President’s Blog October 2024
Heroes….
It is always a little sad to realize that we are in our last month of golf in Maine for this year. We look ahead to major improvements and many things to look forward to in 2025. Our new 6th green was a highlight as well as a record number of members this year. As we continue to grow each year it becomes more and more apparent that the workforce needed to run the course must also increase. That will certainly be a focus of mine as we move into the off season.
As I have written in the past, I truly enjoy watching the FA Raiders compete against other schools. I was fortunate to be able to play 3 sports when I attended the Academy and have been blessed with the opportunity to help upgrade many of the athletic facilities over the last decade or so. As I watched the Raiders handle the Brunswick football team last Thursday, a close friend and respected businessman approached me. He was very upbeat about the Raiders success and wanted me to know that. I told him that this fall was the first season in memory that every sports team at FA would be competing in the playoffs. He said that the John Atwood Stadium had a lot to do with that. I told him that it may not have directly helped the golf team and the cross-country runners but it surely has energized the school spirit and pride. I had heard about this excitement happening in other schools as they built wonderful new facilities but now I have seen it first hand. Fifty plus players out for the Girls Soccer team! It is great to be a Raider!
I write this blog from my kitchen table in Lake Buena Vista Florida. I have been coming here for almost 50 years. We have always come on the April school vacation but my wife took a year off and I got to help build a new green in April so here I am. We drive down so we won’t miss out on any “Americana.” The trip was fine. Lots of traffic up North and plenty of people headed back to their homes in Florida after hurricane Milton. We don’t know a lot about hurricanes in Maine but by the looks of my surroundings, I can live without them.
Our trip religiously involves a stop for breakfast at a Waffle House in South Carolina. There is no certain one we stop at. Any exit will have one once you pass through Virginia. As we sat there enjoying our scrambled eggs and bacon, I turned around and noticed a large group of men entering the restaurant. They were all dressed in navy blue coveralls and looked very official. I read the writing on their uniforms and quickly realized that they were members of a FEMA Search and Rescue team from New Jersey. I think that they were headed back to Jersey to their homes and families. I sat at the counter finishing my breakfast, but my mind started spinning. In my mind it takes a very special person to dig through the rubble of a disaster, not knowing what you could find, just to help put someone’s life back together. We walked out to the truck to get started on the last 400 miles of the trip. I looked at one of the guys as I walked across the parking lot. The lump in my throat was too much to overcome. I did my best to mouth out a “thank you”. He acknowledged with a nod. Heroes come in all shapes and sizes but seeing them in real life is a blessing!
My close friend always tells me the same thing. “Keep everything in perspective.” I try hard to live by this motto. Yes, even in my sheltered, perfect world, some days things can approach the overwhelming stage. If you have the chance to see any of the LKCC staff in the next three weeks, please give them a “thank you.” They have poured their heart and soul into the 2024 golf season in order to make your recreational time enjoyable. Like I said, “Heroes come in all shapes and sizes.”
Yours in Golf,
Brad
