center text vertically in a row

No matter what i change or where I change it- i cant get the text to center vertically in a colored table row so that the space below the text and above the text are the same. Padding, margin on the text box itself, on the row element, or on the row. nothing works correctly. I would like to know how to make this happen and where is the proper place to set it so I can get it to work consistently.