When we all come together and work together,
there isn't anything that we cannot achieve,
and our founder, Ewing Marion Kauffman, really
believed in that. And it's part of the fabric
of our foundation. And when I look back at
periods of hope for our country, we know what
we can aspire to, and if we keep that energy
and understand that north star, we can make
sure that we get through any crisis. This
pandemic is a reminder of how interconnected
we really are, and how interdependent we really
are. And my hope is that we will remember
the way that we're coming together now to
help one another.
Our rhythms as a nation have been thrown off,
and as a world, to a large degree. This moment
in time is very, very important for small
business and for entrepreneurs. There are
organizations across Kansas City and across
the nation that are coming together in communities
to pool funding to help entrepreneurs to get
them through this period.
So, how can everyone be a participant in that,
and have an equitable shot at getting their
fair share? So, it isn't about everyone has
to win the same way. It's whatever your idea
is, or what you want to achieve in life, your
dream, is having an equitable shot at having
the resources, the opportunity, being seen
as viable enough for investment, for resources,
for support.
This is very, very large. This is a very,
very large hit to our economy. Obviously,
it can't be changed or healed overnight. But
it can, with everyone coming together and
doing their part, get better as we move along.
My idea is a call for interdependence. So
it's a call for unity. It's a call for connection.
The independence part is taking ownership
of our ideas, of our responsibilities, and
being accountable for those, and being the
best we can be in our own power. Interdependency
is, once we have our independence solid and
our accountability, our ownership, and doing
the best that we can, it's how can I then
engage with others for the whole? That type
of connection is really just going to pave
the way for our future when, technology is
not going away, the speed of things may not
be going away, pandemics may come and go.
How do we as people be resilient through all
of that, and make sure that our economies,
our educational institutions, everything,
is as beneficial for as many people as possible?
