Fall is a season of change. For most of us, the weather changes, routines shift, the days get shorter. And whether you embrace it or would prefer to avoid it, one fact remains: change is the one thing in life you can count on.
I believe this is a great thing. In fact, “Learn to Embrace Change” is my number one guidepost to success. Change challenges us to take risks and to embrace new perspectives. To adapt, adjust, and advance. And, perhaps most importantly, to endure. A quality valued by our founders – pioneering women who were looking to drive and celebrate change almost 125 years ago – Endurance was one of the guideposts on which Royal Neighbors was founded. All these many years later, we still celebrate the changing times and progress made by and for women, and the work our membership does every day to impact positive change in their communities.
In this issue of The Royal Neighbor, we share several stories of members who, like many throughout our history, have experienced change and used it as a springboard for on-going and future success.
Our Nation of Neighbors℠ recipient, Heather Doering, featured on the cover, opens up about her experiences with starting a business to connect women with the resources they need and the twists and turns that her path took. And while everything did not go exactly as planned, she embraced the challenges and turned them into new opportunities.
You’ll also read an essay written by scholarship recipient Trish Stevens whose world was “turned upside down” when she was diagnosed with cancer just one year from completing her studies. A third-generation member, Trish turned to Royal Neighbors for support and was able to face the changes head on and overcome the obstacles to meeting her goals.
Finally, I hope you’ll enjoy our Well Being article on creating positive change in your life. I have employed many of these strategies throughout my personal and professional life. They have been very helpful in providing me a strong foundation for success and they may resonate with you as well.
It’s not surprising to me that the values identified by our Founders so many years ago are still so relevant today. I know those brave women, those early agents of change, would be pleased to see how well we’ve all upheld these guideposts as a Society. And how well we’ve endured.
My best,
