Barbara Spier
Barbara was born in Fayetteville, Arkansas, the second of four children. She was awarded an
academic scholarship and attended college briefly before being injured in a skiing accident.
Barbara started her career in the investigative and security field as a licensed private investigator in the State of Texas. She was the president of US Protection and Investigations, LLC (USPI). USPI was a firmly established and highly successful security and investigation services company.
Barbara is active in empowering women and enforcing robust gender diversity programs.
She is a recognized leader in this arena in both her community and worldwide. She frequently speaks on the topic of security and investigations and is a sought-after speaker on her main passion of empowering women. Her company was the first firm to hire and train female guards in Afghanistan.
In Afghanistan, Barbara promoted an initiative for assistance to poor widows and women through her non-profit organization, Helping Afghan Women Project (HAWP). The mission of HAWP is to empower Afghan widows to become self-sufficient by meeting their basic needs, then through education and skills training, while at the same time creating goodwill for the American people. This program allows the widows of police officers who have died in the line of duty, and other poor women, to become fluent in English. It teaches them computer skills to start their own businesses or join the developing woman-based labor market in the private sector. Barbara has expanded this program and supplied many tons of clothing, cosmetics and skin products to the women in an effort to build self-esteem and confidence prior to entering the work market.
The poor in Afghanistan live beyond the imaginable worst-case scenario. HAWP has shipped numerous containers of warm clothing and other much-needed items to Afghanistan. Countless families (refugees) have been fed and given coal to keep warm in the bitter cold winters, thousands of women have been taught to read and write, learn English and computer skills. Medicine, supplies and teachers have been provided to an orphanage, and support has been given to a school in the form of desks, new bathrooms and supplies. Through HAWP, Barbara's impact in improving lives in Afghanistan is immeasurable. The above was accomplished without any governments' assistance from either US or Afghanistan. Though she received kidnapping and death threats, she was not deterred. Barbara's impact was exemplified in a testament from a young girl in the orphanage. She was asked what she
wanted to be when she grew up. Her response was, "I want to be a pilot so I can fly to America and get Miss
Barbara, the wonderful Christian lady, and bring her back to Afghanistan."
Barbara and her husband Del reside in a small community an hour west of Houston, Texas. They have five children and eight grandchildren.
Honors Received:
2004 U.S. Chamber of Commerce Export Award
2004 Afghan Government Award for Humanitarian Service
2004 President, Federation of Houston Professional Women
2007 National Woman Business Owner of the Year
2007 Who's Who of American Women
2008 City of Houston Mayor's Office Certificate of Recognition, "Dedication and Leadership"
2008 Congressional Recognition, "Empowered Woman – Empowering the World"
2008 Congressional Certificate of Special Recognition – "Making a Positive Difference in Houston"
2012 Leadership Award from Powerful Women International
2012 Woman of Legacy Award
Barbara was born in Fayetteville, Arkansas, the second of four children. She was awarded an
academic scholarship and attended college briefly before being injured in a skiing accident.
Barbara started her career in the investigative and security field as a licensed private investigator in the State of Texas. She was the president of US Protection and Investigations, LLC (USPI). USPI was a firmly established and highly successful security and investigation services company.
Barbara is active in empowering women and enforcing robust gender diversity programs.
She is a recognized leader in this arena in both her community and worldwide. She frequently speaks on the topic of security and investigations and is a sought-after speaker on her main passion of empowering women. Her company was the first firm to hire and train female guards in Afghanistan.
In Afghanistan, Barbara promoted an initiative for assistance to poor widows and women through her non-profit organization, Helping Afghan Women Project (HAWP). The mission of HAWP is to empower Afghan widows to become self-sufficient by meeting their basic needs, then through education and skills training, while at the same time creating goodwill for the American people. This program allows the widows of police officers who have died in the line of duty, and other poor women, to become fluent in English. It teaches them computer skills to start their own businesses or join the developing woman-based labor market in the private sector. Barbara has expanded this program and supplied many tons of clothing, cosmetics and skin products to the women in an effort to build self-esteem and confidence prior to entering the work market.
The poor in Afghanistan live beyond the imaginable worst-case scenario. HAWP has shipped numerous containers of warm clothing and other much-needed items to Afghanistan. Countless families (refugees) have been fed and given coal to keep warm in the bitter cold winters, thousands of women have been taught to read and write, learn English and computer skills. Medicine, supplies and teachers have been provided to an orphanage, and support has been given to a school in the form of desks, new bathrooms and supplies. Through HAWP, Barbara's impact in improving lives in Afghanistan is immeasurable. The above was accomplished without any governments' assistance from either US or Afghanistan. Though she received kidnapping and death threats, she was not deterred. Barbara's impact was exemplified in a testament from a young girl in the orphanage. She was asked what she
wanted to be when she grew up. Her response was, "I want to be a pilot so I can fly to America and get Miss
Barbara, the wonderful Christian lady, and bring her back to Afghanistan."
Barbara and her husband Del reside in a small community an hour west of Houston, Texas. They have five children and eight grandchildren.
Honors Received:
2004 U.S. Chamber of Commerce Export Award
2004 Afghan Government Award for Humanitarian Service
2004 President, Federation of Houston Professional Women
2007 National Woman Business Owner of the Year
2007 Who's Who of American Women
2008 City of Houston Mayor's Office Certificate of Recognition, "Dedication and Leadership"
2008 Congressional Recognition, "Empowered Woman – Empowering the World"
2008 Congressional Certificate of Special Recognition – "Making a Positive Difference in Houston"
2012 Leadership Award from Powerful Women International
2012 Woman of Legacy Award
