Join us for an inspiring kickoff to our Fruit of the Spirit series as LeAnne Lavender, a project manager at DreamOn Studios, shares her personal journey on the topic of peace. Born and raised in Ohio, LeAnne moved to Indiana after attending Grace College for a degree in marketing and communication. She now resides in Indianapolis with her husband, Derek, and their playful pup, Barkus Adroolius. When she’s not managing projects, you’ll likely find LeAnne planning a themed party or watching reality TV.

In her talk, LeAnne will reflect on her transformation from a college freshman overwhelmed by her first syllabus to the woman she is today—navigating the challenges of work, life, and personal hardship. She’ll share how true peace, as a fruit of the Spirit, isn’t about avoiding stress or difficulties but learning to live fully, no matter the circumstances.

This month we’ll be hearing from C4One’s new CEO, Drew Scholl.

Drew’s professional experience includes 20 years in a leadership role at Wildman Business Group and spent three years living overseas with his family as a missionary. In 2023 Drew stepped away from Wildman to start Missional Leader, an organization focused on raising leaders and influencers in the marketplace who are committed to using their leadership and their sphere of influence to further the Great Commission given to Christians by Christ in Matthew 28:18-20. He stepped into the role of CEO for C4One in February of this year.

Our May Women In The Workplace event will feature a panel discussion about how we keep ourselves back from growing, achieving, and moving forward to reach our goals. Our panelists will explore how we can recognize those tendencies and become empowered to accomplish our dreams while encouraging those around us to do the same. The panelists will include Beth Rooney, Administrative Director of C4One, Tammy Lane, Co-Founder of Fellowship Missions, and Mason Geiger, CEO & Co-Founder of DreamOn Studios.

In this month's episode of the Women In The Workplace podcast, we're excited to feature Dr. Emily Watson, a board-certified orthodontist and passionate advocate for understanding personal strengths. Dr. Watson will share her insights on how women can effectively communicate both in their professional and personal lives by leveraging their unique abilities.

As a firm believer in the CliftonStrengths assessment, which helps individuals identify and understand their inherent strengths, Dr. Watson will discuss how this tool can empower women to be their best selves at work and beyond. With her successful orthodontic practice in Warsaw and Plymouth, Dr. Watson brings a wealth of experience and knowledge to the conversation.

In addition to her professional achievements, Dr. Watson is deeply committed to giving back to her community. As an active member of Mission Point Community Church, she regularly participates in outreach programs and philanthropic initiatives. She also finds great joy in mentoring local high school and college students who are interested in pursuing careers in the dental field.

Join us for this inspiring episode as Dr. Emily Watson shares her journey and offers valuable advice on understanding your strengths and communicating effectively in all aspects of life. Don't miss this opportunity to learn from a remarkable woman who is making a positive impact in her profession and community.

This month we’ll be hearing from Jonel Fawley, Program Director at All Things New Residential Rehab in Warsaw. Jonel is a former English teacher and homeschooling mom who is now a Life Skills Coach dedicated to encouraging those on the road to recovery from addiction. Jonel will be joined by a former All Things New resident who will share her testimony with us, telling her story of being on a transformative journey from drug addiction to a new life in Christ.

We’re excited to welcome Carin Roy as our first Women In The Workplace speaker in 2024! Carin and her husband Tom have been a part of our local community for years and served professional baseball families for 34 years through Unlimited Potential, Inc. (UPI), the ministry that Tom founded. Carin is currently an ambassador with Big Brothers Big Sisters of Kosciusko County and is passionate about sharing her love of God’s Word as a board member, workshop leader, and speaker for a variety of women’s ministries. She will be speaking to us on Empowering Women In The Word and is excited to share how she came to love God’s Word and incorporate it into her daily life.

This month, Women In The Workplace is excited to welcome Teresa Bakehorn as she speaks on Being Empowered in Your Workplace. We invite you to join us as Teresa shares her personal story, inspiring others to recognize and take advantage of being empowered and how to give strength to those in your life.

Teresa Bakehorn started her own real estate company in 2017. She did so in order to keep providing services to her clients without them having to be burdened with added franchise fees.

As the owner of Our House Real Estate in Warsaw, Teresa is dedicated to giving back to her community and clients using her skills as a dedicated real estate agent with more than 30 years of experience.

This month, Women In The Workplace is excited to welcome Barbara Ridley as she speaks on Empowering Women To Be Thankful. We invite you to join us as Barb shares her personal testimony, giving examples of thankfulness and how we can cultivate an attitude of thankfulness no matter our circumstances.

Barbara Ridley was born and raised in Memphis, TN and after spending time working at the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association, Barb moved to Winona Lake with her late husband so he could attend Grace College. The Warsaw, IN area, has been her home ever since!

In 2023 she was recognized by the Kosciusko Chamber of Commerce as Woman Of The Year due to her contributions to our community. She is now retired but keeps busy with her three children and three grandchildren. She is a woman of faith whose life’s mission is to surround herself with strong, good people. Barb doesn’t believe in giving up and is committed to always showing up, never expecting anything in return, and focuses on being thankful every day.

Join the Women in the Workplace leadership team as they discuss how they've been empowered and how they empower other women in their lives and in their workplaces.

Women have tremendous influence and power in the realm of philanthropy. I will share stories of how “ordinary” women in our own community have made an extraordinary and lasting impact by sharing their time, talent, and treasure for the benefit of others. Their stories will demonstrate that you don’t have to be a Melinda Gates to be a philanthropist. Sometimes small, inspired gifts spark the biggest difference!


About the Speaker:
Stephanie Overbey is the CEO of Kosciusko County Community Foundation. She began that role on March 1, 2020 continuing a career at the Community Foundation that began in the year 2000 and which included a number of roles: Program Officer, Program Director, Communications Director and Associate Director.

Stephanie earned an undergraduate degree in Communications from Ball State University and a Masters in Business Administration from Indiana Wesleyan University. She is also a graduate of Kosciusko Leadership Academy and the Richard G. Lugar Excellence in Public Service Series.

Stephanie’s current volunteer service includes membership on the boards of Indiana Philanthropy Alliance where she chairs their Public Policy Committee, OrthoWorx, the Orthopedics Capital Foundation, and Warsaw Rotary Club. She also serves on the leadership team for LaunchPad. Past volunteer service includes serving as an advocate for abused and neglected children through CASA, volunteering with Special Olympics and service on the Sus Amigos and Gradway boards.

She and her husband, James, have triplets who are teenagers. They attend church at Community Life Center in Warsaw and reside in Silver Lake, Indiana.

Colleen “Cookie” Wilson will be sharing her unique wisdom on the topic of mentoring in all seasons of life, the importance of mentoring, and things she’s learned about mentoring over the years at our May Women in the Workplace event on May 8th. Prior to her retirement, Cookie worked for 20 years in the social services field. She and her husband, Denny, are an active part of the Kosciusko County community and have three married children, along with seven grandchildren.

Suzanne Light, likes to be call Suzie. She grew up being the leader of 11 younger siblings and credits family, church, Girl Scouts and 4H as formative experiences in establishing strong values.  She has been married for 48 years and has two children and one grans child.

Suzie is the retired Chief Executive Officer of the Kosciusko County Community Foundation from 1995 to 2020.  Under her leadership, the Foundation grew assets from $400,000 to over $58 million. Suzie did her undergrad work at Goshen College.  And her Masters degree in Leadership from Trine University. Both degrees earned while she as full-time mom and CEO.  

In retirement, Suzie has started her own consulting business to advise nonprofit organizations on governance and boardsmanship.  She continues to be purposely engaged in our community and wears many hats – Please join us as she speaks to Where is Your Leadership Hat?

We’re excited to host a three-woman panel: Leading Spirituality Through Loving People At Your Workplace as our March Women in the Workplace event. Join our host, Laura Robertson, and our panelists: Carrie Bianchini, Maria Demopoulos, and Kathy Haddad as we learn how to view our professional spaces as our personal mission fields. All three panelists live and work in Kosciusko County and have a strong focus and love for serving our community.

Carrie Bianchini
Carrie and her husband, Shawn, own and operate Shawnanigans Food Truck and Catering. They love serving their community through delicious food and authentic hospitality. Carrie is also a licensed mental health therapist with a love of crafting.

Maria Demopoulos
Maria and her husband Greg moved to the Warsaw/Winona Lake area 25 years ago and immediately fell in love with our community. Maria has been a special education teacher for Warsaw Community Schools for the past 23 years, with the last 15 focused on traveling to all of our local schools to serve our students on the autism spectrum.

Kathy Haddad
Kathy and her husband Rich are parents of four children and grandparents to two. Kathy has worked in the orthopedic industry for 18 years and views it as her mission field. She has a love of chocolate, summers spent on the lake, and (of course) great shoes.

We’re excited to welcome Aimee Lunsford as the speaker for our February gathering. She has been in education for 25 years and is in her 10th year as the building principal of Lincoln Elementary. Aimee will share her insight into navigating seasons of parenting, new leadership and work opportunities, and unexpected changes the world throws at us. God is always at our side gently reminding us that we can handle any life change by depending on Him to maintain peace in our lives.