Somer Overshon
Associate Vice President of Strategic Communications, Learning and Outreach
I’m Somer Overshon, associate vice president of strategic communications, learning and outreach at Phelps Health. I joined Phelps Health in 2011 as a communications specialist, was promoted to director of Marketing and Public Relations and assumed my current position in 2021.
I have always worked for a nonprofit organization because I believe in the mission of serving others. Prior to joining Phelps Health, I worked in customer relations and communications for an electric cooperative.
My education includes a bachelor’s degree in English from Missouri University of Science and Technology (Missouri S&T) and a Master of Arts in English from Missouri State University. I also hold a Doctor of Education degree from the University of Arkansas.
I live on a farm outside of Dixon and enjoy watching my kids play sports and show their livestock through 4-H and FFA. My husband, daughter and son are heavily involved and committed to the advancement of agriculture, and I am the outlier in the family (I love anything arts- and humanities-related).
I am a lifelong avid reader. The first book I remember completing on my own was Charlotte’s Web by E.B. White. I usually read two to three books at any given time and enjoy almost all genres (except romance, sorry). I also love sweets. I don’t understand when someone says a dessert is “too rich,” and I’ve never met a doughnut I didn’t like. My favorite music is grunge and alternative rock. The Foo Fighters are my hands-down favorite band, and Dave Grohl is a national treasure.
Closing thoughts: If I didn’t work in healthcare, I would be a college English professor, complete with a tweed, elbow-patch jacket. I’d surround myself with good coffee and talk about books every day.