Heber joins WVC as new director

During the winter of 2011-12, Lorrie Heber took time out of her busy schedule to volunteer at White Violet Center for Eco-Justice (WVC).

“It was healing for me,” Heber said. “I had spent the past 25 years behind a desk. It was a way for me to center myself.

“I really fell in love with the place.”

Now, Heber will be on the grounds at WVC more often as she was recently named director of the center.

Heber will replace Sister Maureen Freeman, who recently announced her retirement. Sister Maureen had served as director of the center since 2009.

Heber brings a wealth of marketing background to WVC, dating back to when she was a child.

Heber – who hails from Galesburg, Ill. – said her father worked in the radio business. The family moved around quite a bit through the Midwest, before settling in Terre Haute in the late 1960s.

She spent 19 years as the director for marketing and communications at Union Hospital.

For the past two years, Heber served as president/owner of Trailblazer Communications.

However, by taking the position at WVC, Heber said she has “put all my clients on notice.”

Heber earned her bachelor’s degree in speech communications from Indiana State University, and a master’s degree in leadership development from Saint Mary-of-the-Woods College.

Heber also became president of Our Green Valley Alliance for Sustainability in 2011. She has been a member of the organization since 2009.

Sustainability has been a passion for Heber for quite some time.

“I’ve been interested in and involved with groups and organizations centered on sustainability since the 1990s,” Heber said. “All of my efforts, all of my energy has been going into sustainability.”

Heber added she is also “big” on local food and serves on the board of directors with WVC Associate Director Robyn Morton of the Terre Foods Cooperative Market.

Heber has been married to her husband Tom for 28 years. Together, they enjoy gardening and have a plot in the Community Garden, located at 11th and Chestnut streets in Terre Haute.

While she owns an extensive background in marketing, Heber said she is looking forward to her new position and the challenge it presents.

“White Violet Center has a really strong staff,” she said. “As a director, you want to help set the direction. But there’s a lot to learn. My learning curve is pretty steep.”