As a leader, I try to spend most of my time shining a light on the many positive things happening across our region. And truthfully, that’s easy to do—we live in a community filled with innovation, collaboration, and momentum. But the reality is, not everything we do succeeds. Failure is part of any organization that’s trying to move the needle, and ours is no exception. When something doesn’t go as planned, I often tell our team, “We’ll have a short funeral for this one, and then we’ll get back to work.”
Last week, we had one of those moments. A project that didn’t go our way the way we needed it to. We saw this coming, so it was no surprise, nor was it the fault of any person. While the sky isn’t falling, I won’t sugarcoat it—it hurt. These are the times that sting. But I’ve learned over the years that if something doesn’t affect you, it probably didn’t matter much to begin with. Luckily for us, the project continues, and I am excited for how transformational it will become.
What keeps me moving forward is knowing that failure is often just a temporary chapter in a much larger story. I think back to my baseball days—there were games I went 0 for 4, but I never lost confidence that I’d be back in the lineup the next day ready to go 3 for 4 or better. That belief—that the next at-bat matters—is what fuels me as a leader today. Setbacks are real, but they’re not permanent. They challenge us, teach us, and ultimately make us better.
While last week didn’t go the way we hoped, it doesn’t shake my belief in the vision we have for our region or the team I’m privileged to work alongside. We’ll regroup. We’ll learn. And we’ll keep moving forward—because that’s what this work demands and what our community deserves.
In many ways, moments like this reinforce why the work matters. If everything came easy, it wouldn’t be nearly as meaningful. The challenges remind us that progress takes persistence, and that real impact is built over time—with resilience, humility, and heart. I’m proud of our team, grateful for our partners, and I’m as motivated as ever to keep pushing for what’s next. We’ll take the lessons from this experience and turn them into fuel for future wins—because our region is worth every ounce of effort.
