Crafting her public speaking throughout her 20+ year senior-level HR career in fast-paced, growing, for-profit companies, to then strategic consulting, Amy Bretall learned how to take routine topics and verbally communicate in interesting ways to connect with employees at all levels and engage audiences. Amy excelled at creating and delivering employee and management training of new hire orientations, performance management, harassment/non-discrimination (Amy developed a unique way to turn a generally bland compliance topic into an engaging and fun interaction!), large all-employee events, acquisitions, and presenting to board of directors, working with all levels of leadership. 

Prior to starting her own HR & business consulting practice, Arbor Grove, in 2014, Amy was Senior Vice President – HR at Arvest Bank, serving on the leadership team and where she established the HR presence for a new market and high-growth stage. In her consulting practice, Amy worked with small-to-medium sized local companies to global corporations leading HR projects and professionally speaking on the topic of non-harassment/discrimination leadership training. In her HR consulting practice, she’s been requested to speak repeatedly, three years in a row at multiple companies, recognizing her creative, energetic delivery, interesting curated content and ability to engage employees and management/leadership in what can be an often dry topic of non-harassment compliance training.

Amy discovered her creative gifts of photography and writing while taking steps of faith and deepening her personal faith relationship when at a low in life in her early 40s. Amy has created and published a series of three non-fiction Christian books featuring her cross photography, paired with insights on faith, to encourage others to find faith in the everyday, develop their spiritual relationship, and use their creative gifts. Following faith, Amy has become an author, speaker, and faith-driven entrepreneur developing a unique line artistic, faith-based inspirational products featuring her cross photography at Live Breathe Alive. It started in 2016 with an idea to turn some of her cross photos into greeting cards to help a young girl I met in Cuba. Amy says, “That’s the cool thing about God, he plants seeds to get us started and as we take consistent steps of faith, using our gifts, it grows and evolves into more than we could imagine.”

A few facts/basics:

• Born in Macon, Missouri, she grew up in Springfield and lives in Kansas City, Missouri.
• Professional experience/career: Bachelors’ degree in Business from Missouri State University, Masters in HR Management from Webster University. Amy has held senior-level strategic human resources leadership positions for 20+ years in the private, for-profit sector, (LinkedIn).
• Prior to starting her own business & HR consulting practice, Arbor Grove, LLC in 2014, Amy was Senior Vice President, HR Director at Arvest Bank, for the Kansas City market.
• In 2016 Amy found herself taking photos of crosses while deepening her faith.
• Taking steps of faith and honing her creative gifts, Amy’s photography artwork has been recognized in multiple venues including a 4-page expansive feature in a statewide publication and two large solo exhibitions as a featured artist. See Media page.

Fun Facts:

• Motto: The little things in life are big.
• Favorite activity: Walking outdoors with no ear-buds, no noise, to stay attuned and connect spiritually to the surrounding natural beauty in sight, sense and sound.
• Her love of rural America, and artistic perspective of seeing nature’s extravagant beauty in simple objects, originates from time spent at her grandparent’s farm (the place where her photography journey began in August, 2015. The Rural Collection).
• The first Everyday Cross photo she took was at her grandparent’s farm. Amy says, “At the time I didn’t recognize, or “see” it. That’s how good God is, always there, just waiting for us.”