Building Ideas

Kelly Bonnell is Chief Operations Officer of Constellation Wealth Partners.   Kelly brings expertise in process and strategic planning from a career dedicated to managing the organizational operations of scaling companies.She was instrumental in the success of her family’s business, BGR, Inc. where she led the company’s strategic planning and growth efforts in her position as COO.  In this role, she focused on integrating the major functions of the business to execute annual strategic plans and achieve the company’s financial goals.Kelly is a graduate of Leadership Cincinnati Class 47. She was also a member of C-Change, Class 8 and WE Lead, Class 11 – all three leadership development programs offered by the Cincinnati USA Regional Chamber. She was named one of Cincinnati’s Forty Under 40 by the Business Courier and winner of the 2018 Larry Grypp Rising Leader Award. Kelly is a graduate of the University of Dayton and Xavier University’s Williams College of Business.   She lives in Greater Cincinnati with her husband Todd and two children.    

Regina Carswell Russo is Founder/CEO of RRight Now Communications, a strategic communications firm.  Regina helps clients remove barriers to effective communication. With more than 30 years of communications, journalism, and media relations experience, Regina's clients include Duke Energy, Fifth Third Bank, United Way of Greater Cincinnati, The Port, Procter & Gamble, the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, the City of Cincinnati and Cincinnati Public Schools. After retiring from broadcast journalism after 23 years, 15 years here in Cincinnati at FOX19, Regina transitioned to arts marketing as Director of Communications and Marketing at the Cincinnati Art Museum and Chief of Communications at the Contemporary Arts Center, where the Cincinnati Business Courier recognized her accomplishments with a C-Suite Award. Regina brings innovation and creativity to solve complex communication problems for her clients in crisis communication, media relations, media interview coaching, brand reputation, and multicultural stakeholder engagement. RRight Now Communications' fastest growing client base is C-Suite women, helping them craft and elevate their authentic voice in their corporate leadership. Regina’s vast number of Board appointments and awards include:• National Association of Television Arts and Sciences Emmy Nominee• Five Associated Press and Michigan Association Broadcaster Awards• Cincinnati Magazine/ 2021, 2022, 2023 Power 300-Most Powerful Business Leaders• 2022 YWCA Career Woman of Achievement• Board Trustee, Cincinnati Opera (Executive Committee, Nominating Commitee)• Ragan Communication/ PR Daily Communicator of the Year Award 2021 Regina is a native of Detroit, and lives in Cincinnati with her husband and two sons.   

In this episode, we sit down with Sean McGrory, who has been the Board President of the Wasson Way organization since 2018, after joining in 2017. Sean is also a founding member of the CROWN Collaborative, which stands for the Cincinnati Riding or Walking Network. CROWN is an ambitious project aiming to create Cincinnati's first-ever urban trail loop—a 34-mile, multi-use paved trail encircling the city's urban core. This trail will connect over 350,000 people across 54 neighborhoods to key destinations such as parks, schools, employment centers, retail, recreation, and entertainment. The loop will be formed by linking several trails in development, including Wasson Way, the Ohio River Trail East, the Lunken Trail, the Little Miami Scenic Trail, the Ohio River Trail West, and the Mill Creek Greenway Trail. In his professional life, Sean is a CPA and Shareholder at Clark Schaefer Hackett, where he leads the Real Estate and Construction practice. He is a graduate of Miami University, Xavier University, and Walnut Hills High School, and an alumnus of Leadership Cincinnati Class XXV. Join us as we dive into the vision behind CROWN, the impact it will have on the city, and Sean's role in driving this exciting initiative forward.

Chad Munitz joined FC Cincinnati in May 2022 as its Chief Development Officer where he manages the club's Real Estate growth ambitions including the creation of a large-scale mixed-use district adjacent to TQL Stadium.   Chad added oversight of the club's business development arm, Aligned Ventures, to his remit in January 2024, which includes all non-MLS soccer revenue initiatives. Prior to FC Cincinnati, Chad held leadership roles in Real Estate and Economic Development with Towne Properties, the Cincinnati Center City Development Corporation (3CDC), the City of Cincinnati and the Ohio Department of Development (ODOD).   He has directed over $800 million in development and led transformative projects like Fountain Square and Washington Park, playing a key role in the revitalization of Cincinnati's downtown urban core. Chad graduated from The Ohio State University with a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration, Information Systems.   He is a native of New Philadelphia, Ohio and resides in the City of Cincinnati neighborhood of Northside with his wife and daughter.

Tom Demeropolis serves as Editor-In-Chief of the Cincinnati Business Courier, the premier business media digital and print publication in Greater Cincinnati.    He leads the team in both the print and online editions. He is a University of Cincinnati graduate and has a master’s in journalism from Ball State University. Prior to joining the Courier in 2010, he was a reporter with the Dayton Business Journal, a sister outlet.   He was selected to be a part of Leadership Cincinnati Class 47. He is a three-time American City Business Journals Eagle award winner.     A proud native of the Queen City, he lives in Cincinnati's Western Hills with his wife Lauren, and children.

Luke Blocher is General Counsel and Chief Strategy Officer for the Cincinnati Development Fund.  The CDF  is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit lending institution that fills a gap not covered by traditional lenders. They provide funding for real estate development in under-served markets in the Greater Cincinnati area. They also offer facilities and equipment funding for nonprofit organizations in the Greater Cincinnati region. At CDF Luke is responsible for legal and strategy functions, including management of the affordable housing lending and New Markets Tax Credit programs. He oversees compliance, data collection and reporting required by all CDF funders. He joined CDF in 2022.  His previous experience includes working in the Attorney General's office of the State of Ohio, Senior Counsel at Taft Stettinius & Hollister and Deputy City Solicitor, City of Cincinnati.    A Cincinnati native, he is an alumnus of St Xavier High School, Amherst College and Columbia Law School in New York City.    He resides in Cincinnati's Clifton neighborhood with his wife and family.

LaNae Barnes is the Local Market Executive for Bank of America in Cincinnati and works in partnership with the market President leadership team to help connect businesses, families and individuals to the banking and investment teams that will help improve their financial lives. She deploys Bank of America’s resources in the market to address social and economic concerns and build strong communities. More specifically, LaNae is responsible for the development and execution of the market plan, designed to drive revenue growth, employee engagement and corporate reputation. In addition, she oversees community partnerships, sponsorships and philanthropy in Cincinnati. LaNae is a native of Dallas, and an accomplished full scholarship track & field athlete at Syracuse University, where she was training for the 2008 Beijing Olympics.   She and her husband live in Cincinnati with their twin daughters.   Scott Thompson is the founder of RESLV. He founded the agency in 2016 with a vision for elevating his clients' businesses by producing high-quality content that highlights their unique characteristics.  He has grown the company from its humble roots to an Emmy award-winning agency whose reach extends around the world.     Scott leads his team with a foundational commitment to transparency, creativity, and respect, valuing each team member's expertise and insights as they provide innovative content to their clients.    Scott currently serves as a Chair of the Evanston Business Association in Cincinnati and was recently elected to the NATAS Ohio Valley Board of Governors, the organization that oversees the Emmy awards.  Storyteling is his passion, and he and his team are commited to showcasing the very best of Cincinnati.  

A strong advocate for people, Keizayla Fambro is a seasoned political strategist and community leader with a passion for social justice, policy, and community engagement.   Keizayla, is the Chief of Staff in the office of Cincinnati Mayor Aftab Pureval.  She strategically supports and manages the Mayor's administration, while also serving as the Mayor's top advisor.   Prior to this role, Keizayla served as the Senior Political Advisor for the Ohio Organizing Collaborative, running one of the country's largest voter registration efforts while strategizing and managing campaigns.  She also was the Political Director for Mayor Aftab's mayoral campaign.  Keizayla resides in Mt. Airy, with her daughter Kylie and dog Bentley!

Damian Hoskins is the Executive Director of Elementz, the premier Hip Hop Cultural Art Center in, Cincinnati. Elementz is committed to fostering talent, igniting potential and inspiring possibilities, particularly for underrepresented youth in the Greater Cincinnati region. Previously, Damian was the Vice President of Arts Impact at ArtsWave, the leading fundraiser and promoter of the arts in Cincinnati. Damian is also a 20 year teaching veteran and teaches a course on Hip Hop Studies at the College Conservatory of Music at the University of Cincinnati. Damian is also an oil painter, graphic designer and furniture maker. As an educator and artist, Damian firmly believes that his purpose in life is to inform and inspire the next generation of creative problem solvers. Damian holds a bachelor’s degree in English education from Central State University and a master’s degree from the Art Academy of Cincinnati. 

As President and CEO of Visit Cincy (formerly known as the Cincinnati USA Convention & Visitors Bureau), Julie Calvert leads the region’s destination marketing and management organization. Her strategic vision and collaborative approach help maximize the size and impact of Cincinnati’s visitor economy and expand the region’s travel, tourism, and convention industries. Prior to her appointment as CEO, Calvert served as Executive Director of Source Cincinnati (Cincinnati Experience), where she led the charge to connect the region with national media and elevate the “Cincinnati Story” into the global spotlight. In that role, she created a coalition of like-minded, visionary funders. She built and engaged a board of directors and tapped our best regional resources and outside experts to establish Source as the region’s only organization focused solely on global reputation management. Calvert has spent her career developing and executing strategies that drive awareness, build reputation, mobilize resources, and spark economic vitality in the region. She started as a media reporter and editor, worked as a senior advisor at one of Cincinnati’s top communications firms and served as Vice President of Communications and Strategic Development for the CVB from 2001-2016. While there, she was the driving force behind the CVB’s national marketing, communications and reputation-building strategies and was instrumental in the Bureau’s record-setting results in attracting and hosting some of the world’s most high-profile conventions. With a profound appreciation of our region’s rich diversity, Calvert has a track record of finding ways to celebrate the varied voices, backgrounds and viewpoints that make up our Cincinnati tapestry. She helped build the CVB’s Supplier Diversity Program and multicultural marketing channel. And she made diversity a key part of Source Cincinnati’s strategic vision, from the people it engages to the stories it tells about the region. In 2019, she was honored with the APEX award from Black Meetings & Tourism. In 2015, Calvert spearheaded civic communications efforts for the 2015 Major League Baseball All-Star Game hosted in Cincinnati, raising the city’s national profile during one of the signature events in all professional sports. In 2019, Calvert was included in the Cincinnati 300, a compilation of the city’s top 300 business leaders, along with a spot in the Power 100, a list of the 100 most influential business, political and community leaders in the Cincinnati region. In 2020, amidst the Coronavirus pandemic, Calvert was tapped to chair the Ohio Governor’s Statewide Task Force on Travel and Tourism to craft safe reopening strategies and protocols for the industry. She serves on board of Destinations International, the Hamilton County Commission on Women and Girls, the Board of the Cincinnati Music Festival, a former Cabinet Member for the ArtsWave Annual Community Campaign and has volunteered in leadership roles with several other regional non-profit organizations. Calvert earned a bachelor’s degree from Miami University and resides in Anderson Township with her husband Chris and two sons.