Craig’s Corner June 2022

My Year as President - Gone in a Flash!

During the past week, I have reflected back over my term as VLGMA president, and asked myself – did my time in this leadership position leave VLGMA in a better position for the future?

When you elected me as president at the summer conference in Virginia Beach last June, the theme of our conference was “Reconnect, Refresh, and Recharge.”  In my monthly newsletter columns over the past year, I’ve repeatedly emphasized the importance of us reconnecting with each other, refreshing our passion for this profession, and recharging our leadership and our mental well-being to carry us into the future.  If you’re like me, taking the time to refresh and recharge is really hard at times. We all deal with difficult citizens and elected officials who can zap your passion, and tackling challenging issues day after day can certainly take a toll on your mental (and physical) wellness.  The COVID pandemic and its aftereffects seemed to compound the challenges we faced, and left many of us exhausted and isolated.

With so many of you joining us at the winter conference in Staunton back in February, I heard a number of times how great it was to be able to be together in person, and to reconnect with friends and colleagues for the first time in a couple of years.   The conference sessions were outstanding, and the time together with each other truly allowed us to reconnect, refresh, and recharge, and provided us with a fresh spirit of service as we headed into the spring season.

When we gather later this month for our annual summer conference, we will be talking about the “new era” of leadership, and discussing ways we can ensure that the future of our profession remains strong.  Along with these important sessions, we’ll spend time together networking and catching up with each other in a relaxed, casual setting; I hope that you bring your families along, so that you can enjoy time with your friends and loved ones as well.

I am pleased to report that our membership numbers have grown this year, but more important to me is that we have made efforts to strengthen our support of each other, and also worked to provide a higher level of support to the younger members of our organization. We must continue to encourage and support our new members, and also provide them with leadership opportunities in VLGMA.

While you’re at the summer conference, take the time to reach out to at least two members that you don’t know, and introduce yourself to them.  The most important role of VLGMA is to further professional local government management in Virginia, and by getting to know your colleagues, you strengthen the bond that serves as the core of what VLGMA is all about.

If you see these new members while we’re gathered together at Virginia Beach, please take a moment to say hi, and welcome them to VLGMA - Debra Bryant, Assistant to City Manager – Legis. Affairs, City of Virginia Beach; Brian Freeman, Town Manager, Town of Wytheville; Rob Light, Assistant City Manager, City of Salem and James Taliaferro, City Manager, City of Salem.

Serving as president this year has been one of the greatest honors of my professional career, and I am very thankful to each one of you for your support of me during my term.  Many of you have shared kind words and notes with me over the year, and I have been very blessed to serve VLGMA in this role.  I know that president-elect Tim Fitzgerald will provide excellent leadership when he assumes this role in a few weeks, and I look forward to continuing to serve the organization as “Past President;” there won’t be as many committee meetings, but I’ll still have work to do!

Best wishes to you and yours for a wonderful summer! From my heart, thank you again for your service in your communities, and for your membership and support of VLGMA.

With great appreciation for all you do – 

Craig