Employee Spotlight: Heather Bogdal
If you don’t know her name, you definitely know her face—and her infectious energy. Meet Heather Bogdal, the ever-smiling, always-helpful force behind ESa’s support team.
For over 17 years, Heather has taken care of “her boys” (Sam Burnette, Kevin Harney, Matt Manning, Jim Bachert and Charlie Jorgensen), along with 10 other team members and anyone else in need of a helping hand. Supporting architects appears to be what Heather was destined to do since she began career as an assistant at an architecture firm in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. But there is more to Heather than her proclivity to assist architects.
Heather grew up in Harrisburg, Pa., and then moved to Columbia, Md., for her last two years of high school. Heather’s mother was an art teacher, and her father was a civil engineer and Colonel of the Army Reserve. The move to Columbia, allowed Heather’s father to spearhead the operation that mobilized reservists should they be needed during times of war. “Dad’s plan, named Operation Goldenthrust, an unfortunate name, was used during the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan,” Heather said. She credits her parents for her love of the arts and her exceptional organizational skills.
After graduating high school, Heather loaded up and returned to the snowy north to attend college. “I spent two years at Syracuse University majoring in musical theatre,” said Heather. When asked how she became involved in theatre, Heather shared that her parents, Donovan and Janet, met while working in community theatre in Harrisburg. “I was always around the theatre with my parents when I was little. I did my first community theatre show when I was four and kept performing locally and in school. (There was) no going back.”
After two years, Heather left college. She met and married her husband, Bob, and they started their family, beginning with daughter, Zoe. It was after a move to Fort Lauderdale, for her husband’s career, where Heather began her journey with architects, and, ironically, another Florida-based company.
“I sought a degree that qualifies you to do absolutely nothing,” Heather laughed, adding, “yet (it) provide(s) soft skills such as discipline, motivation, commitment, ability to work under pressure and problem solve, self-confidence, creativity and imagination, teamwork, language and communication.” Heather took those skills and incorporated them into her professional life.
Eventually, the family added sons Cody and Logan and settled in Nashville. Heather began her career with ESa in 2008 as an administrative assistant. “I was looking for a job. My former firm in Florida had been my home and the place that taught me everything about architecture and architects,” Heather said. “I did not expect to find a home again, and yet ESa found me.”
Like her fellow support team members, Heather wears many hats—providing administrative support, assisting with firm events, and even serving as an expert travel coordinator. “I specialize in car rentals and hotel room negotiations!” she laughs. Heather says that she enjoys being a problem-solver and ordering food. “I try and take care of whomever needs my help.”
From Cast Member to Master Builder
If you look around Heather’s workspace, you will no doubt see her love for all things Disney. When asked how she became so enamored with Disney, Heather’s response was, “How can you not love Disney?”
Heather and her husband, Bob, took their kids to Disney World a few times when they were young, but it wasn’t until a special trip for her 40th birthday with her mother and sister that she was truly hooked. The three flew down the night before, rope-dropped Magic Kingdom the next day, and closed the park down. “We flew home the next morning, and I was at work by 10 a.m. I have the pictures to prove it!”
Her love for Disney deepened when she organized several trips for students from the Nashville School of the Arts between 2011 and 2015. “That just solidified it,” Heather says. “Disney is all about the experience, the nostalgia, the magic and that feeds my theatre geek. Now, the ‘Olsen Girls’ make an annual Disney pilgrimage. Ask me about my next trip,” she teases.
Heather’s passion even led her to work at the Disney Store. During one of her annual trips, she received a Cast Member referral card, inviting her to apply. “I still keep it in my wallet,” she shares. In 2019, she was honored with the title of Disney Store Ambassador, a role dedicated to overseeing the Disney experience and spreading magic. Unfortunately, after several years, the store closed, but Heather’s journey didn’t stop there.
She was soon offered a position as a Brick Specialist at LEGO. “They took a chance on a 50-plus year-old woman who did not build but knew how talk with anyone and ask open-ended questions,” Heather explained. “Everyone was patient and kind with me and gave me every opportunity to learn – staff and guests, alike.” And learn she did! She says she is patiently waiting for a LEGO room or a She-Shed of her very own to house and display her “builds.” When asked why she loves working at LEGO, Heather says that LEGO is an amazing company, very much like ESa: “family owned for over 90 years – supportive, inclusive, creative, sustainable, with the motto ‘only the best is good enough.’”
A Journey of Love with Mom
It’s no surprise that Heather inherited her creativity from her mother, Janet. Though retired from teaching art, Janet still loves to chat about art, theatre, and shoes!
Since December of 2019, Janet has been living with Heather and her family. On a holiday visit to Nashville from their home in Jackson, Mich., Heather’s father, Donovan, unexpectedly passed away in January of 2020. Having previously been diagnosed with vascular dementia, the family knew she couldn’t live alone, forcing them to make some difficult decisions, and quickly.
“No one in the family ever considered that Mom would end up living with me, but God had other plans,” Heather said. “After many discussions and a Disney trip in between, it was decided that Mom would stay here. And then COVID hit.” With the lockdown, Heather and her mother had several months to get to know one another again, but in a different way, she explained. “For me it was such a blessing. I had time to get used to a new normal and find a way to make a crazy schedule work.”
One of the ways that schedule works is thanks to Adult Day Services (ADS) at Knowles Senior Center that Janet attends four days a week. The program is offered by FiftyForward, a not-for-profit organization that supports adults aged 50 and older by providing various programs, services, and resources to promote active aging and independence.
“I am a HUGE advocate for ADS,” Heather said. “So much advice about dementia patients boils down to keeping them engaged, social, active, interactive and learning new things. I truly believe that by her attending ADS her condition has stabilized and allows her to live a more normal life.”
Being a caregiver to a parent, Heather is vocal about making sure that her mother is happy and comfortable. When looking for what the best solution would be to ensure that Janet thrived, the conversation included Janet. “We find it (living with Heather) a better solution than a senior living community would be. We both agree that she would not thrive in that living situation,” Heather said. Heather also stressed that her father would want Janet to have the best life she can in her final years. “That means Disney every year (sometimes more than once), ADS four days a week, hanging out at Opry Mills Mall while I work at LEGO and eating as many cookies as we come across.”
Heather insists that she’s not special. She firmly believes that anyone she knows or works with would do the same (or even better) for the people they love, and many already have. “We are all just doing the best with what we have to work with,” she says.
In addition to caring for her ESa team, her sons and her mother, Heather now has another “boy” to look after—her grandson, Sullivan, or “Sully.” Her advice to him for a life well-lived is the same advice she shares with everyone: “Choose joy AND the cookie. The alternative is boring.”
More about Heather
Fur babies: Great Dane, Charli, and toy rat terriers, Rocket and Luna.
Certifications: HydroRider instructor
Other: “Yes, I am a Princess”
Important Trivia: The plural of LEGO is LEGO
Pictured are: (top row left to right) Janet Olsen, Heather’s mother, and Heather Olsen Bogdal; Donovan Olsen, Heather’s father, Janet, Heather, and Bob Bogdal, Heather’s husband – (bottom row left to right) Heather’s Disney cast member invitation and name tag; Heather’s brother, Matt, sister Holly, Janet and Heather; Heather and her grandson, Sully