They say you should expect the unexpected, but no one expected the COVID-19 pandemic, and how the events of the last 18 months have turned our lives upside down and changed the way we live. 

Granted, life was already full of stress and challenges before the coronavirus made it to the U.S. But when it did arise, we were forced to adjust the way we conducted ourselves and had to adhere to many restrictions and limits.

The Genesis Group — a civic organization that unites business and community leaders working to advance regional economic, social, and cultural interests, and to foster unity and cooperation in the Mohawk Valley region — is grateful to the thousands of quality health-care workers and first responders. We are very fortunate to have them here, we admire their dedication to our personal well-being, and we thank them for their selfless service to our community. 

Looking to the future, it’s a very promising time for the Mohawk Valley region. New development, new companies, and new jobs are at our doorstep. In offering a way forward, I believe our community should stay focused on new opportunities. 

Webster defines opportunities as a set of circumstances that makes it possible to do something. I agree with this and believe that it’s important to have a positive attitude as well. With an upbeat outlook and a smart plan of action, our region can rise above any challenge.

If you’re looking for advice during this time of challenge, who better to turn to than one of the most inspiring women of all, who overcame more than most of us could ever imagine? Helen Keller has always been someone that we have admired. If anyone can teach us about overcoming obstacles, it’s her. Keller said “always remember during hard times that just because you may be suffering, other people always have bigger problems than you do. Plus, character truly is developed during hard times, not easy ones. It might not seem fun, but it makes you a better person if you have a positive outlook.”

Right now, our region has a plethora of opportunities to build upon. Just look at the stability of some of our local industries, such as education, health care, agri-business, banking and finance, insurance, and the emerging nanotechnology and semi-conductor industries. The Genesis Group supports these industries and has established committees and projects in many of these areas. We just need to capitalize and seize the opportunities.

Another key that’s important for growth is collaboration and partnerships. Simply put, we must all work together to move our region forward. As the saying goes: together everyone accomplishes more (TEAM). For many years, the Genesis Group has said “that we are much stronger when we work together.” Right now, unity and cooperation are a must. 

The Genesis Group continues to unite individuals and organizations dedicated to adaptive leadership. Genesis will continue to be a trusted voice that advocates for and partners with those seeking positive transformation. Now in its 21st year of serving the Mohawk Valley region, the Genesis Group is offering its own opportunities to help create positive impact. Genesis is a source for news and information about the Mohawk Valley, views and opinions, community projects, regional events, and home to The New Genesis Center for Data Analytics.

When determining a way forward, we must be mindful that life can change in a minute — as it did in the past year. Let us remember with reverence those that have been lost, while celebrating the blessings that remain and look forward to new opportunities and better days ahead.              

Raymond J. Durso, Jr., is president and CEO of The Genesis Group. Contact him at RDurso@thegenesisgroup.org.

You can get a sense of the sweep of American politics and history by identifying a few of the indispensable men in our country’s history. 

There are many, of course, and my list is quite limited. Similar lists of indispensable women could be developed; and they have been, by the late broadcast journalist Cokie Roberts and others. 

Who are these indispensable men? I’ll mention a few, all of them well known. 

First, of course, is George Washington, known as the father of his country. He led the ragtag army that defeated the British in the American Revolution. He played an essential role in drafting the Constitution. A Virginia aristocrat, Washington fought as an officer in the French and Indian War, earning a reputation for bravery and leadership. After the Constitution was ratified, the Electoral College unanimously chose him as the new nation’s first president. 

Thomas Jefferson, who became the third president, was the primary author of the Declaration of Independence, which famously said that “all men are created equal.” Yet he owned more than 600 men, women, and children in his lifetime. A learned and cosmopolitan man, Jefferson called slavery a “moral depravity” and a “hideous blot,” but owned slaves his entire life, including several of his own children and their mother. Ten of the first 12 U.S. presidents, including Washington, Madison, and Monroe, were slave owners. 

Washington and Jefferson came from land-owning families, but Alexander Hamilton did not. An orphan born in the West Indies, he rose through talent and hard work, became the first secretary of the treasury, and established the American financial system. He supported a strong central government, was the primary author of the Federalist Papers, which advocated for approval of the Constitution, and was an early leader of the Federalist Party. Improbably, a hugely popular Broadway musical has made Hamilton a well-known figure today. 

Abraham Lincoln, the 16th president, guided the nation through the Civil War and issued the Emancipation Proclamation, which declared enslaved people in the South to be free. Lincoln was born in Kentucky and spent his boyhood in Southern Indiana, which he recalled as “a wild region, with many bears and other wild animals still in the woods.” He moved to Illinois, where he practiced law and entered politics. Although Lincoln’s positions regarding slavery evolved, he knew the practice had to end. Two years before being elected president, he declared the “government cannot endure, half slave and half free.” 

Fast forward 100 years to John F. Kennedy. The youngest person to be elected president, he brought optimism and idealism to the White House: “Ask not what your country can do for you. Ask what you can do for your country,” he said. He prioritized the space program and called for putting a man on the moon. After the Cuban Missile Crisis brought the world excruciatingly close to disaster, Kennedy argued that the U.S. and Soviet Union had a vital interest in stopping the spread of nuclear weapons, leading to the test-ban treaty of 1963. 

Martin Luther King, Jr. was the acknowledged leader of the mid-20th century civil-rights movement. He rose to prominence as a young minister leading the Montgomery Bus Boycott and delivered the iconic “I Have a Dream” speech at the 1963 March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom. He worked tirelessly to make Jefferson’s declaration, that people are “created equal,” more than a noble ideal. 

As much as these men accomplished, it’s striking to recall that four of them had their lives cut short by violence: Hamilton was killed in a duel, and Lincoln, Kennedy, and King were assassinated. In the time they had, in their different ways, they made the United States a more perfect union.        

Lee Hamilton, 90, is a senior advisor for the Indiana University (IU) Center on Representative Government, distinguished scholar at IU Hamilton Lugar School of Global and International Studies, and professor of practice at the IU O’Neill School of Public and Environmental Affairs. Hamilton, a Democrat, was a member of the U.S. House of Representatives for 34 years (1965-1999), representing a district in south central Indiana.