Normally, I am a New Year's enthusiast. I always pick a word for the year to guide me in both my personal and professional work. I create a whole vision board dedicated to the word – and place it somewhere I can see and refer to it often. And - much to the annoyance of my family - I try to get them to join me in this annual exercise.

But not this year.

I've been trying to figure out why I just don't have the motivation to do all of my new year traditions. It's certainly not that I'm sad to see 2020 go...so what is it?

I finally realized that the reason is because I feel like my "new year" started on March 10th, 2020 – and I've been in a continued state of reinvention, reimagining and renewal ever since.

2020 was truly a year unlike any other and our field has responded in amazing ways to meet the moment of this crisis. I believe that when the history of this year and this pandemic is written, it will be the stories of these afterschool professionals who are remembered for the selfless work they have done in communities around this country.

And you all were such an important part of that. Whether you joined as a new Advocate Member this year or have been a part of our community for a long time, you were right there with our members – reinventing and renewing and reimagining your work and your products to best meet the needs of the afterschool field.

Our commitment to our members in 2021 includes our Advocate members like you. That's why we're adding some new benefits and perks, including this eNewsletter. Each quarter, we'll send you an email with content we think you'll find helpful in your efforts to engage the afterschool community. Please let us know if you have other ideas or thoughts about how we can best serve you.

As I talk to members every day – around the country – I continue to be amazed as what they are doing in-person, online and sometimes both (!) to deliver quality services to the children and families who need them. Thank you for allowing us to continue to serve them so that they may serve others.

I hope you all had a wonderful holiday and an even happier New Year!

Sincerely,

Gina Warner