Tonight was supposed to be the Second Annual Warter Strong Foundation Golf & Tennis Outing. But “life” had a different plan.

Last year, I spoke about our family, our charity and our mission. That speech is just as current for life today, in these unprecedented times... Excerpts from  5/28/19 ❤️“Man Plans, and God Laughs” is an old saying my grandfather used to say. Despite our most careful planning, the Road of Life is unpredictable. In reality, there is so much in life not within our control. We can work hard in school, do well on our SATs and still not get into our first choice college. We can eat healthy and exercise and still be afflicted with cancer or dementia... The idea of not having full control can be frightening. Overwhelming even. I think it’s human nature to plan and organize in an effort to create some grounding, some stability in not always stable world. In some ways I think the basis for anxiety lies in trying to control the uncontrollable, and the reality is we can’t. I learned that lesson very well over 18 years ago when my first son, Ryan was born with CHARGE Syndrome.  Besides the obvious shock and change of my planned life, raising Ryan taught me to strive for radical acceptance, look for the beauty in “perfectly imperfect” places and all the while keep an open heart. It took me nearly 20 years...before I was able to really understood how to articulate that lesson.... Figure out how to be happy. How could we do that while living with stress and sadness? No money in the world was going to make Ryan talk or eat or take away migraines. I learned that “figuring out how to be happy” had little to do with the outside world and everything to do with ourselves. The one thing we have control over is our thoughts and emotions and intentions...this idea that we have control over something is empowering. We have the ability to control our happiness not in terms of a vague state of mind or feeling or choice... but by waking up every day and walking the walk-even amidst the darker, sadder parts of our days. Doing the work. Finding small or big ways to do happy...”❤️ Now more than ever, our mission is powerful... our mantra is timeless and rings true...