Words of Wisdom January 7, 2025

Happy New Year from All of Us at YDN!

Curated by YDN Admin

As the calendar turns to 2025, we’re filled with gratitude for the moments, milestones, and meaningful connections we shared with you over the past year. Together, we have made incredible strides toward creating a world where every individual has the opportunity to thrive and succeed.

Looking ahead, these four core values will continue to guide the important work necessary in times of uncertainty.

Relationships

The change we seek cannot be achieved alone. It is in the collective effort of individuals, organizations, and communities that we find the strength to dream bigger and do better. This year, we recommit to building bridges and fostering collaboration, knowing the impact we create together far exceeds what we can do on our own.

Social Justice

In 2025, we deepen our pledge to celebrate diversity and champion equity. It is the mosaic of different experiences, perspectives, and identities that makes us stronger as a community. By listening to each other and lifting one another up, we are building a foundation where everyone belongs and has the chance to flourish.

Change

Growth and progress often require us to adapt and reinvent ourselves while staying true to our core. Small actions, guided by curiosity and compassion, lead to transformative outcomes. This year, we invite you to join us in shaping a future where kindness and courage drive every decision.

Fun

Purposeful work does not have to be serious all the time. Play, laugh, and celebrate the journey—we do! Creating positive change is hard, but when it is fueled by joy, it becomes what we want to do rather than what we have to do.

As We Move Forward

Let’s Listen to Our Inner Voices

Do not hesitate to pause, reflect, and care for yourself. Broken people can not fix broken systems. In this shared race to make the world a better place, taking time for your own growth and well-being is not a detour—it is part of the path.

Let’s Fight for What’s Right and Good

Leadership is not about seeking applause; it is about standing for what matters, even when it is hard. As we face the future, let us keep fighting for what is just and righteous, leaning on our shared values and the community around us.

In 2025, let us hold onto what grounds us, even as we reach higher. Let us play, laugh, help, and grow—together. It is not about keeping score or counting accolades; it is about how we make each other feel and the legacy of kindness and impact we leave behind.

Thank you for lending your passion, energy, and gifts to this collective journey. Your support inspires us every day to keep going, keep believing, and keep building a world that reflects the best in all of us.

Wishing you a year filled with hope, connection, and purpose. Together, let’s make 2025 unforgettable.

As Adam “Ad-Rock” Horovitz stated, “Take what you’re good at, and what you truly enjoy, and lend your services to the causes you care most about. ‘Cause we can’t, and we won’t, and we don’t stop.”