YLC Alumnus Gary Gaston Featured “Boss” in Nashville Business Journal

YLC Alumnus Gary Gaston Featured “Boss” in Nashville Business Journal

Gary Gaston (Class 42), CEO of Nashville Civic Design Center, is profiled in this week’s Nashville Business Journal. For the past five years, Gary has frequently played an influential role in shaping the city’s conversations around growth and development, while cultivating a board of directors and a donor list that includes a who’s who of Nashville’s real estate power players. When he’s not leading his team of urban designers, you can find him on the dance floor or singing along to John Waters’ “Hairspray.” Our favorite story is when Gary talks about a note from his father that he keeps next to his desk that says “There is a way to get this done”when he was in the difficult process of buying a house. He still looks at that note several times a year for inspiration. If you are a NBJ digital subscriber, you can find out what he would like to be his next profession after he retires at the link here (hint: he’s currently honing those skills at a monthly dance party he hosts).

YLC Alumna Yanika Smith-Bartley Chosen for Nashville Post’s 2019 All-Star Board

YLC Alumna Yanika Smith-Bartley Chosen for Nashville Post’s 2019 All-Star Board

In the Summer 2019 issue of Nashville Post, one of the six profiled business leaders who were assembled for the 2019 All-Star Board is YLC alumna Yanika Nikki Smith-Bartley (Class 43). Yanika is Vice President and Special Counsel for Diversity and Inclusion at Asurion, where she brings employment and regulatory expertise to an organization now home to more than 16,000 employees around the world. She is a graduate of Fisk University and Vanderbilt University Law School and this year was also named a Women of Influence award winner by Nashville Business Journaland a nominee for the Nashville ATHENA award by Nashville Cable. Since the All-Star Board was created six years ago to showcase a group of people who could help improve, grow and guide organizations, an additional three YLC alumni have been chosen. In 2018, Harry Allen (Class 62) and Ray Guzman (Class 53) and in 2013, Kevin Lavender (Class 4) made the list. Congratulations to all our YLC All-Stars! Read the entire article here.

Seven YLC Alumni Chosen for 44th Class of Leadership Nashville

Seven YLC Alumni Chosen for 44th Class of Leadership Nashville

Leadership Nashville has announced the 44 members of its 44th class, with seven of those being YLC alumni. More than 280 people applied for the latest class. The nine-month program, beginning in September, aspires to cultivate community leaders and focuses on issues including education, labor, diversity, criminal justice and more. Congratulations and good luck to Corinne Bergeron (YLC/Jackson National Class 2014), Aaron Dorn (Class 50), Susan Pogue (Class 69), Gabe Roberts, (Class 55), Ron Snitker (Class 38), Brian L. Williams (Class 44), and Sarah Creekmore Woodall(YLC/Junior League Class 2007). Read more about Leadership Nashville here.

Best. Summer. Ever.

Best. Summer. Ever.

Whether you’re a parent looking for a wholesome (and free!) way for your kiddos to pass the time this summer, or you’re a teen looking for a way to beef up your resumé before applying for college, Hands On Nashville can connect you to volunteer opportunities at lots of great Nashville organizations. Make reading easy as a librarian’s assistant at one of the branches of Nashville Public Library; get your hands dirty to feed hungry families for Second Harvest Food Bank of Middle Tennessee; cheer special needs swimmers as they practice for Nashville Dolphins; make meals to nourish those fighting cancer for The Heimerdinger Foundation; beautify the Radnor Lake area for Radnor Lake Natural Area and Wildlife Refuge; and much more. See all the volunteer opportunities available this summer at the link here.

HubNashville Website and App More Popular and Effective Than Ever

HubNashville Website and App More Popular and Effective Than Ever

According to Mayor David Brileyast week, Metro Nashville’s one-stop shop for reporting issues and offering input, hubNashville, keeps getting more popular – and more effective. Residents submitted a record-setting 15,380 requests in May, nearly 1,000 more than the previous month and more than doubling the number from May 2018. And the average time it takes for Metro to resolve requests has dropped from nearly 12 days in 2018 to just over seven days so far this year. Download the Hub app on your phone or go to hub.nashville.gov to report potholes, litter, leaning stop signs, street lights out, paving overdue, ditches clogged, speeding enforcement needed, etc.