November is here, the leaves and temperatures are falling, and everyone is already sick on Halloween candy. Gotta love this time of year. Only two more months to 2019. Truly remarkable how fast time goes.
This month I want to dedicate my post to our new leader, as well as our awesome staff who have worked hard keeping the Y moving forward throughout the search process these last 5 months. On Monday, November 11th we will officially welcome Mr. Chris King as our new CEO. Chris comes to us from Detroit, Michigan and brings with him many years of experience; not only Y experience, but leadership experience as a whole. We are blessed Chris has provided us this opportunity and we look forward to seeing the many skill sets he possess placed into action. Chris has already been active in his new role by joining Committee meetings via conference call and even attending our Board Meeting in person on 10/28/19. Chris’s passion for the Y and for serving the community in which he lives is an asset we noticed as soon as we met him. Both Staff and Board alike agree that Chris is the leader we were looking for. Kudos for the Search Committee for finding and selecting the perfect fit for our organization. Also a huge thank you to Lisa Drouin from the YUSA and Ken Soliday from the YMCA State Alliance for their assistance and efforts in leading the search process. We couldn’t have done it without you. Thank you Lisa and Ken!!!
To our Staff, thank you for buckling down and doing what had to be done while we were in transition. Getting here wasn’t always easy and difficult decisions and conversations had to be had along the way. But we are all stronger because of it. Thank you (in no particular order) to Brad, Hillary, Mary Ann, Bethany, Marlene, Bria, Jake, Tiger, and Christy for making the Y one of the best in the country. You totally rock. And now we enter Chris to lead you and we will be even stronger than we already are. I cannot wait to see us continue to flourish as we get better and better each and every day. I thank you all for all you do every day and for all that you are. Together, there is nothing we cannot overcome and accomplish.
Have a great November everyone!! Soon we will be carving the turkey and falling asleep watching football!! See you all in December!
Andy Bradigan