Meet Lynn Van Lenten
We recently connected with Lynn Van Lenten and have shared our conversation below.
Hi Lynn , really happy you were able to join us today and we’re looking forward to sharing your story and insights with our readers. Let’s start with the heart of it all – purpose. How did you find your purpose?
From a young girl, my passion has been for people. Churched throughout my life, I marveled at the missionary story of passion for faith that drove a person to far off countries and people groups to share and serve. Sacrifice and drive based on love changed many lives. I wanted MY passion to be that purposeful.
Fast forward through college to my adult life, I let my passion lead me into nonprofit work — and that is where I have found my purpose. Now decades later as a wife, mother and grandmother, I still serve with a passion for the people around me. From being a stateside missionary, to working with various nonprofit service organizations, and now to the Chamber of Commerce of Delray Beach, my purpose is still to love people and see their passions fulfilled. It is a purpose that never goes out of style, never misses the mark. Helping locals fulfill their passion fulfills my purpose. A great win-win!
Appreciate the insights and wisdom. Before we dig deeper and ask you about the skills that matter and more, maybe you can tell our readers about yourself?
I have been a part of our Delray Beach Chamber of Commerce for 10 years. I began as a member and accepted a staff position soon after. It has been an incredible experience! Understanding the business climate, challenges of a small village by the sea, and all the obstacles for small business owners has enabled me to provide programming, networking, collaboration and partnership for our members & community.
I am responsible for planning major and minor Chamber programs. These include member-wide events, specialty groups, nonprofit education and community engagement. Sponsorships are a necessity for our nonprofit model, and I work hard to create quality opportunities for our members and community to participate and grow.
Lastly, I represent our Chamber community in Delray Beach writing a monthly editorial for our local magazine called “We Are Delray”. I write about the unique people and programs in Delray Beach – those hidden gems that help keep our “Village By The Sea” so special. This is my home, and I am so grateful to fulfill my purpose here.
Looking back, what do you think were the three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that were most impactful in your journey? What advice do you have for folks who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these?
There are so many things I have learned in my business journey, but here are the top three:
1. Do work that is fueled from your heart – as I wrote earlier, I found my passion in loving & serving people, and I have never tired of it. Working from the heart makes ones work sustainable.
2. Be YOU – I have learned over the years to accept who I am – the good and the bad – and to be happy in my own skin. It has taken time, but this decade of my life is the most fulfilling because I am working fully in this truth. I can say I wish I had done this earlier, but it takes all the experiences and time to get to this place. I am so happy to be here!
3. Love those around you – I mean really LOVE them! Get to know them, understand them, accept them and LOVE them. This has made my work life so much richer because behind every business is a person and that person need to be loved.
One of our goals is to help like-minded folks with similar goals connect and so before we go we want to ask if you are looking to partner or collab with others – and if so, what would make the ideal collaborator or partner?
One of my greatest passions is coordinating and running our Nonprofit Council. This important program has been created to meet the needs of our nonprofit members. We understand the work that is being done locally, how important it is to the vitality of Delray, and how hard it can be. So, we created a council to provide networking, education and collaboration for our nonprofit leaders.