Some of the most important leadership lessons I’ve learned didn’t come from a boardroom, a classroom, or a business book.
They came from 25 years of volunteering with the American Heart Association.
It started with my mom.
In 1996, my mom underwent emergency triple bypass surgery. Complications followed—her heart fell out of rhythm, she became insulin-dependent, and over the next two decades she endured 11 stents, a double pacemaker, and eventually congestive heart failure. She passed away in 2016.
She is the reason I began volunteering with the American Heart Association in 2000.
What started as a way to honor my mom eventually became one of the greatest leadership classrooms I could have imagined.
One Simple “Yes” Changed Everything
In 2010, I was sitting in an American Heart Association volunteer meeting in Houston when someone said,
“We need a few photos of some doctors for a Go Red for Women sponsorship. Does anyone know a photographer?”
They didn’t have a detailed plan.
I didn’t have a proposal.
I simply raised my hand and said,
“I can do it.”
That one decision led to a decade-long portrait campaign called Heart Throbs: Iconic Men Go Red, where I photographed male community leaders to raise awareness that heart disease is the number one killer of women.
Later came Faces of Heart Disease, highlighting women whose personal stories helped educate others about recognizing symptoms and taking action.
When I moved back to Memphis in 2020, I contacted the local American Heart Association before I even unpacked.
“I want to help. Just tell me where I’m needed.”
Since then, I’ve photographed more than 70 Women of Impact participants—leaders who use their influence to make our community healthier and stronger.
Looking back, those portrait sessions were never just about photography.
They were about leadership.
What Nonprofit Service Taught Me About Leadership
Leadership is built through action.
No one asked me to create a decade-long portrait campaign.
No one handed me a blueprint.
Leadership often begins when someone sees a need and decides to step forward.
Leadership grows when you serve beyond your job title.
Some of the strongest relationships I’ve built didn’t happen inside an office.
They happened while working alongside volunteers, physicians, business leaders, and community advocates who cared deeply about something bigger than themselves.
Leadership is about people, not recognition.
One of the greatest privileges has been telling other people’s stories.
Helping someone feel seen.
Helping a cause reach more people.
Helping a community understand that one conversation can save a life.
Leadership creates ripple effects you’ll never fully see.
One woman attended an American Heart Association luncheon, recognized her own heart attack symptoms during a presentation, and sought medical care that ultimately saved her life.
Another woman collapsed in her classroom. A coworker who had recently learned CPR revived her, inspiring an entire community to pursue CPR training.
Those moments remind me that leadership isn’t always measured by promotions or titles.
Sometimes it’s measured one life at a time.
If You’re Thinking About Getting Involved
You don’t have to start a nonprofit.
You don’t have to chair a campaign.
You simply have to begin.
Find a cause that genuinely matters to you.
Offer the skills you already have.
Show up consistently.
Build relationships.
The impact will often surprise you.
Looking Back
When I first raised my hand in that volunteer meeting, I thought I was simply offering photography.
I had no idea I was beginning a journey that would shape the way I think about leadership, service, and influence for the next 25 years.
Today, I’m proud that my photography has played a small role in helping the American Heart Association raise more than $3 million for research, education, and awareness—including more than $206,000 through the 2025 Memphis Women of Impact campaign alone.
No, I wasn’t responsible for raising that money by myself.
But leadership has never been about doing everything yourself.
It’s about contributing your unique gifts to something bigger than yourself.
And that’s the greatest leadership lesson volunteering has ever taught me.
Sandy Adams 