You can hear Vanecia Kerr smiling through her voicemail.
She’s a person whose energy shines through. She’s a leader who channels her positivity into building relationships, spreading compassion and inspiring positive change in Colorado.
When she reflects on what led her to be selected as a finalist for the 9NEWS Leader of the Year, she thinks of her mom. As a child, Vanecia always admired her mother’s unlimited capacity for compassion. Her mom was a dedicated community champion who would take Vanecia with her to donate clothes to people experiencing homelessness and volunteer at local nonprofit organizations in their community. Those moments helped Vanecia understand the importance of community service and continue to inspire her purpose-driven work today.
After being the first in her family to graduate from college with a degree in political science, Vanecia landed a sales job in New York City. This competitive career appealed to Vanecia’s high-achieving, goal-oriented nature. As a young woman of color working in corporate America in the 90s, she didn’t want to be in a job where people could tell her what she was worth. She knew what she was capable of. She needed a career that allowed her to push past expectations and prove herself.
It didn’t take long for her to achieve just that before Vanecia took her talents to the Teachers Insurance and Annuity Association of America (TIAA). First, she started managing accounts and then overseeing teams. The capacity for compassion that Vanecia’s mom had modeled from a young age started showing itself in Vanecia. In addition to setting herself up for success, Vanecia realized she was uniquely capable of helping others visualize and actualize their own goals. TIAA recognized her immense value and invited her to Denver to help open a new office.
It was shortly after that move that Vanecia felt drawn back to a life in community service. She advocated to lead TIAA’s community relations team for the Western Region and felt empowered and inspired by her team’s important work. She ultimately helped to create a corporate social responsibility strategy that would serve as the blueprint for TIAA and other corporations across the country. Under her leadership, a record 65% of TIAA staff participated in volunteerism through the community relations program. She contributed to implementing actionable solutions for the issues impacting the community she had grown to love.
After 20 years in the corporate sector spanning roles from sales to community relations, Vanecia was ready to fully commit to community work. Since making the jump to the nonprofit sector, Vanecia has used her skills as a compassionate community leader to champion education and mentoring as the Managing Director of Marketing, Communication and Development for City Year Denver and the Regional Executive Director of College Track Colorado. She also serves on a variety of nonprofit boards including the Newman Center for the Performing Arts, Hope Communities, the Denver Metro Chamber Leadership Foundation, Denver Academy and the Denver Public Schools Foundation. She also served as Chair of the Colorado Commission on Higher Education.
Each of these experiences set the foundation for Vanecia becoming the Chief Impact Officer at Mile High United Way in November 2020. In her role, Vanecia leads with compassion to get the job done, overseeing policy, evaluation and a portfolio of seven programs serving over 5,000 people as well as grants totaling $3M+ to our nonprofit community. Simultaneously, she engages with community, government and business leaders to ensure Mile High United Way’s effectiveness and growth.
Her evolution from volunteering with her mother as a kid to helping lead America’s first United Way organization was one of purpose, kindness, innovation and compassion. Each step along the way prepared her to be the effective community leader she is today.
It’s that unique mix of compassion and action that makes Vanecia one of Denver’s strongest nonprofit leaders. You feel the depth of her care for the people of Denver from the moment you meet her. Her kindness is contagious.