By: Tiffany Taylor
Whitni Wilson-Wertz embodies the mission and vision of The Junior League of Charlotte, Inc. (JLC) in both her professional life and through nonprofit work. A strong leader who engages others, builds trust, and adeptly balances tradition and progress, Whitni is an expert in identifying opportunities, gathering and analyzing resources, and bringing about positive change.
A member of the JLC since 1999, Whitni has played a variety of key leadership roles. During her tenure as President and President-Elect, among many things, she established the League’s Get OnBoard, Public Policy Institute and the JLC mentor programs. In addition, under her leadership, the League proudly received three Emmy Award Nominations and earned one Emmy Award for From the Heart, a documentary the JLC created to advocate against bullying. She currently sits on the JLC Legacy League’s Foundation board of directors.
Whitni has been a significant force at the Association of Junior Leagues International (AJLI) through both service and direct action, as evidenced during her term as a member of the Governance Committee and as the Committee’s internal workgroup chair 2016-2017.
Whitni has extensive nonprofit and civic experience outside The Junior League, including co-chairing the US Attorney’s Office Human Trafficking Task Force. She has also made a significant impact as a board member of Good Friends, Inc., Sugar Creek Charter School, Child Care Resources, and the Arts and Science Council, among others. While Whitni has tried some things that did not always work out, she constantly encourages others to keep stretching and growing oneself — there are no losses, just lessons learned. One of her favorite quotes is, “ a champion is defined not by their wins but by how they can recover when they fail.”
This no-fail attitude allows Whitni to excel in her career. Professionally, Whitni is Senior Manager of the CLC Project Management Team at United Technologies–Otis Elevator. There she oversees strategic coordination of the company’s high rise group for speciality projects, such as Burj Khalifa, Empire State Building, and City Center. Yet, her favorite role is mother to her two sons she and her husband enjoy daily.
Whitni attributes her local League and AJLI board experience with helping her grow as an individual, team player, and change agent, highlighting the multitude of AJLI benefits for League members.
This ranges from Cross Cultural Connections, which provides well executed global opportunities to promote voluntarism around the world, to leveraging League members’ purchasing power with outstanding discounts and benefits. Whitni believes that no matter how busy her schedule, finding time to learn something new is a key priority. AJLI offerings such as Webinar Wednesdays, Personalized Volunteer Support Consulting Services, OnDemand Trainings, and the state of the art AJLI conferences have helped Whitni consistently achieve that goal.
“Don’t miss out on the AJLI All League emails that outline relevant resources, task force opportunities and ways to stretch yourself with civic engagement,” Whitni said. “More than anything, the biggest benefit I’ve received from the League is the opportunity to volunteer alongside incredible women. Truly our membership is our greatest asset.”
Whitni shares a quote that mirrors our members: “Volunteers do not necessarily have the time, they just have the heart.”
