Bona Vista has served our community since 1958 and is now one of the largest nonprofits of its kind in the state, operating 24/7, employing nearly 300 staff, and serving around 1,000 individuals every day.

President Brianne Boles shared her journey, growing up volunteering, building her career through relationships, starting as VP of Marketing, and working her way up by “putting myself out there. Wanting more. Doing more.”

Her leadership takeaways for our group:
• Leaders make hard decisions.
• Hire people who are smarter than you.
• Success depends on the strength of your team.
• And…thank-you cards are a lost art.

We also worked with Annie Lightsey, Coordinator of Education & Enrichment, who led a creative team-building challenge focused on process over perfection. Each group built a leadership-themed piece using round substrates to remove “the box” from their thinking.

Annie left us with a reminder that ties it all together:
“Surround yourself with people you trust and your outcome will exceed your vision.”