I’ve known Dr. Lenny Peters since the late 1980s, when we both arrived in High Point earlier in our careers. He was working to open Bethany Medical, I was starting my career in law. Neither of us could have guessed how our paths would keep crossing over the decades that followed. We worked together to help start Carolina State Bank, which later became Blue Ridge. Then we served alongside each other supporting nonprofit organizations across the Triad; I’ve also had the opportunity to serve on boards with Elise Peters-Carey, one of Lenny’s accomplished children.
What has stayed with me most is watching what Lenny has built through the Lenny Peters Foundation. I remember first seeing photos from the orphanages he supports in India, girls’ homes and boys’ homes alike, and being moved by the scope of what he was doing for children a world away. That same instinct to see a need and act on it shows up everywhere in his work. Being lead sponsor behind Run the Runway, benefiting Second Harvest Food Bank, Greensboro Urban Ministry, and Open Door Ministries of High Point has made him one of the most consistent, reliable voices addressing hunger and homelessness in our community.
If I had to sum him up briefly, it would be this: he is genuinely a fine, dedicated Christian man who looks out for others. His success has never gone to his head. He has used it to help people who need it most.
What makes Lenny’s leadership so effective is that he never operates at half measure. He always goes at 120 percent, bringing ideas and solutions to the table. He is a creative thinker who isn’t bound by convention. He does not need to solve a problem the conventional way. He needs it solved and is willing to find a new path to get there.
That mindset matters more than ever. Homelessness and hunger remain two of the biggest challenges facing Guilford County and the Triad. Solving them will take leadership that doesn’t flinch from big problems. Leadership rests, in large part, on people like Lenny and organizations like the Lenny Peters Foundation. As I look at what’s ahead for the Triad, I’m genuinely encouraged, because I know Lenny and the Foundation will keep pushing our community toward real solutions rather than settling for what’s comfortable.
I feel fortunate to call him a friend and a partner in this work. The Triad is stronger because of what he and the Foundation continue to build here.
-Carolyn Woodruff, JD, CPA, CVA
Woodruff Law Firm, Greensboro