Category: Uncategorized

Affirming Gifts in a Season of Giving

December 2025 – By Michelle HedrichRetired, Nonprofit Executive

The holiday season invites us to think about giving—beautifully wrapped boxes, meaningful gestures, and shared moments. But there’s a deeper kind of giving that often goes unrecognized: the gifts we offer that remain with us, even as we share them with others.

These are the gifts that come from within.

Your …

The Yearly Yes

November 2025 – By Megan Shepherd, Chief Operating Officer, SimVentions, Inc.

One of my favorite events each year is the UMW Women’s Leadership Colloquium. Over the last six years of attending, I’ve found that this day is one of connection, resetting, and reflection. The event always seems to provide the topic and speakers that I need …

Recharge Your Roots to Better Embrace Change

August 2025 – By Alex Dunn, PhD, Associate Professor of Management

You never know what’s gonna happen, you make your plans and you hear God laughin’ Life changes and I wouldn’t change it for the world – Thomas Rhett

In the heat of the New Jersey summer, with my best friend since grade school on one side …

Joyful Loneliness

May 2025 – By Beth L. Sinkler, Growth and Strategy Director, Maximus

TURN IT OFF!  Like a leaking faucet my mind is in constant drip motion.  Even in a state of meditation, I shift effortlessly within a micro second from concentrating on my breathing awareness, inhale (1, 2, 3) …. exhale (1, 2, 3) to – …

From Where I Sit

March 2025 – By Beth L. Sinkler, Growth and Strategy Director, Maximus

I am envisioning a bountiful harvest this season, claiming my joy in hopes of bringing it to fruition. What is it, you may ask? It’s gardening season! Though I am not typically a hand-in-the-earth, dirt-under-my-fingernails kind of gal, I am giddily excited. This season, …

Embracing Change

September 2024 – by Veronica Curry, Associate Vice President of Human Resources, Germanna Community College

As summer’s heat fades and the air grows crisp, nature reminds us that change is an inevitable part of life. For many, this transformation of summer to fall can be a stark reminder of the personal transformations we experience. Embracing the …

Finding Time

August 2024 – By Rebecca Purdy, Deputy Director, Central Rappahannock Regional Library

I used to hate my Saturdays. They started with getting up early to beat the crowds at the Farmers’ Market and the grocery store, taking the dog for his longer weekend walk and then calling my parents. By the time all of this …

Holding Up the Sky

May 2024 – By Devin Fedor, Senior Director of Organizational Design and Effectiveness, Great Minds

Change has been taking up space in my mind lately. I find myself surrounded by change, personally and professionally, and I am often called on to help teams navigate change more effectively. Reactions to change can range from mild to extreme, …

Fuel or Fire

By Devin Fedor, Head of Organizational Design and Effectiveness at Great Minds  Feedback is always a hot topic.  How do I get more?  What do I do with it?  What if I disagree or don’t like what I hear?  We are wired to want feedback, yet both the acts of giving and receiving feedback can […]