By Diana Lambert, Sacramento Bee

Tani Cantil-Sakauye’s first home was in an alley at Third and O streets near a house of prostitution and a flophouse.

“We thought everyone lived that way,” said Cantil-Sakauye, who went on to graduate from UC Davis School of Law and become the chief justice of the California Supreme Court.

On Thursday, she spoke to about 40 women leaders in business, education and government as the inaugural speaker for the She Shares Conversation Series.

Two young women from each of Cantil-Sakauye’s alma maters – C.K. McClatchy High School, Sacramento City College and UC Davis School of Law – also were invited to the lunch.

“Behind every amazing woman is an amazing story,” said Karen Breslau, of the Dewey Square Group, the Sacramento public relations firm that launched the speakers series. “We don’t take the time to hear from other women.”

Cantil-Sakauye – the first Filipina American and second female chief justice in California – said it was her experience working as a blackjack dealer at Harrah’s Lake Tahoe in her early 20s that helped her to learn to read people, making her better at jury selection when she was an attorney.

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