🎉 A Year in Reflection | Badge of the Month | December 2025

It is said that’s it’s the small things in life that are important. Although my initial thinking was to come up with some major breakthrough, a big achievement or significant milestone I’m opting for this little 💚 that my son left on the hood of my car one day while playing basketball on the driveway. To this day it remains something unspoken yet deeply telling nonetheless.  

I work in PreK-12 education and this year we got a new data warehouse and are transitioning to a new student information system, so some of the biggest systems we can use are all new or changing (along with maintaining our Qualtrics use).  We have roughly 11,000 students and 1,400 staff members and these systems affect everyone and there are only two of us in our department that are responsible for moving this work forward.  It has been successful so far and feels phenomenal to know that my teammate and I are handling one of our biggest shifts in almost 20 years in our district.

Let’s face it some days are harder than others, but we can do hard things. I shared this with my team in the last month to inspire and encourage them.  

This year I put a fair bit of time into personal fitness goal setting, and set a number of goals for myself along with a plan of how to achieve them. I often use this approach for work but not as often in my personal life. Last month I achieved the biggest item on the list which was running my first marathon. 

Now I’ve got to start thinking about next year. 

2025 has been a year full of growth, challenges and meaningful milestones. Professionally, I pushed myself with projects that stretched my skills and taught me the power of persistence and adaptability. On a personal level, I developed daily reflection habits that helped me celebrate small wins and shift my perspective, even during hectic days.

The highlight of the year, though is that my partner and I are expecting our first child in March 2026! This exciting new chapter makes everything feel even more meaningful and reminds me to embrace both the big milestones and the small, everyday moments that shape life.

I can’t agree more with ​@SteveBelgraver.

Despite several professional achievements, what stands out for me this year is the change in my relationship with my three children, from being a caring but somewhat distant and occupied father to one who forms meaningful connections with them. And that as they enter their teenage years, a time when the opposite tends to happen.

They have shown me their love in return with small gestures that mean all the world.

I played competitive volleyball for almost 30 years and now my daughter is playing. I joined her club as a U14 coach this fall and am having so much fun. I love spending time with her and her friends, helping them learn a game I love, and feeling like I am giving back to the community that I benefited so much from. The work day can be tiring but when practice comes around I am full of energy!