My first workweek of retirement has been very memorable! It started off normally as my wife, youngest daughter and I cleaned up the house and finished leftovers following the New Year weekend and the Sunday night football party which revealed a Minnesota Vikings loss to the Green Bay Packers (sigh). We prepared to drive to the Twin Cities for the following week which included a couple of celebratory retirement dinners and a corporate event sponsored by my former employer. On Tuesday, however, it became clear things were not going to play out quite the way we thought. As we drove the four hours from home to the cities, the number of participants in the Wednesday night dinner began to dwindle quickly due to illnesses (COVID and otherwise) and legitimate concerns about exposure to illnesses. After the number of confirmed attendees fell below 50% of those expected, we decided to cancel the event entirely. While the correct decision, this was an excellent time to reflect on the quote from Epictetus and the Serenity Prayer noted in today’s travel post.
In an effort to make lemonade from lemons, we decided to go to the venue at which the dinner would have been held (Moscow On The Hill – “MOH”) to celebrate on our own. In an awesome display of graciousness, we were joined by my coworker Bill, with whom I have worked for more than 20 years and traveled extensively. While nothing would be a complete substitute for the dinner that wasn’t, the staff at MOH took great care of us and provided an evening which served as a great starting point for the celebrations scheduled for the following day.
Wednesday held the promise of two events: a hybrid enterprise gathering and a dinner hosted by my wife and me to celebrate many of those individuals who had been hugely influential in my career. Would the day hold up under the pressures of influenza and COVID, or would the number of participants decline again? Thankfully, the former was the case! The enterprise event began with an opportunity to talk for about 40 minutes via Zoom with individuals who attended the event virtually. The event then expanded to include in-person attendees. Due to a positive COVID test for our CEO, Bill served as emcee for the event, which included three lovely presentations by coworkers (including by our CEO, Chris, via Zoom), treats (including cake), and fellowship following the presentations. The enterprise event was followed by a dinner at Louis Ristorante at which approximately 30 friends, family and coworkers gathered for an evening of celebration (down 25% for the reasons stated previously). We were even joined by Parker William, a young local magician, who provided some magical (pun intended) entertainment to begin the evening! The staff at Louis did a wonderful job, and the atmosphere could only be described as loud and festive!
In conclusion, planning a wintertime retirement party always carries with it some weather-related risks but early 2022 also carried with it risk related to COVID. Even while following protocols related to vaccines, masking and adequate space, we were able to pull together very successful recognition events.
While the events were incomplete in the sense that some individuals were unable to attend due to illness or positive COVID tests, I am deeply appreciative of my former employer for hosting the events and for providing such a memorable send-off. I am forever grateful for the efforts of Beth, Chris, Emily, Bill, Kristi, Koleen, Mary, Jim and Barb as they demonstrated great flexibility, perseverance, creativity and dedication in pulling the events together. Their commitment to providing positive recognition to a guy on his way out is both gratifying and humbling. It speaks to the quality of employer who provided me great career satisfaction for over 37 years, and of the people who work there. I will be forever grateful.
We must find time to stop and thank the people who make a difference in our lives.
John F. Kennedy