I don't know about you, but my family really enjoys watching the Olympics. It's rare that my wife and I find something both of our teenage daughters will watch with us, but almost every night recently we've watched the summer Olympics together.
One of my wife's and daughter's favorite events is gymnastics. Simone Biles is someone we’ve enjoyed watching grow and progress in her gymnastics career as an Olympic athlete over the years. As we were watching the gymnastics finals progress, we heard the news that Simone had decided to take a step back for her mental health and withdraw from two finals. What a difficult decision to make, but what an example she set in doing so for all of us. It’s important to know our limits and prioritize our mental health, especially in the face of great challenges.
When we initially heard this news, we thought Team USA's run at a 5th gold medal in the all-around wouldn't be a possibility. What a surprise it was to watch Suni Lee, her teammate, step in, focus, and win the gold in the all-around.
As I thought back to watching Suni win the gold medal, I started seeing similarities with what I see you do every day. Over the last 3 or 4 COVID surges (I honestly lose count now), you face huge challenges. When staff are in short supply, or family members are not able to be with their loved ones, when we need additional teammates, you all step in and help our team accomplish difficult things. While none of us can do it alone, together we can achieve great things for the communities we serve.
You all are my inspiration. I’m so thankful for all you do to never settle, and continue to show that we are in it together.
Talk soon,
Jason
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