It’s a week of recognizing blessings and giving thanks. While it would be appropriate for all of us to spend some time in reflection over the holiday weekend, the following is a look some of the aspects of life we are thankful for as a media company.
- Each year the generosity of this community is seen throughout the holidays. Thanksgiving is just the first of many public displays of support for those who need a helping hand this time of year. Schools across the county – public and private – are currently leading efforts to help brighten the holidays for those less fortunate. Canned food drives as well as toy collections have already been launched. Numerous civic organizations also lead similar efforts. For instance, this past week, the Worcester County Bar Association delivered 40 complete Thanksgiving dinners to Buckingham Elementary School to be distributed to families in need of supplies to hold a memorable family dinner. We are fortunate to live in an area ready and able to help others.
- The year began with hopes for normalcy. For the most part, 2022 played out like most pre-pandemic years. Restrictions borne out of COVID-19 have largely been eliminated. The virus remains a part of life and probably always will be. While there is still divisiveness associated with the virus, the irrational extremes seem to have subsided and rotated to other issues.
- Distance learning and masking have become a notion of the past in schools.
Once a state legislative committee approved the Board of Education’s lifting of the mandatory mask mandate, the local school system went mask optional in late February and never looked back.
Distance learning was a worst-case scenario for school systems to try and educate kids. In many cases, teachers had to be creative through the computer and worked harder than ever from the confines of their living rooms and home offices to reach their students. Despite their best intentions, students fell behind and most of this calendar year has been spent trying to get students back on track academically as well as a maturity perspective.
- Mental health is no longer a feared subject. Business professionals are recognizing the need to include morale and wellbeing of employees in their business plans. School systems are increasingly hiring mental health professionals to specifically work with children who are struggling to succeed. The spotlight has been shined and this modern epidemic is now a frequent talking point in society.
- Elected officials seeing things differently. In all the primary elected boards we cover, like Ocean City, Worcester County, Berlin and Ocean Pines, there are profound philosophical ideologies and political approaches on display each week. It’s a good thing to report on the disparate opinions. Spirited discourse often leads to compromises on controversial matters, and the process to find these middle grounds is often beneficial to all.
- All who make this publication possible – staff members who create this product, the subcontractors who distribute it, dedicated readers and critical advertisers. We are grateful for each pod of support because each is dependent on the other.
