Hello Aspire Community,

I hope you all are well and enjoying the early days of summer. As the summer progresses, I also hope that you can take some time to rest, refuel, and reaffirm your connection to all that is important to you.

This past weekend, the Aspire Board of Directors was able to do just that. They took part in a two-day, in-person retreat. As you know, the board of directors is Aspire’s governance body and is responsible for the effective management of the agency as well as the adherence to our mission. It was the first time that most board members were able to meet in person. This allowed them to connect in ways that they had not done previously. Through workshops, conversation, and meals, they also reaffirmed their connection to Aspire’s mission. Through the sharing of stories and the deep exploration of their role, the board is stronger as a result of our time together and more deeply connected to our work and each other. I believe Aspire too is stronger because of these deeper connections.

As employees, we live these connections every day. Connection is the essence of our work. We show up and connect—with each other, with the people we serve –all in service to those essential aspects that make us human. Connection is how we learn, grow, transform, and evolve. Through connection, we feel belonging.

Though the world is a relatively disconnected place right now, at Aspire, we are connected through our sense of shared purpose. Our work of helping to make each other’s lives full and meaningful is what connects us. Our shared commitment to each other and those we serve is the glue that connects us in a community where it is safe to be vulnerable, caring, creative humans.

For me, connection is also attained by what we feel internally. When we are connected, we sense each other. Our hearts are connected by the energy we feel from each other. We have all experienced this many times in our lives. We have all felt warmth and caring, as well as coldness and indifference, just by sensing. We have all felt valued by those we are with through unspoken energy.

We are connected to Aspire’s mission through our hearts. This shared purpose of serving others is a type of collective consciousness that transcends physical separateness. I know that I am connected to the teachers in the ALL Academy classrooms and the DSPs in the group home in Connecticut. Though we are miles apart, our shared purpose, made distinct through our specific roles, connects us. I greatly value the connection I feel to each of you. I value our work together, and I value that which is different in each of us.

Thank you all for the work you do, the connections you make, and for being an essential part of the Aspire community.

Sincerely,
Lou