SHA SPEAR
Assistant Tax Assessor Collector at Bowie Central Appraisal District (BCAD)
Sha Spear was originally hired at the appraisal district as a collections clerk in 2004 and was inspired to learn how the collections and appraisal process worked because of that position. “I was promoted from within to work different positions before getting the opportunity in 2013 to do what I am currently doing now,” Sha says. “I just want to help people understand the property tax system. So many people purchase property without understanding anything about property taxes. As a young adult who didn’t know anything about it either before working at BCAD, I want to help people have the correct information about what we do and how we operate.”
Especially in a position where she has to deal with the public daily, Sha wants to be remembered for her kindness and patience. “I don’t believe in any situation that anyone should be rude, and working with the public, no one understands what is needed better than the people who do the job daily,” Sha says. “Most people just need someone to be kind and help them understand what they need. Some of the most memorable moments in my career have come from seeing how everyone comes together in our office when someone is in need, even if it is not asked or expected.
Sha says that her greatest accomplishments in life are her children. She has two daughters: Alexia is 17-years-old and just graduated high school, and Makenna is 4-years-old. They also have two dogs, a Minpin named Tiny, who just turned 11-years-old last month, and a Chiweenie, who will be 3-years-old in January. To round out the family, they also have a cat named Marley who Alexia found outside her job when Marley was just a kitten. “I am always proud of my two girls no matter what, and everything I do is for them,” Sha says. “ I am proud to show them life is not always easy, but the things you work the hardest for are the things you end up cherishing the most.”
Sha has modeled this work ethic for her girls while working hard to obtain her degree while still working a full-time job and being the best parent she can be. “I try to lead by example and show them that you can find a job that can be so much more than just a place to gain a paycheck,” Sha says. “I started at BCAD when I was nineteen and have not only grown with it, but now, I have become a family to the people I work with daily.”
Growing up, Sha faced struggles that molded her into the woman she is today. When Sha was only 17-years-old, both of her parents passed within two months of each other. Sha was already working part-time, so she ended up having to quit school to work full-time. She also lived with her brother, who was only a couple of years older, in their family home, but he had an infant and was newly married. “I realize now that things could have turned out so much differently than they did. I didn’t have anyone but myself to be accountable to, and I wasn’t hanging around the best of people,” Sha says. “I had my first child a couple of years later. At that time, I realized I didn’t want to be that parent: the one who was a high school dropout and was never around. I wanted to be someone my parents and daughter could be proud of.”
So when Sha’s daughter was two months old, Sha was blessed with the opportunity through a temp agency to work for Bowie Central Appraisal District. It turned into a full-time job shortly after. About a year later, Sha enrolled in junior college and slowly worked towards her bachelor’s degree in business. “Looking back, I see how different my life could have been had I not decided I wanted to be better,” Sha says. “I could have blamed circumstances like so many people do and ended up with a totally different outcome in life.”
Sha said that she has had a lot of support through the years from her siblings, her kids, extended family, and family “by choice and not by blood.” She says that they have been there no matter what she has needed over the years. “Whether it was to cheer me on when I graduated college or got a promotion at work, to cheer me up when life got me down, or to babysit for whatever reason, they have always been there,” Sha says. “Sometimes it can just be as simple as needing someone to be there with you through a situation, even when you didn’t realize it or know to ask for it.”
Sha says that her long-term goals are simple. “I plan to raise my girls to be the best people they can be, and I hope to continue working for BCAD as long as they will have me,” Sha says. “I plan on doing these two things by continuing to be kind and considerate, by learning and adapting to change, and just by treating people the way I wish to be treated.”
In the future, Sha hopes Texarkana will get more things for families to do. “It seems that we always get new restaurants, hotels, and even car dealerships,” Sha says. “We need things for families to do locally instead of having to go out of town to entertain our children.”
Through it all, Sha continues to live by the best advice she ever received. Sha’s mom told her that no matter what, just treat people how you want to be treated. “I use this daily, especially working with the public and raising my own kids. This is the best advice I could pass on,” Sha says. “No matter how anyone treats you, it always leaves you feeling like you did everything you could if you just treat someone how you would have wanted to be treated if the situation were reversed.”