Joy Bonala is a practicing storyteller who enjoys learning about the people and places which make her community unique. She is currently a reporter for the Summerville Journal Scene, a weekly newspaper in Summerville, South Carolina. While she is a multimedia journalist, most of her passion is for photography and videography. She has photographed various assignments for the NY Times and Boston Globe.
Prior to moving to South Carolina in 2017, she worked as news director at KACU, an NPR affiliate, public radio station in Abilene, Texas. Joy considers public media to be her true home, professionally. It was there that she honed her skills as a broadcast journalist. She developed her skills as a writer, audio-only story editor, content and show producer, fundraiser, and teacher-mentor to college-age aspiring journalists.
Before her time in public media, Joy worked as a photojournalist for daily newspapers in Texas and Wyoming. She also had internships at newspapers in Oklahoma, Virginia, and New Hampshire. She has a Bachelor of Arts in Photojournalism from Western Kentucky University (2009).
A native of Lizella, Georgia, Joy is one of six children born to parents who model grace and goodness. She is married to her wonderful husband, Santosh Bharath Bonala. They have one daughter, Lakshmi June Bonala.
One interesting fact about Joy and her husband is that their names are synonyms. In South Indian languages, including Telugu, “Santosh” often means happiness. Joy is currently learning to speak Telugu, her husband’s native language, and planning for her second family trip to India.