For Our Own Good By Brenda Maas • Photo by Bob Zellar
LynAnn Henderson
Executive Director of Billings Wellbeing Institute
The signature line of LynAnn Henderson’s email contains this quote from Mathatma Gandhi: “We must become the change we want to see.” Those words are not a surprise to those who know LynAnn; to those who do not, it quickly becomes apparent that she is the epitome of change. An achiever. A woman of passion and action. From a young age, LynAnn has been a doer. As a teen she would catch the Trailways bus in her hometown of Fromberg to study classical piano with Montana State University-Billings music professor, Dorthea Cromley. Twenty years has not diminished her ambition. In fact, it may actually be on overdrive. Several years ago, LynAnn suffered a back injury. Unfortunately, it came at a time when there was a lot on her plate professionally. As a result, she notes, she struggled to get better. When LynAnn attended a Gallup presentation about the economics of wellbeing she knew she had found a key to her future. “It was an ‘ah-ha’ moment for me,” she says. “And I knew I had to bring the Wellbeing Institute back to Billings with me.” She goes on to note that the information presented touched her on both professional and personal levels. The Wellbeing Institute is a non-profit organization that is working to bring together leaders from all sectors of the community – health care, education, business, government, churches and others – in order to develop a comprehensive, community-wide strategic plan focused on financial, career, social, physical and overall community
well-being. What sets the Wellbeing Institute apart is its collaboration with Gallup, a national research firm, which will conduct studies to track, measure and report changes in the overall well-being of our citizens. Year-over-year, these benchmarks will provide a baseline for making improvements. As Executive Director of a conceptual institute instead of the traditional brick-and-mortar, LynAnn has a big job. But her enthusiasm fills the room. “Billings has a ‘pioneering’ spirit, and I would characterize the citizenry as a group of healthy, engaged ‘workers,’” she reports. “I see this as an opportunity to build a place where marriages are strong; where young people don’t have to leave Billings because of a lack of opportunities; where businesses realize the connection between well-being and productivity. I am bringing together leaders who realize how important these elements are to our economic growth as a community.” Yet, within the driven LynAnn is dedicated wife, mother of four, grandmother of one and a spiritual woman. “I struggle with all the same things everyone else does,” she admits. “When I’ve fallen down I’ve really had to re-prioritize and lean on my support system.” That support system, she admits, starts at home. She cites her children, her husband, Brian, her brother, Kris Vogele, who is a cancer survivor and her parents as huge motivators in her life. While Billings-area natives may know LynAnn as a high school and college basketball stand-out, others may know her as coach or Director of Admissions at Rocky Mountain College. However, she feels all those roles were necessary pre-cursors to her current position – one where she can work with business and government leaders in the Billings community to influence real change. And real change is what LynAnn is all about.
In LynAnn’s words:
Take a holistic approach to improving your life. Instead of emphasizing one area for improvement, set goals in every area – physical, financial, social, career and community – and take a balanced approach for making each better.
Dave Caserio leads a writing workshop for people who battle cancer. >