MTAS Mustard for December 2020

 

Good Afternoon MTAS,
 
I hope that you are healthy, safe, and that you had a fantastic week off to celebrate the holidays. Welcome to the last Mustard of 2020. Will you be happy to see this year behind you? What are you looking forward to in 2021? What are you going to do to make the new year stand out so much better than the last year? Well, as you read in Rick’s email dated 12/16/20, the annual performance review period is about to begin with a closing of open 2020 projects; and I hope you are thinking about your choices and options for the new year. What will your 2021 legacy be for your customers?
 
Before I say my final farewell to this year, I want to highlight some milestones that occurred since the last Mustard. Happy birthday wishes go to John G. (11/29), and in December: John C. (5^th), Ronnie (12^th), Justin (14^th), Rick (21^st), Armintha (23^rd), and Nancy (coming up on the 30^th). We also had a couple of anniversary celebrations. Congratulations to Cyndy for a work anniversary on the 9^th and to Eric who celebrated finishing his first year with MTAS on the 21^st. I hope that you all felt special on your important day and that the feeling continues for you throughout the upcoming year.
 
I’d also like to do a little celebrating. Yes, even during a pandemic, there are things to celebrate like the fact that there are now two vaccines that are approved to fight the corona virus – in the same year that the virus was detected. That is amazing! If you’d like to see where you fall in the vaccination prioritization schedule, please click here. The infographic with the four phases of the roll out is found on page 12.
 
Something else that I’d like to celebrate is that in this topsy-turvy economy, we are all still employed and have not had to fear a shut-down, or layoffs or furloughs. There are 182,000 people in this state who are not as fortunate as we are. (Source: https://www.bls.gov/regions/southeast/tennessee.htm#eag_tn.f.1). And, saving the best for last… we have a customer base that relies upon us and with whom we had 58,791 contacts; 11,362 projects and activities; and $6,774,172 in economic impact in fiscal year 2019/2020. We did NOT slow down and we won’t let our customers down. Way to go MTAS!
 
There is one more celebration that I’d like to tell you about, and that is Ralph Cross has announced his retirement at the end of the calendar year (this Thursday). Ralph, you have been a friend, and a mentor and welcomed me to the MTAS family when I started in Nashville. You have had an illustrious career, and have had such a positive impact on so many lives – more than you realize, and I am speaking from personal experience. Thank you for your twenty one and a half years of service to MTAS and TN communities. I salute you and wish you all the best in your next set of adventures in retirement. Congratulations on a terrific career in public service!
 
Finally, I’m sharing with you the group photo from our virtual retreat. This is one for the history books!
 


Happy New Year to you! Please stay healthy and well,
Margaret