2021 was quite the ride...
Every year (yes, even last year), Haven Life puts together an Annual Report that celebrates our community and everything we’ve accomplished together over the past 12 months. And if there was one thing we all couldn’t wait for after 2020, it was 2021.
But then 2021 started and, in a flash, it was over.
So, that raises the question: In a year that felt like a rollercoaster, how could anything of true meaning be achieved?
There’s only one way to find out.
I went diving with a whale shark”
I landed a key promotion in November”
Next year I hope to continue helping rebuild the coral reef”
I donated a kidney!”
I wrote a song that reached a million plays on Spotify”
I retired”
I ran my first half marathon in nearly 15 years and set a personal record”
My daughter earned a college scholarship”
I finished my masters classes in Spain”
I got to see my oldest son for the first time in 5 years”
I got to meet my niece and nephew in Arizona”
I finally got to hug my parents again…for an awkwardly long period of time”
I became an expert at making s'mores”
I started making stained glass sun catchers and selling them at a local makers market”
My husband came home early from deployment and we got married.”
I got my degree in special education”
I celebrated my 20th wedding anniversary”
I turned 60”
I adopted a cat”
I adopted a pair of senior dogs”
I bought my first minivan and officially became a soccer mom”
I moved into my first apartment and lived by myself for the first time”
I got engaged…to a Haven employee!”
I got really into creating NFTs and tattooing”
I began pursuing my private pilot’s license”
I picked up pond fishing”
I started fly fishing”
I learned how to speak Italian”
I learned how to make a mean set of colored Rice Krispy treats in various shapes”
I joined a book club”
I volunteered to be a girl scout troop leader”
I got really into barefoot running”
I restored a 1971 Datsun pickup truck”
I began collecting cufflinks”
I tried to grow my own blueberries. And I failed. Miserably. Turns out growing blueberries is hard.”
I turned to watercolor painting”
I played video games”
I built Legos and solved some jigsaw puzzles”
I did a lot of hiking with my dog, Toodles”
I swung in my hammock”
I napped on the beach”
I started crocheting”
I watched the Great British Baking Show”
I took a day trip. Just to get ice cream.”
We bought our first home”
I grew a beautiful flower garden in my front yard”
I watched TikTok in bed”
I adopted a cat”
Including: Hope Worldwide, Pioneer Valley Church of Christ, Lula Lake Land Trust, Atlanta Botanical Garden, PETA, BLM, NAACP, Big Brothers Big Sisters, Livingston Food Resource Center, St. Jude’s Children’s Hospital, Casting for Recovery, Warriors and Quiet Waters, The Mountain Journal, Montana PBS, Planned Parenthood, Boy Scouts of America, The National Park Service, Tri-County Animal Rescue, ACLU, Make-a-Wish, Houston Food Bank, Start of Hope, The Salvation Army, NPR, Rhonda Walker, Progressionista, My Block My Hood My City, Alliance for the Great Lakes, NRDC, Secondhand Hounds, Feed America, United Way, Metro Caring, Secret Smiles of Dayton, Utah AIDS Foundation, Mom’s House, Homes for Our Troops, American Red Cross, Helen Keller International, Feed for Poverty, ASPCA, Girl Scouts of America, Boys and Girls Club, PAWS of WAR, American Cancer Society, My Local Library, Girls on the Run, Pauahi Foundation, Local PTAs, CASA, Rainbow House, Shoals Marine Lab, the Stepping Strong Center at Brigham, Ronald McDonald House, Chewonki Foundation, Tampa Bay Waterkeeper, National Outdoor Leadership School, Cleveland Food Bank, Atlanta Community Food Bank, Southern Poverty Law Center, KQED Public Radio, The Trevor Project, AIDS Lifecycle, Children’s Museum of Sonoma County, Local EMS, Leukemia Foundation, Special Olympics, Urban Justice League, Wren Climate Project, DC Diaper Bank, Seattle Children’s Hospital, Aggie Achieve, Clarke School for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing, Jacob’s Ride, Amnesty International, Equal Justice Initiative, Yellowhammer Fund, Jewish Women’s Archive, Covid Relief Fund for India, Wikipedia, The Loveland Foundation, Sunrise Movement, Movember, Longmeadow Pride Alliance, Hollaback!, Marshall Project, Housing Works, American Lung Association, Delta Sigma Pi Business Fraternity, Local Loaves and Fishes… to name a few
I ran a 5k to support underprivileged women. And another 5k to support sea turtles.”
Had lots of sex”
I started a fruit orchard”
In 2022 I will make it a goal to send cards to older people who are stuck at home due to the pandemic”
I’m going to open a community center”
I will donate blood”
I’m going to spoil my niece”
Donate a part of my liver”
I will volunteer at a camp for kids with congenital heart defects”
I’m going to support historic preservation”
I will pick up any litter I see”
I will spread love and positivity”
I’ll share home baked goods with my neighbors”
I will take more time to make music and paint”
I will be more present”
I will make it a point to get dinner with my dad at least once a month”
I’m going to finish my book (and start the next one)”
I’m going to play more with my dogs”
I’m going to plant a new tree in our yard”
I will spend more time connecting with my friends”
I will give myself love”
I will become a morning person”
I will slow down!”
I learned how to kayak”
My husband and I plan to host healing tea ceremonies”
My job does not define me”
I can be more assertive in seeking what I need to make my life more fulfilling”
Resilience is hard, but not impossible”
Stability allows me to be more creative and innovative in my work”
I can grow my own corn”
It’s okay to ask for help with your mental health”
I can be vegan”
52 is not too late in life to make a fresh start”
Working out over my lunch hour and eating healthy lunches somehow makes the day go so much faster.”
Put the phone down more”
Invest small amounts regularly”
Be vulnerable”
It’s important to create boundaries and give yourself time to grow”
Trust my instincts”
Whenever I have a disagreement I will stop and ask myself ‘but what if I’m wrong.’ That’s one way I can keep myself accountable.”
I am incredibly lucky”
I will plan my wedding”
