This is the time of year when I like to take stock of what we’ve accomplished, tighten down our plans for the future, and reflect on what really motivates me to keep pushing forward. I so value the tangible outcomes we achieve at Groundwork: the schoolkids who are eating healthy local food in their lunches, the solar panel systems that we’ve helped people make happen. I’m also motivated by the longer-term initiatives we advance, like our campaign to revitalize passenger rail service to northern Michigan and our persistence to protect the Great Lakes from an oil spill from Line 5 in the Mackinac Straits.

It’s powerful and important work and — taken together — it’s really about building environmental and economic resilience for the future. And that’s what really keeps me going: knowing that Groundwork is creating a better Michigan that my daughters and their generation can enjoy.

As a new year begins, I hope you, like me, have been able to gather with your family and appreciate what’s important. For me, that’s the gratitude I feel for the essential work I am a part of at Groundwork and all of the good people who make it possible —  and my wife Maureen and daughters Aiden and Lucy who give me the inspiration to push ahead.

Thank you so much for supporting Groundwork. My very best wishes to you and your family for a joyous New Year.