Insights

The Launch of a Long-Held Dream

I can’t believe it. I am sitting here planning the official launch of Lyons Leadership & Solutions. Even writing those words feels surreal, like I’m watching someone else live out a long-held dream. But this dream has been quietly shaping itself for decades, piece by piece, moment by moment. It didn’t arrive with fireworks. It arrived gently, through lived experience, heartbreak, small kindnesses, and a deep desire to create meaningful change.

The Power of Small Kindness: My Childhood Foundation

I have always been a community-minded person. Someone who instinctively wanted to come to the aid of anyone who needed it. My passion started early, long before I had words for it. Growing up in a single-parent household, I was rich in love, not in money. We had our struggles, our ups and downs, moments of fear about how the next bill would be paid or how groceries would stretch to the end of the week. But in those moments, I witnessed the power of small, human acts of kindness and how profoundly they impacted my mother.

The smallest gesture, whether it be a ride home from the grocery store when the bags were too heavy to carry, or an unexpected invite to a simple supper, made her entire week. She would beam with excitement if she managed to get an extra hundred dollars. She dreamt about winning the lottery, but unlike most people who imagine millions, she would tell me, “I won three thousand dollars in my dream. What a difference that would make.” For her, $3,000 was life-changing. That was the scale of impact she believed in.

That was when I realized that ANYONE can create change. We don’t all need to change the world at once. We can change one moment, one day, one person’s outlook and that is enough. Impact doesn’t require wealth, status, or grand gestures. It requires heart.

From Fundraisers to Foundation: Grief and Guidance

As I grew older, I naturally gravitated toward causes and people who needed a little extra support. I would often spearhead small fundraisers, everything from selling chocolates to organizing little drives for classmates and community members. Even though I was young, I knew in my heart that helping people had to be something people could do on a bigger scale. I just didn’t know what that meant yet.

Then life happened. Life in all its messy, unpredictable, heartbreaking reality. Losing my mother at just 20 years old changed everything. I was broke, devastated, and suddenly alone in a world that felt far too big. But despite the heartbreak, she had given me tools, her words, her example, her quiet resilience. She had been building a foundation in me my entire life.

Isn’t that always the hardest part of anything? Starting. And starting without the person who had always been your compass feels impossible. But even through grief that felt endless, it was her voice that kept me going. “Get an education. Follow your heart. Believe in yourself.” So I did the only thing I could. I let my grief drive me forward.

A Shift in Trajectory: The Transformative Power of Nonprofits

I had a journalism diploma, and my next step was joining Canada World Youth, a program that brought together youth from different countries and backgrounds for experiential learning. Several months were spent in Canada, and in my case, several transformative months in Cape Town, South Africa.

That experience altered the trajectory of my life. I originally thought I wanted to become a war correspondent, imagining myself in conflict zones telling the stories the world needed to hear. But the work I found myself doing was with local nonprofits, organizations quietly feeding communities, empowering people, and building dignity.

Whether it was The Big Issue magazine, which gave people experiencing homelessness the opportunity to earn income, or the food redistribution programs in schools that ensured children in poor neighbourhoods had access to meals, or volunteering with TAC (Treatment Action Campaign) to end the stigma surrounding HIV/AIDS, every project showed me the same truth, that nonprofits change lives not through grand gestures, but through consistent, compassionate action.

The Whisper of Destiny and the Scale of Impact

I was immersed in nonprofit work, but I still didn’t fully realize that this was where my future was leading me. Sometimes your destiny whispers before it ever shouts.

After returning home, university followed. I studied International Development and Political Science, took fundraising courses, and set my sights on changing the world. A big, bold dream. I imagined change happening on a huge scale, policy shifts, global movements, international projects.

But the reality is that HUGE change doesn’t happen overnight. It happens in the small, steady shifts that accumulate over years. It lives in the day-to-day work that gradually alters the trajectory of a person, a family, an organization, or an entire community. Life happens in the small moments, just like my mother had always taught me.

The Complication of Leadership: Navigating the Hamster Wheel

There are moments in everyone’s life that become turning points. Those moments where you look back and say, “Wow. That changed me. That shifted my direction.” Often they come from the simplest sources: a teacher who saw potential you didn’t recognize in yourself; a family member who gave you a little seed money for your first summer business; a friend who encouraged you at a time when you were ready to give up; or a mother who repeated “YOU CAN DO IT” until her very last breath.

I’ve had many of those moments, but here’s the thing: you rarely realize their importance until much later. Often you only see their significance when you’re reflecting on your life, its struggles, its victories, and the people who carried you through. The same is true in nonprofit work. The work we do each day creates little moments for others, moments they may not fully understand until years later. That is the quiet magic of this sector.

But here’s where it gets complicated. We can drown in the little things too. We get so caught up in the day-to-day grind that our vision becomes blurred. Too many nonprofits are struggling to survive and not for lack of passion, grit, or determination, but because they are caught on the hamster wheel of nonprofit leadership, constantly searching for the next donor, the next grant, the next opportunity that will finally launch the organization into financial stability. But the truth is, that wheel can be never-ending. And nonprofit burnout becomes a silent, creeping threat.

From Passion to Preparedness: The Need for Strategy

I’ve been there. I’ve felt the impatience, the frustration, the fear. I’ve stared at dwindling bank accounts and wondered how to make payroll. I’ve felt the weight of decisions that impact entire teams and communities. Many obstacles were unexpected and completely out of our control. But obstacles don’t care about timing; they just happen. And leaders need to be prepared with a clear vision and a solid team to weather those storms.

We all step into this world with a passion for CHANGE and IMPACT. That early drive is fearless and wonderfully naive. We jump in believing we will change the world today. But soon we realize that lasting change requires more than drive and passion. It requires relationships built over time, the ability to navigate political landscapes, a thoughtful strategic plan, and resources, not just financial, but human resources, too.

Impact takes a team. A team built on passion, yes, but also on knowledge, capacity, and a shared willingness to do the hard work required. While we live in the day-to-day moments, we must keep our eyes on the strategy, the long-term goals, the vision, the direction. Because before you know it, the five-year plan you wrote becomes your reality, and you need a new roadmap for the next five.

The Critical Role of Board Governance

This is the work of nonprofit leaders, supported by volunteer boards of directors who play a vital, often misunderstood role. Board governance is critical and challenging. We can be incredibly grateful for those willing to volunteer their time, but we also need to be intentional. A seat on the board must be purposeful. What skills does this person bring? What gaps do they fill? What experience can they offer? It takes more than enthusiasm to lead an organization well. Boards need recruitment, training, and ongoing development. When they receive it, organizations thrive. When they don’t, even the most passionate mission can stall.

Lyons Leadership & Solutions: A Commitment to Impact

And this brings me back to Lyons Leadership & Solutions.

Launching this business is my way of taking everything I’ve learned—the heartbreak, the successes, the failures, the education, the experience, and turning it into support for others. I want leaders to know they don’t have to do it alone. I want boards to feel empowered and properly equipped. I want organizations to have clarity, strategy, and renewed purpose. I want to help create stability in a sector defined by uncertainty.

Most importantly, I want to help people rediscover the passion that brought them into this work in the first place.

Because I’ve seen what happens when organizations are supported. I’ve seen leaders breathe again, teams reconnect, boards step into their roles with confidence, and visions that once felt impossible finally take shape. And I’ve seen the ripple effect, the way a well-supported nonprofit impacts individuals who then impact others. It all begins with small moments, small changes, small shifts in capacity… that lead to big outcomes.

My mother taught me that small things make the biggest difference. My career taught me that nonprofits deserve better support. And my heart tells me that this work, helping leaders and organizations find clarity, strategy, and strength, is exactly where I am meant to be.

Lyons Leadership & Solutions is not just a business. It is the culmination of a life lived in pursuit of impact. It is my commitment to helping others do the same.

And I cannot wait to begin.