Yesterday marked a bit of a milestone for me. It was on Aug. 15, eight years ago, that I began my adventure here at Greene Publishing. It has certainly been a nice trip, so far. There have been some bumps in the road, but often, those bumps in the road have been the inspiration for some of my most productive work. I was telling someone recently about having law enforcement called on me because I insisted on attending a town council meeting in person (This was after the governor mandated that all government meetings be opened back up to the public. Funny, a couple of the town leaders didn’t care what the governor said.). That experience led me to make my case to the First Amendment Foundation, who decided to offer their assistance. Within a week of an attorney from the Foundation contacting these same town leaders, meetings were opened back up to the public. I can honestly say I did not take that challenge on for my own sake, I did that for the sake of those in the community who did not have the resources to view meetings on line.
There have been many positive experiences as well. I have been able to experience the joy of watching local sports teams win championships. I have been blessed to see young people accomplish things they didn’t know they could do. I have also seen young people face challenges with grace and determination. As I watched, as difficult as it may have seemed, I knew the struggle was only making them stronger.