Some board members find their way to Girls on the Run Greater Houston through a formal search process. Veronica Medina found hers over an air hockey table.
Earlier this year, Veronica was at an air hockey tournament at Bad Astronaut here in Houston, not thinking about nonprofit boards or youth programming or anything close to it. Then a phrase came over the speakers: girl power. She didn't know why it caught her attention exactly, only that it did. So she tracked down the person connected to it, our Executive Director Michelle, and asked what it was about.
That one conversation was enough. Veronica went from having no idea what Girls on the Run was to, in her own words, being in love with it. A few months later, she joined our Board of Directors.
Who She Is
Veronica currently serves as Assistant Vice President of Sales Insights & Effectiveness at Aetna, a CVS Health Company, where she leads enterprise initiatives spanning sales strategy, technology adoption, and organizational effectiveness. She's spent more than 20 years in healthcare leadership, including a run as West Region President at Meritain Health and several roles at Aetna built around developing people and improving how large organizations actually function.
She holds a Bachelor of Science in Psychology from the University of Houston and a Master of Science in Industrial Organizational Psychology from the University of Houston-Clear Lake, a background that shows up in how she talks about her work: less about the org chart, more about what makes people and teams actually thrive.
Why It Fits
Veronica describes herself as a dedicated mentor, someone committed to helping people realize their full potential. That's not a line from a resume. It's the same instinct that had her chasing down a stranger at an air hockey tournament because two words over a speaker made her curious enough to ask a question.
She's also no stranger to volunteer leadership. Before joining our board, she served as National Co-Chair of JUNTOS, a Hispanic employee resource group at CVS Health focused on urgency and impact in the present, not someday. That same energy is exactly what a girl on one of our teams needs from the adults around her: someone who shows up now, not eventually.
Welcome, Veronica
We're glad a phrase over a speaker was enough to bring her into this organization, and we're even more glad she stayed. Welcome to the board, Veronica. We can't wait to see what you build with us.