Henry’s family set the stage for attending Ohio State Newark, and they encouraged her to do the same. Her grandfather took classes in the old Newark High School before the campus existed. Her mother earned an education degree from Ohio State Newark. Henry recalled “a definite generational push,” but she didn’t need any buttering up. “I knew the resources are phenomenal and the people will support whatever you want to do.”
With a passion for math plus an outgoing personality, the Lakewood High School graduate found a fitting path through the business program. She spent her first two years at Ohio State Newark and excelled, earning an invitation to a scholarship and student leadership breakfast banquet her sophomore year. She was seated next to Dan DeLawder, then CEO of Park National Bank. They chewed the fat through bites of bacon. When he learned Henry was a good egg, he offered her a job.
It started with two summers as a student intern, and she promptly put all her eggs in the bank’s basket. “I knew it was the right fit, somewhere I could spend the next 50 years,” she said. “I felt at home — the same way I felt at Ohio State Newark.” Specializing in finance forced Henry’s transition to Ohio State’s Columbus campus until her final semester, when she eagerly returned to Newark. She graduated with a bachelor’s degree in business administration in 2017.
Then she joined Park’s 18-month management training program, which gave her a taste of every department. Because of a personal tragedy, Henry resonated most with her work in the wealth management department. “I lost my father unexpectedly and watched my mom have to figure out estate planning,” she remembered. “I learned that my passion is helping people with that process.”
She has pursued that passion for the last eight years, now serving as a wealth management advisor. In addition to estate planning, she assists clients with charitable giving — and her alma mater is one place they meaningfully spend their dough. “They want to contribute to this campus and support its mission and growth,” she stated, “and I trust Ohio State Newark to use the money wisely.” That’s why she even donates to some scholarship funds herself. “I try to give as much as I can because of how much this place gave me.”
Henry traces her professional start back to that breakfast banquet. In her words, “it created my entire career.” By the time her plate was empty, she had filled her future with possibility — and preparing students for the future is this campus’s bread and butter. “Ohio State Newark helped me find my passion and ways to push more change within this community,” she said. “I feel so incredibly blessed that I had the opportunity to go here.”