Jenny Neyer Berg: Passionate about Her Mission
Meet Jenny Neyer Berg – if you haven’t already, you likely will. She’s a passionate doer and connector. All her jobs, volunteer work and board positions have led her to Impact 100, where she’s already had an enormous impact and continues to do so.
“My passion is helping nonprofits achieve their missions,” Jenny says. Combining this passion and her strengths, she has led organizations through leadership transitions, growth and difficult situations.
An Impact 100 member since 2004, Jenny is currently Chair of St. Vincent de Paul’s board; serves on the Freestore Foodbank’s board and heads the CEO search committee; and was the Impact 100 Nominating Committee chair from 2024-2025. In 2026, Jenny is President-Elect for Impact 100, and she is also heading the committee for our 25th anniversary, which we are celebrating in 2026.
Background
Jenny grew up on the East Side of Cincinnati, the sixth of Don and Phyllis Neyer’s eight children. They were both role models of volunteering and community involvement.
Jenny met her husband, Jim, while they were in high school. She went on to earn a marketing degree from Miami University, while he went to Purdue. They have one son and two daughters (one of whom is in Chicago), plus six grandchildren.
She started working in retail, but was drawn into the family business as part of the fifth generation in Al. Neyer, a commercial real estate design, development and building firm. She watched her grandfather, and then her father, run the business and helped with marketing and operations for more than 17 years. Then she stayed home for 10 years and raised her three children.
When the kids were in school, she started a long career of volunteering. A volunteer on a human resources committee at Tender Mercies (which provides housing and support for formerly homeless adults with severe mental illness), she later joined the board and became chair in 2003. She became aware of Impact 100 when Tender Mercies became a finalist and then received a $183,000 Impact 100 grant. This experience led Jenny to join Impact 100, and she’s been an active member ever since.
This and her other board work led to a job from 2012 to 2022 as Executive Director of Leadership Council for Nonprofits, a network of nonprofit agencies in the Greater Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky/SE Indiana region who provide leadership and professional development opportunities that leaders of nonprofits often find hard to access or afford. Jenny increased the membership from 100 to 250, even taking over programs from the Chamber of Commerce and United Way. A big believer in the importance of connecting and developing nonprofit leaders, she took on developing the BOLD (Board orientation & leadership development) program focused on creating effective board members.
About the same time, Jenny had her eyes opened to the power of women’s giving. She joined and then chaired the board of Philanos, a national network that empowers women’s collective giving to strengthen communities. The 105 affiliates (Impact 100 Cincinnati is one of them) have a guiding mission: become informed donors, practice intentional grantmaking, and make a lasting impact in their local communities. This was helpful for her to see how local giving circles were part of a larger ecosystem making change and impact happen.
Making connections is one of Jenny’s many skills. People respond to her outgoing, friendly personality and her genuine desire to get to know people. Building relationships, optimizing efficiency and maximizing performance are strengths she’s honed through her years of volunteering and board work.
Her Inspiration
When her father died in 2023, Jenny wrote: “I’ve been so blessed to see, hear and feel the impact of the legacy my father left me – our large, loving family and the many communities he served. He’s my favorite philanthropist, guiding light and servant leader. I will miss this good and faithful servant.”
Jenny calls Impact 100 her greatest influence outside of family. It helped her learn the needs of our community and who serves those needs. “I love meeting women I would never have met, if not for my involvement in Impact 100. And I admire people who have taken on many different volunteer roles before and after me. I like being part of this community and am happy to come back on the board [as president-elect in 2026].”
Impact 100 Family Ties
Jenny has drawn her family into Impact 100, as well. Her mom, Phyllis, was once a member. Donna Broderick, her sister, has been a member since 2005, is a past president, and a Grant Review Team leader for 2026. Jenny’s daughter Emily Schmidt has been a member since 2012 and is a former board member.
Celebrating 25 Years
As chair for Impact 100’s 25th anniversary, she says, “We have a lot to celebrate after 25 years. This group has been able to make such an impact in the community, with continued membership growth and innovation, such as the Young Philanthropist Scholarship Program.”
For the anniversary, Jenny wants to celebrate our history – Impact 100 is now part of a global network of giving circle organizations (Impact 100 Global). But it started right here in Cincinnati, with founder Wendy Steele.
“This organization has shown me that anyone can be a philanthropist – no matter your age or stage of life. For too long, women have thought they couldn’t do this on their own, but by being part of a collective giving circle you can.”
Future Impact of Impact 100
“We are learning to better understand our nonprofits’ needs and how to help them make a bigger impact. Our grant application process helps them think through ideas to use the money, and even to reflect on how to do things differently if they didn’t get the grant,” Jenny says.
She adds, “I’ve seen grant recipients connect and collaborate with each other. And the more grants we can award, the more ripples of impact we will see. We need to continue to innovate and put members’ passion into action.”
And with her passion and experience, we will make this happen.
