Zulema Ruby White Starr

Ruby White Starr is an author, consultant, educator, advocate, and the founder and CEO of Wings of Change. She works to promote and is grounded in the belief — that our words matter, that hope can be shared, and that every interaction is an opportunity to help someone build their wings. For more than three decades, Ruby worked alongside children, families, survivors, professionals, and communities witnessing how moments of empowerment can change the course of a life. She founded a non-profit and held leadership roles in multiple organizations where she led domestic violence shelter and transitional housing programs, provided thousands of consultations and trainings, and implemented of more than 60 federal projects to respond to violence against women. From 2015–2020, Ruby worked with Futures Without Violence to deliver healthy relationship education to the 40-man rosters of MLB. In 2024, she was recognized at the White House for her contributions to 30 years of the Violence Against Women Act. She has authored publications on resilience, domestic violence, child maltreatment, culture, organizational trust, and transformational collaboration and in 2026 published I Can Fly, a beautifully illustrated, lyrical children's book about the lasting power of the messages we receive—and those we share. Ruby lives in Reno, Nevada, where she continues writing, teaching, and envisioning a world in which every person believes in their inherent worth and has everything they need to fly.