JACKSON HOLE, Wyo. — Sara Flitner, a former mayor and Jackson businesswoman, was named 2021 Wyoming Woman Entrepreneur of the Year by the Wyoming Council for Women.
Flitner is founder and president of Flitner Strategies Inc., a communications/consulting agency based in Jackson. She also served as mayor of Jackson from 2014-16.
A trained and certified mediator, Flitner has more than 20 years of experience in collaborative problem solving, organizational leadership, and authentic communication. She founded Flitner Strategies, Inc. to share the science-backed tools of mindfulness and emotional intelligence as a means to cultivate and engage business, civic, and nonprofit leaders.
Flitner also founded Becoming Jackson Whole, a Teton County nonprofit tapping into the transformative power of mindfulness to reduce stress, increase resilience, and facilitate more compassionate dialogue in an effort to create positive change on a communitywide scale in Jackson Hole. Most recently, she launched the Wyoming Fair and Just initiative.
“As an entrepreneur, I have agency to work in arenas that help my state. I get to be intentional about priorities and projects, how to re-imagine the state’s future. I have been constantly rewarded for a willingness to show up, raise my hand, and create something,”Flitner said.
Flitner credited a strong upbringing—she attended high school in Greybull, college at University of Wyoming—and quality mentors along the way as shaping the woman she is today.
“I learned as a kid growing up in a big landscape: take stock in the long view. Don’t expect someone to bail you out. Mend your fences and believe that people want to help each other, because most of the time, it’s true.”
Alexis “Lexie” Garrett received the same recognition in 2020. Garrett owns and operates Cheyenne-based Alexis Drake, a design company that creates affordable and customizable luxury handbags and accessories.
