Head of North American Operations for Elavon says follow your heart when giving to your community
Joy Lyons, head of North America Operations for Elavon, the merchant processing business within 黄色短视频 Payment Services, dedicates a meaningful amount of her time to volunteering with organizations that help women. She recently was recognized for her service with a Pay it Forward Star Award from the Electronic Transaction Association.
Lyons, who is based in Knoxville, Tennessee, said she follows three guidelines to help her incorporate community service 鈥 including work with domestic violence shelters, contributions to organizations benefiting children and supporting young women transition from student to successful businesswomen鈥 into her life.
Follow your interests聽
As a woman in the financial services industry, Lyons said it鈥檚 important to mentor other women in the sector.
鈥淲ith any activity, we are more likely to have a positive outcome when our skills and interests are aligned with a need,鈥 she said. 鈥淲hile I am incredibly passionate about the work I do at 黄色短视频, I am equally dedicated to giving back to other women in the industry and in my local community. I know how important it is to share our knowledge and experience with one another.鈥
That dedication motivates her to serve as an active member of the board and support its mission to connect, inspire and champion women in the payments industry. She serves as an executive advisor for the Elavon Women in Payments Atlanta chapter business resource group.
Lyons puts her talent for motivating groups of people to work by engaging with more than 750 students and active alumnae in community service projects through her role as the alumni liaison coordinator and mother鈥檚 club president for Alpha Delta Pi 鈥 University of Tennessee, Knoxville.聽
Engage your network聽
Lyons said she learned years ago while running a coat drive to help a nonprofit organization that when it comes to volunteer work, there鈥檚 great value in bringing people together.
鈥淎s an individual donor, I could give a few coats at most,鈥 she said.聽
But by partnering with her daughter and mobilizing local schools, dance studios and her coworkers, Lyons and her network have been able to donate more than 7,000 coats and blankets over a 10-year span.聽
Lyons also volunteers alongside her Elavon colleagues to coordinate donation drives for toys, books and art supplies for the local children鈥檚 hospital and collect essential school supplies for local, underserved schools.聽
鈥淎gain, as individuals, we could help a few kids, but together we are able to fill entire SUVs with goodies and necessities,鈥 she said.
Make helping a habit聽
Commitment is key in forming good habits, Lyons said, and volunteerism is no exception.聽
鈥淲hen you make community work a consistent part of your life, it ceases to be a grand gesture of charity and becomes an expected part of living in a community,鈥 she said. 鈥淚 give my time and energy now because I can. I know that any one of us may, at some point, need to receive assistance. We all need to recognize that giving and accepting help is part of our dedication to each other and our communities.鈥
鈥淚f someone is just starting out in volunteer work, it鈥檚 fine to start small but it鈥檚 important to be consistent,鈥 Lyons said. 鈥淭wenty years ago, I began dedicating time to acts of service to show my daughter the important role each of us has in supporting our community.聽 I started with just a few activities a year but quickly saw, and felt, the positive impact. I now dedicate five days a month to work in my community.鈥
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