Bonnie McElveen-Hunter

Bonnie McElveen-Hunter
Born	(1950-06-29) June 29, 1950
Occupation(s)	Entrepreneur, philanthropist, diplomat
Known for	First woman to chair the American Red Cross board of governors; U.S. Ambassador to Finland (2001–2003); founder and CEO of Pace Communications

Mary Bonneau "Bonnie" McElveen-Hunter (born June 29, 1950) is an accomplished American entrepreneur, philanthropist, and diplomat, recognized as the inaugural woman to chair the board of governors of the American Red Cross. She established and leads Pace Communications, a firm specializing in content and integrated marketing strategies. Additionally, she held the position of U.S. Ambassador to Finland from 2001 through 2003. McElveen-Hunter also acted as finance chair for Elizabeth Dole's Republican presidential bid and pioneered the United Way's first billion-dollar campaign focused on women's leadership.

Early life

Her father served as a lieutenant colonel in the U.S. Air Force and was a P-51 pilot during World War II. Subsequently, he joined the Air National Guard and was among the initial seven U2 pilots conducting missions over the Soviet Union in the Cold War. Due to her father's military career, her family relocated frequently during her youth, living in Germany, Washington, Texas, Oklahoma, Louisiana, California, and Nebraska. She has two younger siblings: Dr. John Thomas McElveen Jr., a neurotologist, and Tweed McElveen-Bogache.

McElveen-Hunter completed her high school education at Bellevue High School in Nebraska in 1968. She then enrolled at Stephens College in Columbia, Missouri, where she initially pursued fashion design before transitioning to business law and marketing studies. In 1970, she earned the title of Miss Nebraska USA and competed in the Miss USA pageant; notably, her sister participated as Miss Missouri USA in 1974. After finishing college, she moved to Charlotte, North Carolina, becoming the first woman admitted into Bank of America's executive training program. She later worked as an advertising executive for Charlotte Magazine under Community Publishing. In 1972, she relocated to Greensboro, North Carolina, joining Republican congressman Walter E. Johnston, III's team and launching Pace Magazine, which evolved into Pace Communications. Working Woman Magazine listed Pace among America's top 175 women-owned enterprises.

Career

Founded in 1973 by McElveen-Hunter, Pace Communications, Inc. remains under her ownership with her serving as CEO. She holds the position of chairwoman on the American Red Cross board and acts as a trustee for the National Museum of Women in the Arts. Her leadership extends to being a trustee at the RAND Corporation, founding the United Way Billion Dollar National Women's Leadership Initiative, and co-chairing the Alexis de Tocqueville Society. Her board memberships have included United Way of America, Habitat for Humanity, iCivics, the National Gallery of Art’s Collectors Committee, Washington National Opera, National Portrait Gallery, Max Planck Florida Institute, and The Society of the Four Arts.

President George W. Bush appointed her as U.S. ambassador to Finland from 2001 until 2004. During her tenure, she organized the Helsinki Women Business Leaders Summit aimed at fostering collaboration among female CEOs across the U.S., Baltic countries, and Russia. Follow-up summits took place in Riga (2004) and Amman (2007), with Queen Rania hosting Middle Eastern women leaders. For her contributions, Finnish President Tarja Halonen bestowed upon her the Commander Grand Cross of the Order of the Lion.

In 2004, McElveen-Hunter became the first woman to chair the American Red Cross board of governors. Under her stewardship, the organization managed responses to significant disasters including the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami, Hurricane Katrina, the 2010 Haiti earthquake, and Hurricane Sandy. She has also contributed to boards such as the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts and North Carolina Museum of Art and is active on ServiceNation’s leadership council.

In 2013, she served as Honorary Chairman for the Wyndham Championship. Her advisory roles include positions with High Point University and Elon University School of Law; she has also lectured at Wake Forest University School of Business. As a lifetime member of Junior Leagues International and Hadassah Women's Zionist Organization of America, she remains engaged with Chief Executives Organization. McElveen-Hunter has delivered numerous commencement speeches at institutions including University of North Carolina at Greensboro (1988), Pepperdine University (2008), Coastal Carolina University (2010), and North Carolina State University (2012).

In 2014, she joined High Point University's National Board of Advisors.

Honors

• Commander Grand Cross of the Order of the Lion of Finland
• 2004 National Alexis de Tocqueville Society Award from United Way
• Ellis Island Medal of Honor (2005)

Personal life

McElveen wed attorney Bynum Merritt Hunter (1925–2018) in 1980. Together, they raised three children. She maintains residences in Greensboro, North Carolina; Palm Beach, Florida; and Washington, DC. Her religious affiliations include membership at the First Presbyterian Church of Greensboro and The Royal Poinciana Chapel located in Palm Beach.