Bonny Bernat, a native of Massachusetts, relocated to North Carolina in 2007 to work with a destination management company in Charlotte serving the motorsports industry. Prior, she worked as sales manager for the Greater Springfield Convention & Visitors Bureau, where she managed convention, meeting and group tour sales.

In 2009, she joined the staff at Visit Winston-Salem as the sports and events sales manager. As the senior sports and events sales manager, she worked over the past 12 years to elevate Winston-Salem as a premier sports destination.

Bernat graduated from Worcester State University in 2002 with a Bachelor of Arts degree, majoring in communications. She has been a member of Sports ETA since 2007. Most recently, she served the North Carolina Sports Association as chair, a position she held for two and a half years.