August 2020
Your monthly news & updates - August 2020
Those Long Summer Days

Publisher's Memo

Making Memories, Riding the Waves

The month of August brings transition. The long summer days become shorter and we are reminded that fall is upon us. Hopefully, we have made memories built around family vacations, backyard barbeques and quality time together. 

As a child, I played travel baseball in August. It was hot and I can still remember the smell of the dirt and the way it turned my uniforms orange as I slid head-first into whatever base I was stealing. Sorry, Mom!

I can still hear the crack of the bat. I can see my parents watching on the sidelines. I can see my Grandma standing farther away (on her own) as she blew cigarette smoke into the air. I can still, to this very day, feel the spikes on my cleats and how they dug into the grass. I remember how it felt to rip a line drive off the first pitch of a game.

When major league baseball returned this month, it felt extra special because of the pandemic. It reminded me of 2001, when President George W. Bush threw out the first pitch of Game 3 of the World Series in Yankee Stadium after the 9/11 terrorist attacks. I still tear up when I think back on that moment. 

Sports, along with music and the arts, have a way of uniting us in difficult times. We look past our differences and our team allegiances and find a shared interest that can alleviate stress.

My own baseball memories reflect normalcy, innocence and fun. That's what I
want for my family and I'm sure that’s what you want for yours too! This August is certainly different, but we can do our best to make it as normal as possible. We need this for ourselves and for our families. We need this for our children and for children everywhere. They are facing a school year (and circumstances in general) unlike anything we could have imagined at a pivotal time in their lives.

I hope you have enjoyed the long, hot days of August despite the numerous challenges we have managed in the face of this pandemic. No one can predict the future. But we can enjoy the present with our loved ones and with our work.

Let’s enjoy every second of the long summer days and warm nights. Before we know it, they will be gone. 
                                                       
-Gary
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The novel coronavirus, COVID-19, which has been designated a global pandemic by the World Health Organization, is having a devastating impact on the U.S. economy. After peaking at 29,000 in February, the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell below 21,000 by mid-March – a nearly 30% drop. On March 16, the Dow fell by nearly 3,000 points, the largest single-day drop in history. 


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Quotes of the Day:
"“One can never be over dressed or over educated.”
-Unknown

“This virus is creating new ways for everyone to think of how to keep your family and friends safe. We are in uncharted territory and we will all learn together. At one time I did not know how much time our family would have together. So I have gratitude now for every day that we get to be together.”
Christin Gigstad