 Ronni Wood,
Executive Director
Main Street Winter Haven
A native of Trona, California, Ronali Wood, better known as Ronni, has always been interested with downtown revitalization. Ronni attended Maryville College in Maryville, Tennessee and received her Bachelor’s degree in Psychology and minor in Sociology. She later earned a Masters degree in Businesses Administration. In 1993, Ronni graduated from the National Main Street Center's Institute for Profressional Downtown Management becoming one of the only 151 certified Main Street Managers currently in the nation. In 1987, Ronni was first hired as Lake Wales’ Main Street Manager and worked to help revitalize their downtown for eight and half years. Thereafter, she graced her way into downtown Winter Haven in 1995 making the downtown dream of restoration come true. Ronni Wood remains the Executive Director for Main Street Winter Haven.
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Assistant Director
Main Street Winter Haven
Besides the time Karen Thompson spends at the Main Street office, Karen is dedicated to her daughters Kendal, 17, Skylar, 9, Ally, 5 and Lauren, 4. “My life is gymnastics, soccer and soon ballet,” Karen laughed. “To sum it up I have one driving and one in pre-school. ” Before her daughters came into her life Karen was a water-skier and a dolphin trainer. After that, she opened a baby store in Winter Haven. After the birth of her 4th child and being a full time mom, "I realized WORK was where I needed to be!” Karen added, “I have a lot of admiration for stay-at-home moms. They have the patience of saints and nerves of steel.”
When asked how she started at Main Street Winter Haven, Karen commented, “It was perfect timing. I was introduced to Ronni when I owned the baby store. I called one day inquiring about a position. Everything fell into place. Her assistanct, Laura was soon to be leaving after the birth of her son. And since then, I have had the pleasure of working with Ronni who is truly the hardest working person I have ever met. I am fortunate to be her assistant and ENJOY the fact that everyday is a new experience with our VERY busy schedule.”
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