Being Thankful

Thanksgiving is definitely my favorite holiday. Good food, family and friends with no pressure of which gift to give Aunt Martha. It is a time of reflection to take stock of what you are truly thankful to have in your life (or not have in some cases). My wife and I always host a "friends without (local) family" dinner at our house. I love breaking bread and just enjoying time with friends, especially now that kids are involved. No great segue here, but we recently looked at responses from a recent survey amongst the arts community to see how we are doing with advancing our mission. The feedback was well thought out and filled with affirmation and constructive criticism that we can use to help us craft our new mission. The Alliance was incorporated in January of 1998, so we are approaching our 9th year. Change being the only constant at the Alliance, we are preparing to again transform ourselves to make sure we are serving with the utmost efficiency and effectiveness (how is that for good corporate speak?). Now that we have your feedback, the Alliance board of directors and staff are laying out a plan to craft an evolved vision and mission. We will roll this out in the spring of 2007. I am truly thankful and excited to see where the community is going and has the opportunity to go in the very near future. Our arts community has grown in more ways than I can count in a single blog. Challenges exist of course. I just see more opportunities on the horizon, making the challenges just a part of the journey. This feels like a good place for a quote. I shall quote the great one. “Oh, Lord, who lends me life, lend me a heart replete with thankfulness.” William Shakespeare.