We're thrilled to welcome Jimmy Donovan to the Girls on the Run Greater Houston Board of Directors. If his name sounds familiar, it might be because you've already met him on the sidelines, at Yellow Rose Fitness, or on the dance floor at last year's Heights Daddy-Daughter Dance.
Jimmy was born and raised in Spring, Texas, and now calls the Heights home, where he lives with his wife, Jenn, and their two kids, Cole (12) and Harlow (9). By day, he's spent the last 21 years building a career in the specialty chemicals industry, with leadership roles at Baker Hughes, Dow, DuPont, and now LANXESS, where he serves as Global Business Director. He holds a B.S. in Chemical Engineering from the University of Colorado and an MBA from the University of Texas.
But the part of Jimmy's story that led him to us has less to do with chemical engineering and more to do with coaching. For the past eight years, Jimmy has worked as a strength and conditioning coach at Yellow Rose Fitness in Garden Oaks, training both adults and youth. He's coached youth soccer through TSA and helped young athletes prepare for running and triathlon events along the way. Ask him about it and he'll tell you coaching has always been about more than the sport itself, it's a way to invest in young people, promote health and wellness, and help others reach goals they didn't think were possible.
That belief in coaching is exactly what led Jimmy and his wife, Jenn, to found the Heights Daddy-Daughter Dance in 2025. They saw an opportunity to create something built by their community, for their community, while also giving back to it. Through his work at Yellow Rose Fitness, Jimmy had already gotten to know Girls on the Run Greater Houston, and the alignment between our mission and the dance's purpose was obvious to him from the start.
Working alongside Michelle Nasser, Jimmy brought the Heights Daddy-Daughter Dance on as a partner event benefiting GOTR Greater Houston. In its very first year, the dance raised more than $6,000 for our organization and helped launch a brand-new Girls on the Run chapter at Field Elementary. The Donovan family didn't stop there. They showed up to our Sneaker Soirée and ran our Spring 5K together, where Harlow crossed the finish line of her first-ever 5K.
Over this past year, Jimmy has seen firsthand what this organization means to the girls, families, and community around it. That experience is what brought him to ask about joining our Board of Directors, and we couldn't be more glad he did.
Jimmy, welcome to the board. We can't wait to see what we build together, starting with this year's Heights Daddy-Daughter Dance on February 12.
Want to be part of the next Heights Daddy-Daughter Dance, or curious about what it takes to join our board? Reach out to us at info@gotrgreaterhouston.org.