Lola Gillebaard

Lola Gillebaard is a cross between Carol Burnett and Erma Bombeck. She’s an award winning author (winner of the prestigious Reader’s Digest Award). She’s a well-known professional speaker (the writer and star of the successful one-woman show "Life’s Funny That Way"). She’s an Associate College Professor appointed to the Academic Senate. She is a successful business woman who was presented the "Unsung Heroine Award" by the National Association of the VFW. She is the mother of four sons who still like her, and she has been married to the same man for over 40 years (her toughest gig yet).

Lola is a cancer survivor and has experienced 17 major surgeries. She has so much metal in her body that when she walks through the airport metal detectors it sounds like somebody winning a jackpot at Las Vegas.

She walks funny, she talks funny…and she is funny.

"Laughter is the Handshake of Good Communication" is one of Lola’s most popular programs. Recognized as an internationally respected authority on the art of using humor as a managing, healing and teaching tool, Lola, with her real-life humor has inspired audiences ranging from 8 to 8,000.

"Laughter bonds people together and not only helps to heal the bruises created by miscommunication," says Lola, "but laughter is also an essential part of delivering a message that sticks." With topics varying from the professional to the personal, Lola’s straight-from-life examples show how to apply the appropriate amount of humor to everyday situations. Her uplifting workshops are both memorable and enjoyable, " like a candy-coated vitamin," quips Lola, "easy to swallow and full of healthy ingredients."

Being a successful humorist is much more than just telling a few funny stories. Lola tailors each of her programs to fit the audience by blending in a mixture of company research, audience involvement and group participation. She also includes topic-oriented handouts highlighting the points of her presentation. But Lola does more than just take a standard seminar formula and change a few lines to "tailor" it. She gets involved with her clients, developing a presentation that is especially oriented for that company and field.

With a professional and animated delivery, Lola presents a "how-to" method that enables participants to deal with adversities, conflicts and obstacles. "Instead of walking away all scarred," points out Lola," they walk away seeing the humor, especially in conflict." In fact, it is Lola that coined the phrase "Today’s Tragedy can be Tomorrow’s Humor."

Lola’s seminars are like a home cooked meal. Everything is fresh with a vibrant flavor. "People not only ask for seconds," notes Lola, "they generally want to stay over."