EDUCATION Year-End the very fabric of this country in 2020-2021? We were (are) faced with so many issues that COVID-19 created in every aspect of life: A 1. Economic — shutdowns, lost jobs, companies going under, minimal workforce causing delays and stoppages in many services. 2. Social — families put to the test of being quarantined together for long periods with little to no interaction with those outside the household, and parties and other mass events canceled or limited to very small numbers. The simple acts of going out for a meal, a movie, shopping and even buying necessities from markets and big box stores were limited by delivery options or shortages. 3. Health — Massive waiting lists for doctor visits, with many occurring via Zoom instead of in person. Those with pre-existing conditions had trouble locating a bed in many hospitals due to the influx of those dealing with the virus. And healthcare workers did double, triple or seemingly endless shiſts due to the overrun hospitals and clinics. 4. Political — Lest we forget. Because we as a nation, since the mid-1990s, have somewhere along the way lost focus on being American and are more concerned about being Republican, Democrat, Whig, independent or whatever. Rather than doing what this nation has always done best in tragedy (Pearl Harbor, 9/11, etc.) which is put aside the pettiness of politics and pull together to solve the problem and remain a strong presence and leader in the world, from almost Day 1 of the global (see that word global) pandemic, it became a finger-pointing contest based on what side of the aisle you sat on. Challenges at ALOA ALOA was faced with pretty much each of these issues as well. Economically, we had to downsize the staff and cut overhead to keep the organization afloat. We developed new online training via webinars to continue to meet the needs of the industry. We adapted our PRP testing to fit this new world, offering online sessions for them as well. Socially, it became clear that the easiest way to save money and to make certain the staff was being protected was to work from home, which was certainly a challenge in the beginning. Not being able to see each other face-to-face 52 KEYNOTES DECEMBER 2021 Thoughts By Jim Hancock, CML, CMST s we write these articles for the December issue in October, we certainly have no way to predict what is happening in this world during post-Thanksgiving/pre-Christmas time. Are things returning to normal, morphing to a new normal or are we still facing the uncertainty that turned the world upside down and frankly ripped “While ALOA 2021 was successfully held in Orlando, Vegas has always been very good to ALOA, and we expect nothing less this time.” daily to discuss issues and not being able to hold Conventions af fected us not only socially (couldn’t see old friends) but also economically was rough. It took a bit of trial and error to take an 18,000-square-foot building full of documents, records, training materials, equipment, office furniture and supplies and find a smaller place to store them and figure out how to conduct business remotely, but it works well today. On the Horizon As we look into that crystal ball, what does this all look like moving forward? Not sure about you, but my crystal is fogged up pretty badly, and I can’t see anything clearly. But what I can tell you is what ALOA has on the horizon. WWW.ALOA.ORG
