If people didn’t know better, they might think Tonya Gosnell had cloned herself. She’s everywhere.
The Russellville native grew up knowing at least one thing she wanted to do — be a Red Coat for the Russellville Area Chamber of Commerce.
“Ever since I was a little girl, I knew what a Red Coat was — an ambassador,” she said. “I just always wanted to represent Russellville.”
When people ask Gosnell where she lives, she usually tells them this: “God took Moses up on Mount Nebo and showed him the promised land, and that’s where I live,” she said, laughing.
Gosnell, 44, is starting her third year as a Red Coat with the chamber and was named Red Coat of the Year in January at the chamber’s annual banquet.
“It’s a very prestigious thing,” she said of being a Red Coat, which is by invitation only.
Points are given for ambassadors when they show up for ribbon cuttings, grand openings, groundbreakings and other chamber events. That’s how the Red Coat of the Year is chosen, she said.
“People are like, ‘Oh, my gosh, that’s so great.’ That just means I went to a lot of things,” she said with a laugh. “It’s something I’m proud of — don’t get me wrong.”
Gosnell, community-education manager for Turning Point Adult Behavioral Health at St. Mary’s Regional Medical Center in Russellville, worked and lived in Little Rock for 14 years after she graduated from Arkansas Tech University. She majored in business administration with an emphasis on marketing and first worked for Arkansas Capital Corporation Group, a small-business lender.
“I never told anybody I was from Little Rock. I said, ‘I’m from Russellville.’ I love Little Rock, but it never seemed right to say I was from Little Rock. Russellville was my home, and I always knew I’d be back someday,” Gosnell said.
“It’s beautiful. It’s in a perfect location. You can be in Little Rock in an hour; you can be in the mountains in an hour or less. The lake (Dardanelle) is so beautiful, and all our state parks. I have so many friendships and history with different families and people I’ve known for a couple of generations,” she said.
After working in Little Rock, “I moved home and changed careers,” she said. Gosnell landed a job in marketing at a small hospital in Dardanelle, where she worked for a couple of years.
Her parents, Jimmy and Sheila Gosnell, still live in Russellville, and she said they are role models in her life.
“I studied marketing, and it’s kind of in my blood,” she said.
Her mother was a travel agent for years, and Gosnell’s father was a real estate agent.
“Dad was a car salesman before being a real estate agent; my family has always been in sales,” she said.
Although it might not seem like “sales,” Gosnell said she’s selling a health care service in her job. She got a job at St. Mary’s Regional Medical Center’s behavioral-health unit when it opened in October 2011.
“I get paid to talk,” she said.
And while she is talking, she walks the walk.
Last year, Gosnell organized the first Out of the Darkness Walk at Arkansas Tech University in Russellville to bring awareness to suicide and raise money for the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention. Her goal was $5,000, based on the size of the school, and $16,000 was raised. This year, her goal is $20,000, she said.
“Last year, we had over 600 walkers, so we’re hoping to grow this year,” she said. Anyone who wants to participate in the effort can email Gosnell at tonya.gosnell@saintmarysregional.com.
Gosnell said the cause hits home, too. “That’s kind of how my life has fallen into place — I had a first cousin who completed suicide. He was 18. It’s always been in the back of my mind, and it wasn’t something that affected my everyday life, but I’ve always thought about it and understood people a little bit better if they suffered from depression or something like that.”
“Arkansas has a pretty high suicide rate,” she said. In 2013, Arkansas had 516 suicide deaths.
She’s also a member of the River Valley Prevention Coalition.
“We do a lot with preventing injury. … We do a lot in the schools, preventing peer pressure and eating disorders, suicide prevention,” she said. “[It’s] heavily involved in the walk.
“Being involved in the community is my main purpose so everybody will know who we are and what we do,” she said of Turning Point. “The hospital is wonderful.”
Mike McCoy, interim CEO of St. Mary’s Regional Health System, praised Gosnell and her work in the community.
“We are very fortunate to have Tonya working at Saint Mary’s Regional Medical Center,” he said. “She is very passionate about her job and helping make the River Valley better. Her compassion and enthusiasm for her job flow over into our community as evidenced by her recognition as the Red Coat of the Year. We are very proud of Tonya,” he said, “and congratulate her on this recognition.”
Gosnell is president of The Rotary Club of Russellville. When she joined four years ago, her father was a Rotarian.
“I thought, ‘Oh, gosh, I get to have lunch with my dad every Thursday.’ Then he retired and decided not to be a member,” she said.
Gosnell stayed involved and became president in June.
“It just seemed like a logical step to serve not only our community, but to serve the club itself. If I’m going to do it, I’m going to give it 100 percent,” she said.
“Not only do you give back, but you learn so much about our state and the surrounding area,” Gosnell said, because of the speakers who make presentations to the club. She mentioned speakers such as a representative from the Pope County Historical Society, an author and a blown-glass artist.
“I’d really like to grow the club. We have 70 members. Right now, the average age is probably 65, but the guys that came in after me are younger than I am, which is good. We need to keep it growing. A lot of young people have never heard of it. They don’t understand that would be a great avenue to give back to their community, to join in,” Gosnell said.
She said her Rotary club is planning a fundraising event for December called Hoops for Hunger, a basketball classic. The Russellville School District is partnering with the club.
“I’d really like for this to be an annual event. We have two Rotary clubs in this town; no one should go to bed hungry,” she said.
“Thankfully, the hospital allows me the opportunity to be involved in these things, so it’s my job,” she said.
On her own time, she teaches Zumba classes with Soul2Sole.
“There have been times I’ve used that, too, to help people. We’ll have a health fair, and I’ll teach a quick class,” she said.
Gosnell said her faith is “very important” to her, too. She’s a member of First Baptist Church in Russellville.
“I love to study my Bible. That’s one reason I read through it every year, and I do and have done lots of Bible studies,” she said. “I like to say I’m a disciple of Jesus Christ cleverly disguised as a community-education manager, Rotary president, Red Coat Ambassador and Zumba instructor,” she said.
Therefore, she’s everywhere.
Senior writer Tammy Keith can be reached at (501) 327-0370 or tkeith@arkansasonline.com.