Get to Know – Emily Commer

What about NEBGH’s mission drove you to want to join our team? 

I didn’t have health insurance benefits until I got my first job in my mid-20’s working for a nonprofit. It felt like such a luxury at the time but as my family grew it really became an essential. I’m also passionate about building community around shared values so we can all feel more connected, raise our collective voices, and empower positive change. NEBGH brings this together for me through their commitment to ensuring excellence in health care and bringing members opportunities to learn from each other and through experts with top-level resources that they pass on to their employees and partners. The energy of the amazing staff, the brain trust of the incredible board, and the impact on lives across this incredible community of members is what drew me to this opportunity. 

You have had a long career in the international sector with academic and cultural exchange programs, what led you there? 

I studied in Germany during college, and it was a transformative experience both personally and professionally – I completed a marketing internship with Porsche at their research and development headquarters outside of Stuttgart. I loved it but it also made me realize that I wanted to do something different. This experience led me on a career path that for the past 17+ years has focused on developing global leaders and making international work experiences more accessible. My life has been so enriched by bringing people together to solve global challenges from health to climate to poverty and human rights – it’s all interconnected. I love to explore cultures, and I got to see the world and experience new perspectives through international exchange.  

With 6.2 million lives among its membership, I’m thrilled to get to know and work with NEBGH members who are directly impacting so many lives every day. And if your company has an international internship program or hosts J-1 visa interns or trainees, chances are I worked with them ~ it can be a small world! 

We hear you love to run.  

I became a runner just a few years ago so I could make time to listen to music. At first, I would run for three songs, then it quickly became six songs, and the playlist just kept growing. When a friend mentioned they were running a half-marathon in Joshua Tree National Park at night, I signed up. It was incredibly atmospheric to run under the stars in the desert that I used to visit often when I was in college in Southern California. This past summer I ran a half marathon in the mountains of Glacier National Park which was a bucket list experience. I’d love to run around the Cape of Good Hope in South Africa from the Atlantic to the Indian Ocean someday. Let’s see if my knees will let me! 

I also love to do Pilates which has helped keep me moving and recover from injuries. I’m currently getting my Pilates teacher certification this fall. Just wait, we will all be doing Pilates together at the next conference😉