An effervescent and energetic Donna Stone hit the podium Tuesday morning at the Delaware State Chamber of Commerce Boardroom for a DSCC Women in Business forum meeting.
Stone, who served in the Delaware State Legislature from 1994 to 2008 (32nd District – Dover), and is currently vice president and branch manager at TD Bank’s Delaware Avenue office in Wilmington, shared her experiences and life lessons with the audience.
It was her second appearance in front of the Women in Business crowd (her first coming during her time as a state legislator), and Stone had plenty of updates for the crowd. “I have reinvented myself five times,” she said. “And I have a sixth in me. I just don’t know what it’s going to be next.”
Stone guided the audience through her eclectic career path, which included stints as a yoga instructor, a restaurant manager, a Realtor, a legislator and, finally, a bank manager. While in office, she also served as president of the National Conference of State Legislatures.
Of her winding path in life, Stone said, “We have the opportunity every day to start life in a different direction.” She then quoted lines from Dr. Seuss’ famous “Oh, the Places You’ll Go!”
The tie that bound together all her job posts was a fundamental love of people and serving people’s needs. That attitude helped Stone open many professional doors. “Take yourself out of your comfort zone and you’ll find yourself growing in spurts,” she said.
Stone, a lifelong Dover resident, reflected on her recent move to Wilmington (“I’m very excited about the rejuvenated Wilmington,” she said) and closed by reading “45 Lessons Life Taught Me,” a collection of wisdom first written by columnist Regina Brett.
Among the 45 life lessons:
“When in doubt, take the next small step.”
“Save for retirement starting with your first paycheck.”
“When it comes to chocolate, resistance is futile.”
Many thanks for a great presentation, Donna, and thanks to all the attendees of the DSCC Women in Business Forum. We’ll see you next time.
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