A Season of Thanksgiving and Transition
This week, as we enter another season of Thanksgiving, it is a particularly poignant one for me. My son, Jack, was born in late May, and joins his 3-yr old sister, Lainey, as two shining lights that make their daddy so proud. My incredible wife, Kristen, and I celebrated ten years of marriage in May, and I am so thankful for every minute of it. She is my best friend and the best teammate in life a guy could ask for. I am also incredibly thankful that my father, who was diagnosed in April with Stage 4 Pancreatic Cancer, is able to be celebrating Thanksgiving with us. He is a strong fighter, full of grace and hope, and I am thankful for the time we continue to have together. This is also a particularly poignant year for another reason. After nine amazing years, I'm ending my time with Centresource, and will be starting with The Lampo Group on December 1. While in many ways it is coincidental timing, it is not lost on me that my transition is happening over Thanksgiving weekend, as I have so much to be thankful for. I'm thankful for the many years filled with fantastic clients and projects at Centresource. I've been exposed to more industries, more challenges, and more creative solutions than many get to see in a lifetime. So many clients and projects have become personal to me -- non-profits I still follow and support, clients who have remained close contacts even upon changing companies, and projects that so ignited a fire within me that I ended up spending nights and weekends completing -- simply because I wanted to. I'm thankful for the 120+ people I've been able to call coworkers and friends at Centresource, who have helped shape me in ways I can't even begin to describe. You have challenged me, strengthened me, and encouraged me. Over the years, I have been a part of countless conversations that have transformed me to my core -- into a greater friend, leader, husband, and father. Your passion for your craft was so often an inspiration that fueled my own desire to grow, and ignited the passion of those around us. We did some really fantastic work over the years, that can easily elicit an incredible pride and sense of accomplishment. I'm thankful for so many genuinely joy-filling Centresource memories, from interoffice banter, to the external social events and mixer, to the times during our meetings or retreats when everyone would humor me by participating in some goofy activity which actually ended up somehow working. I'm thankful for my ability to be a formative leader of a company. Looking back, it's so easy to feel a sense of accomplishment, as I can point to literally hundreds of decisions over the years that shaped Centresource, knowing the intimate role I played in each of their development. I've always loved sharing the stories with new team members of how Centresource became who they are – all the twists and turns that led them down the road to where they are today. I'm thankful to be leaving Centresource at a point in its life where I have no doubt that they will continue to thrive and grow for many years to come, with a team that has great leadership, knowledge, direction, and ability to execute. I'm thankful for Nicholas Holland, the owner of Centresource, and someone whom I have called my boss and mentor for almost a decade. He is one of the hardest working, compassionate, and engaging people I will ever know. Through all the highs and lows, Nick was always there to listen and offer advice, eager to help resolve whatever issue may be on the current horizon, and build bridges as far as the eye could see. I'm thankful for one of my best friends, Evan Owens, whom I've called neighbor, classmate, groomsman, salesman, consultant, confidant, CEO, and an inspiration to me and so many others. One of the smartest things I did at Centresource was recruit him to join me, and eight years later, I couldn't imagine sharing so many great memories with anyone else. The impact he had on my life, as well as the continued impact he has on Centresource is incredibly difficult to put to words, as it is so multi-faceted and rich in scope. I'm also thankful for my new team at Lampo, some of whom I've met, but many more whom I haven't. I am so excited to join this new team and bring the experience, character, and passion that Centresource has helped unlock within me. I eagerly await the new challenges that this position will bring, and rest easy knowing that I will have such an amazing team around me to help continue to grow me and shape me into the man I want to professionally and personally become. So it is now that I bittersweetly close one chapter, and open the next. Thank you, Centresource, for all that you have meant to me and my family. You will forever hold a very special place in my heart, and I wish you all the best in the years to come.