JC Lyle, MBA

JC has served as WARM’s Executive Director since January 2009. Under her leadership, WARM has grown by an average of 14% every year. Before joining WARM’s staff, JC completed subdivision design, rezoning and permitting for commercial and residential development throughout coastal North Carolina.

Raised on the Christian values of service and compassion, her volunteer efforts typically focused on affordable housing preservation and disaster recovery. She participated in mission trips to Biloxi MS after Hurricane Katrina and a long-term assignment with Bahamas Methodist Habitat.

JC earned her Master of Business Administration from UNCW's Cameron School of Business and returned to deliver the keynote address at Cameron’s 2019 Honor Society Induction Ceremony. She has presented workshops on affordable housing, hurricane recovery, and nonprofit management at state-level conferences and was invited by the national trade association, Coalition for Home Repair, to deliver the keynote address at their annual summit.

JC chairs the Planning Commission for the City of Wilmington and was appointed by the NC Speaker of the House to serve on the North Carolina Housing Partnership, the advisory board that oversees the state's housing trust fund.

Public recognition includes:

• In 2012, JC was named Wilma Magazine's first Woman to Watch in the Nonprofit Category.

• In 2014, she accepted WARM's Coastal Entrepreneur Award in the Nonprofit Category, given by the Greater Wilmington Business Journal and UNCW’s Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship.

• In 2018, the Association of Fundraising Professionals, Cape Fear Chapter named her Outstanding Fundraiser of the Year.

• In 2022, the Wilmington Rotary Club selected JC as one of three honorees at their inaugural Leaders in Service banquet and the YWCA named her the Woman of Achievement in the Public Service Category.

Check out her Insights Column in the Wilmington Biz Journal!