Minnesota: Katherine Bonine

Ambassador for the State of Minnesota

My name is Katherine Bonine and I have lived in Minnesota since 2010. I am originally from Southern CA but moved to Minnesota shortly after getting married. I have two children, a son Harrison who is 12 and a daughter Hannah who just turned 5.  Currently I am the Executive Director of Faith in Action in Red Wing Minnesota. My background however is mainly in education. I went to school for American Sign Language Studies and became an Educational DeafBlind Intervener. This was a wonderful job that I loved but it was an hour commute each way from home. After my daughter was born I wanted a job closer to home and that is when I was hired in my first Director role. I was hired as the director of a preschool 30 minutes away. It was in this role that I discovered I really enjoyed the role of a Director and felt it really called on my natural talents. I grew as a person and as an Administrator. Then in the Spring of 2022 I was feeling burnt out on State Licensing due to the craziness of COVID and all of the changes and challenges a Director of a State Licensed Preschool had to endure. I began looking for a new role and tried to get even closer to home. In May of 2022 I was hired on as the Director of Faith in Action. My commute was now just two blocks! Since then I have learned a great deal about my own community as well as the needs of aging individuals and especially the needs of those in rural areas. I am still growing and learning in this role and I am enjoying every minute of it!