Past Events
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Navigating the Tax Landscape: Insights from Women in Tax & Estate Planning
The Briar Club - 2603 Timmons Ln Houston, TX 77027
June 12th, 2025 11:15 a.m. - 1 p.m.
Don’t miss this dynamic discussion featuring three powerhouse women in tax and estate planning. From hot-button issues like IRS enforcement and estate exemption sunsets to proactive strategies for year-end planning, our panelists will walk you through the financial lifecycle of clients and what’s ahead with the “One Big, Beautiful Bill.” Whether you're a seasoned CPA, banker, attorney, or just starting out in finance, you’ll leave with actionable insights and fresh perspectives.
Panelists & Specializations
- Tama Klosek, Klosek & Associates – Estate Planning
- Lucy Petry, Petry Law Firm – Tax Litigation & Controversy
- Kristen Sayegh, Whitley Penn – Tax Planning & Compliance
- Clair Primm, Aon - Moderator
Kristen Sayegh, CPA, Tax Partner at Whitley Penn
Kristen Sayegh’s tax practice has centered around working with families, entrepreneurs, and closely held businesses focusing on estate planning, financial planning, federal and multi-jurisdictional income tax planning, and professional accounting services.
She is a member of the Houston Business and Estate Planning Council, Houston Estate and Financial Forum, American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA) and the Texas Society of Certified Public Accountants (TXCPA). Kristen is the Tax Partner lead for the Private Client Service Industry, serves as Whitley Penn’s partner overseeing the firm’s campus recruiting efforts, and helped start the firm’s Women’s Initiative, WAVE.
Kristen was the University of Houston-Victoria’s 2021 Young Alumna of the Year, Houston Business Journal 2021 Woman to Watch Honoree, and Houston Business Journal 2022 40 Under 40 Honoree. Kristen was a Rotary Ambassadorial Scholar to Hong Kong, Past President of the Rotary Club of Houston Skyline and a member of Leadership Houston, Class of XXXII.
Kristen received a B.B.A. and M.B.A. from the University of Houston-Victoria. Kristen and her husband, Joseph, and the proud parents of their two children, Charlotte and Logan.
Lucy Petry, Founder of Petry Law Firm, PLLC
Lucy Petry is the founder of Petry Law Firm, PLLC, where she offers extensive expertise in tax law and business law. As both a Certified Public Accountant (CPA) and an attorney, Lucy provides a comprehensive approach to legal and financial matters, assisting individuals and businesses in navigating complex tax regulations and business challenges.
Lucy's professional background includes roles in both industry and public accounting. Prior to establishing her law firm, she managed her CPA practice and served as a Controller and Accounting Manager for public and international manufacturing companies. Her commitment to excellence has been recognized by her peers, earning her the distinction of Super Lawyer since 2021.
In addition to her legal practice, Lucy is deeply committed to pro bono work. She serves as the co-chair of the Pro-Bono Committee of the Texas State Bar Tax Section and has been involved with the IRS Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) program for over 20 years, supervising and preparing more than 15,000 tax returns.
Lucy is also dedicated to education, serving as an adjunct professor at the University of St. Thomas, where she teaches graduate taxation courses.
Lucy's educational background includes an LL.M. from Georgetown University Law Center (2022), a J.D. from South Texas College of Law Houston (2016), an M.B.A. (2008), and a B.B.A. (2004) from the University of St. Thomas.
Beyond her professional endeavors, Lucy is an advanced diver and a pilot. She is fluent in Spanish and Portuguese, and has traveled to over 55 countries.
Tama Klosek, Klosek & Associates – Estate Planning
Tama’s practice is a tax practice focused on both the domestic and international aspects of estate planning and family wealth transfer and tax-exempt organizations. Following graduation from Harvard Law School in 1999, Tama began her legal career with Vinson & Elkins in the Probate, Trusts & Estates Group of the Tax Section. After 10 years at Vinson & Elkins, Tama continued her legal practice with Klosek Howes LLP and formed Klosek & Associates PLLC in June 2013. Tama is Chambers Ranked in High Net Worth—Private Wealth Law and Board Certified in Estate Planning and Probate Law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization and has been widely recognized in Houston, the State of Texas and nationally by her peers, as well as her clients and others, as an outstanding attorney in her field. Tama has significant experience in income, nonprofit (including private foundations), estate, gift, trust and generation-skipping transfer taxation and marital property planning. She has advised a variety of clients on domestic and international tax matters and also consults on divorce matters in connection with complex marital estates. In addition to her legal practice, Tama is a Managing Partner in a national life settlements originations firm, Treyled Life Settlements LLC, where she works as part of an experienced management team to assist high net worth and ultra-high net worth clients of Treyled Life Settlements to efficiently exit life insurance contracts on a favorable basis through sales to third party institutional investors when life insurance is no longer desired or advisable. Tama has many local and regional professional affiliations and has presented seminars and continuing legal education on a range of topics related to her area of expertise, including life settlements, to numerous groups in Houston, Texas and nationally.
Education and Professional Background
• Harvard Law School, J.D., 1999
• Columbia University, B.A. Economics with Honors, 1996
• Admitted to practice: Texas, 1999
Professional Recognition
• Board Certified in Estate Planning and Probate Law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization
• Chambers Ranking High Net Worth—Private Wealth Law – Texas 2020-2024
• "Texas Super Lawyer", Texas Monthly, 2015-2025
• Top Lawyer H Texas Magazine November 2020
• "Texas Rising Star," Texas Monthly, 2004, 2007 - 2014
Topic
Navigating the Residential Real Estate Market
The Briar Club - 2603 Timmons Ln Houston, TX 77027
May 15th, 2025 11:15 a.m. - 1 p.m.
Claire Warren, BHGRE Gary Greene
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Vision & Hammer: Where Beauty & Function Meet
Vision & Hammer
Where Beauty & Function Meet
We organize and design beautiful spaces that you’ll love to come home to. Whether you’re in need of a closet clean-out, a full home remodel or a little bit of everything, our speciality is creating a home that reflects you and your family.
Having an organized and well-designed home starts with creating systems that can be easily maintained over a long period of time. We’re going to chat about a few easy ways to do this in your home - and how to make sure your family members keep it up!
Katia Basley's Bio:
After graduating SMU with a degree in Psychology, Katia started a private catering service and worked for over five years as a personal chef. She soon realized that she was more passionate about organizing kitchens than cooking in them! After her home partially flooded during Hurricane Harvey, she and her husband realized there weren’t many reliable contractors or designers in Houston that would tackle smaller projects without huge purchases minimums or retainer fees, so Vision and Hammer was born. Katia loves the challenge of making spaces both aesthetically pleasing and functional for the whole family.
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How Women Rise: Break the Habits Holding You Back - Registration Closed
How Women Rise: Break the Habits Holding You Back
Women’s distinctive strengths and behaviors provide them with many advantages. And, not surprisingly, women tend to cling to habits that have made them successful. Yet those same habits that helped earlier in their careers can keep them stuck as they seek to rise to a higher level. The habits include:
- Reluctance to Claim Your Achievements
- Building Rather Than Leveraging Relationships
- Overvaluing Expertise
- The Disease to Please
- Minimizing
The good news is that habits are not intrinsic to your character, they are your default comfort zone. It’s not too late to change and break free! Drawing on independent research as well as content from the international best-selling book, How Women Rise, this highly interactive session mixes real-life examples with practical tips and tools. Participants are provided the opportunity to design a personal Plan to Rise and leverage their peer advisors to achieve their goals.
About Elizabeth De La Peña Veeser, ACC:
Elizabeth has a passion for partnering with leaders to improve their impact and achieve their full potential. She is a leadership coach, consultant and keynote speaker with over 30 years of experience developing leaders, building high performing teams and driving results. Her clients span industries including energy, pharmaceuticals, technology, academia, manufacturing and non-profit.
As a leadership coach, Elizabeth has supported hundreds of clients across levels from high performing individual contributors to C-Suite leaders. She leverages her unique combination of business experience and leader development expertise to help her clients achieve transformative shifts that facilitate their career success and organizational impact. Her pragmatic and results driven approach to coaching creates the space and confidence her clients need to leverage existing strengths, assess gaps, build awareness and create accountability for action.
In addition to executive coaching, Elizabeth is a skilled instructional designer and facilitator and has led workshops on topics including Conflict Management, Effective Feedback, Situational Leadership, and Resilience. She is proud to be the only certified North American facilitator for the How Women Rise Leadership Program and has worked with hundreds of women, across the globe, to build self-awareness and identify tangible strategies to achieve their career goals.
As a sought-after keynoter and breakout leader, Elizabeth has shared her expertise on high potential development, women in leadership and building resilience in the workplace. She was also a featured speaker on KUHF, Houston’s public radio station, discussing career transitions.
Prior to launching dlpCOACHING in 1999, Elizabeth held Human Resources leadership roles for a variety of companies and industries including: Southwestern Energy, Shell, The Home Depot, and Nestlé. During this time Elizabeth played a major role in the identification and development of high potential talent. She led activities focused on executive succession and development, executive competencies and assessments and leadership coaching. She has, literally, been in the boardroom when talent discussions were taking place and uses that keen insight to support her clients.
Elizabeth is passionate about giving back to the community. She is a founding member and has served on the Board of Directors for Impact100 Houston. Elizabeth was a Regional Advisory Board member for Comp-U-Dopt Houston. She has partnered with Hispanic Alliance for Career Enhancement (HACE) as a facilitator for their leadership development programs. She has also been a leader for her daughter’s Girl Scout Troop and an active volunteer with the National Charity League Laurels Chapter.
Elizabeth earned a bachelor’s degree in Industrial and Labor Relations from Cornell University. She earned ACC-level designation from the esteemed International Coaching Federation and has participated in various continuing education programs. She holds numerous certifications, including Myers-Briggs, Birkman, EQ/EQ-i 360 and DiSC.
Elizabeth lives in Houston, Texas with her husband, daughter, mother and pup.
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Membership Kick Off Happy Hour
Membership Kickoff Happy Hour
Monday, February 10th
4:00 - 7:00 PM
To be held at:
Kirby Ice House - Upper Kirby
3333 Eastside St
Houston, Texas 77098
Come out and join us for drinks and learn more about becoming a member of WFE! Learn about our events that are scheduled for 2025 and the available committees that you could join. Do not forget to bring a friend, colleague, or prospect!
Details
Registration Closed - Soft Landing 2025: Optimism, Risks, and Uncertainty in the Regional Outlook
Jesse Thompson, Senior Business Economist at the Dallas Fed, Houston Branch will present on macroeconomic trends across regional industries and discuss what local economic data tell us about prospects for 2025.
About Jesse Thompson:
Jesse Thompson serves as senior business economist at the Houston Branch of the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas. Thompson, who joined the Bank in 2010, performs research and analysis on issues affecting the Houston and Gulf Coast economy. In particular, he studies issues surrounding area hydrocarbon industries. He also collects information for the Dallas Fed’s Beige Book summary of current economic conditions. He is author of the monthly Energy Indicators, the Houston Economic Indicators, and contributes to the quarterly publication Southwest Economy. Thompson earned an MA in economics, with emphasis on empirical microeconomics, and BA in philosophy and economics from the University of Houston.
Topic
Annual Business Meeting and Holiday Dinner
Pickleball Tournament and Clinic
Double Elimination Co-Ed Pickleball Tournament
Team Registration (Either Ladies' Doubles Team or Mixed Doubles) $140.00
Potluck Player $75.00
Clinic Only: $50.00
Prizes will be awarded for:
Tournament Winner
Best Team Theme
PKL Social
October 29th
4:00 - 7:00
Sponsored By
Tax Panel Discussion
Thomas Horton, Market Executive for Private Wealth at the Bank of Texas
About Thomas Horton:
Thomas is the Market Executive for Private Wealth in Houston at Bank of Texas. Thomas leads a team of 21 individual, and he is responsible for all Private Wealth offerings, including banking, investment and trust services throughout the Houston and surrounding region. Thomas also serves on the Houston Leadership Team.
Before to joining the Bank, Thomas worked at a boutique Estate and Trust Litigation firm in Houston, Texas and maintains his law license at the Bank. Thomas completed his J.D. at South Texas College of Law in Houston, where he served as the Associate Editor of the Texas Business Law Journal. Prior to law school, Thomas graduated from Baylor University with a degree in Economics. Thomas also serves as Treasurer of the Disability and Elder Law Attorney Association. Personally, Thomas is married to Jamie Horton, and they have three children, Scarlett, and twin boys, Luke and Andrew.
Ashley Van Osdel, Partner at Melton & Melton, LLP
About Ashley Van Osdel:
Ashley has 14 years of experience working with a variety of individual, partnership and corporate tax clients. Her tax experience is within various industries that include real estate, construction, automobile, manufacturing, wholesale/retail, trade and others, including those with family offices. Ashley graduated from Grand Valley State University in December 2007 with a Bachelor of Business Administration in Accounting and in 2008 with a Master of Science in Taxation. She joined Melton & Melton in January 2009 and was promoted to partner in July 2018. Ashley serves as a member of Melton & Melton’s DE&I and Recruiting Committees. She is a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants, the Texas Society of Certified Public Accountants and the Houston Chapter of the Texas Society of Certified Public Accountants.
Marcia Mazingo, Senior Financial Advisor at Merrill Lynch
About Marcia M Mazingo:
Since 1993, Marcia has provided her clients with unique financial strategies and guidance, focusing on retirement and legacy planning services, tax efficient strategies for asset allocation, and families with special needs. She has extensive and personal experience in dealing with challenges and opportunities faced by these families and are passionate about working alongside them to successfully plan for their unique financial futures. Within the realm of personal wealth management, Marcia focuses on retirement and estate planning services. She holds designations as a Retirement Accredited Financial Advisor, RAFA, Certified Plan Fiduciary Advisor, and Certified Divorce Financial Analysis. On a personal note, Marcia is deeply involved in the Houston community, as exemplified by her leadership, membership, and support of local programs like the Houston Chemical Association, Conroe Noon Lion's Club, the Women's Energy Network, and St. Ignatius Loyola Catholic Church among others. In her spare time, Marcia enjoys jazzercise, volunteering with the National Charity League, and traveling with her husband, Tommy, and their two children, Madeleine and Thomas.
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Elevate
Elevate
Put your best foot forward with easy-to-implement techniques for elevating your style, presence, and networking abilities.
Speaker Bio
Natalie Weakly, Speaker, Image Consultant, and Founder of Signature Style, empowers business professionals to be people of influence through the mastery of personal brand, presentation, body language, communication, and executive presence.
Combining her diverse background in image consulting, business, training, and personal development, Natalie has appeared in over 30 TV segments and regularly shares her expertise with universities and Fortune 500 companies both here in Houston and in national markets.
Guided by the philosophy that our personal image profoundly shapes our influence, Natalie shares practical techniques to navigate each day with intention, presence, and confidence.
While she enjoys traveling for both work and leisure, Natalie calls Houston home, where she resides with her husband and two not-so-tiny interns.
