An open letter to my Aspire Family:
Dear Aspire Family,
That we call ourselves a family is something I love and feel really proud of.
Right now, I’m missing my family.
I’m missing the guaranteed warmth, love and connection that awaits at every school site.
I’m missing your smiles, laughter and even hugs!
I feel the loss that our students must feel without you.
You have been my family for almost 20 years and I don’t say enough how much I appreciate being and working with you all.
Reminiscing, as families do, on our good times, especially the Revival Days at the end of every year brings a smile to my face and makes me laugh out loud. Being silly, not self -conscious and a good sport made these days wonderful memories to cherish. My favourites were the full staff flash dance, singing to Britney, the money wind tunnel and so much laughter with and at each other. We all have favourite memories and stories and we have loads of them.
The big magic moments of team days are not what knits us together. We are connected through the everyday joy and love, the little things we notice and do and our shared values.
You do small things that change lives and show that no matter what, you are still there day after day. Forgiveness is a given, tough conversations can happen, we can make mistakes, we support not judge and we have each other’s backs.
Our students and visitors feel this too. We embody those motivational pictures and carved words that many families aspire to “love lives here”. People see the values in our behaviours and people know where we come from.
When times are tough and challenging for us as a group, individuals or for our families there is guaranteed support, sometimes from an unexpected corner and often from lots of corners.
Right now, we are acting like the whole world is part of our family asking our usual red thread questions:
“What if that was my child?”
“What if that was my sister?”
And as usual we are asking:
“How can I help?”
And we are helping our whole community.
Thank you for being that family people would want to choose.
Debra
Ethical_Leader 