Staff FYI News

It’s February 2026, which can only mean one thing: The Winter Olympics are here. I’m a self-professed Olympic enthusiast and have been ever since watching the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta. Many of you know my deep appreciation for (college) football, but give me figure skating in Milan on a Sunday night, and I’ll happily choose it over the Super Bowl. Surprising? Maybe, but I’ll own it.

What continues to draw me to the Olympics is how it brings together people from every walk of life, working in tandem toward something larger than themselves. Collectively, they represent the values that have provided consistency, even during challenging times. Not even COVID-19 could stop the Tokyo Summer Olympics; it only delayed them by a year.

As odd as it may sound, I see many of these same themes reflected in Illinois Extension. We operate under the larger umbrella of the College of ACES — our “home country,” if you will — and we come from diverse backgrounds with unique experiences and expertise. Those differences are our strength. While we’re not competing for gold medals, we are working every day to create meaningful impact in communities across Illinois.

In the end, it’s not a medal we’re after. It’s something far more meaningful: the trust of the people and communities we serve. So, let’s find inspiration and continue to train, practice, and pour into our programs so that we, too, may rise to the occasion when our number is called.