American women. Venues include high schools, universities and corporate America.
Acknowledgements: My brother Antonio Lamar Smith was lost to a drowning in 2000 at the age of 14. It’s just a blessing that he had a short life, but made such a great impact. My husband Otha Lee Terry, Jr. is the second man in command of my life and the peanut butter to my jam. Our daughter Brooklyn is a sophomore at Bennett College and our son Solomon is a sophomore at Sky View High School.
GOOD 2 KNOW 
Questions and answers with Shandra Terry was funny and insightful. And she’s from my home state, small world. That she is the Regional Diversity Equity and Inclusion Cordinator for the US Forest Service in OR & WA is wonderful.
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