Presenting the Outstanding Community Achievement Award – 2021

My Mom, Kelly Buchanan was the founder and creator of the HER brand (https://her.today) – a program in eastern Iowa that empowers women and gives them the tools and community support to succeed in any career path they choose. After my Mom’s passing her colleagues reached out to me and we met in March 2021 to discuss creating a new award in her honor. The Outstanding Community Leadership award was born and I had the honor to present this award to the recipient in person on June 16, 2021. This event was small and intimate, it was the first event many of us were able to attend in person and unmasked due to the pandemic.

Since we were not able to invite many of our family members and close friends to this event, I want to take this opportunity to share the speech I gave with all of you. To say this night was special is an understatement – there was an air of unconditional love, acceptance, and an uplifting power and presence at the venue. It was an emotional evening, I shed my fair share of tears and I opened myself up to a level of vulnerability I didn’t know I could. It was simply a beautiful evening and one that I will cherish for a lifetime.

The event was to present the new Outstanding Community Leadership Award but also to celebrate the Women of Achievement Awards – for more information check out https://her.today This will help put the speech into context, here we go…

I am grateful to be here this evening as a representative of the Buchanan family and present the Outstanding Community Leadership award on behalf of my beloved mom, Kelly Buchanan. 

Thank you to Quinn, Amy, and Chelsea for organizing such a lovely evening and event and for your thoughtfulness on how to honor my Mom and the work she did within the Cedar Rapids area. 

My Mom was instrumental in the creation of the HER brand and had a passion for celebrating individual success and enhancing community cohesion through events – just like this event that has brought us all together this evening. 

My mom dedicated her career to celebrating women – their leadership, their drive, and believed that each one of us has a unique and bright light to shine within our homes and within our communities. She also had a talent of making each person feel seen – feel special – and she put the spotlight on unsung heroes believing that each one of us can find inspiration from the strength and stories of others. 

Tonight, I am here to share the story of my Mom’s journey with all of you with the goal that you will feel the love and light that she expressed and how you can carry this love and light forward into your own lives. 

Perhaps her career path of celebrating women unfolded so at some point we could celebrate her – she too, is an unsung hero and inspirational leader. Well, I’m here to sing her praises and to celebrate a life well lived, a life led with honor and purpose, a life full of perseverance and love. 

My Mom was born to a young single mother in Chicago in the mid-1950’s and had a difficult childhood. Her grandmother shared a special gift with her, the gift of a strong spiritual foundation and faith in an all-inclusive loving God which helped her through these challenging times. After a tragic accident, she was placed in the foster care system and was separated from her younger sister. 

She could have let these circumstances define her, limit her, or hold her back but she didn’t buy into the limitations placed on her. At age 13 she was adopted by a loving family, thrived in her new home, went to college and later graduated with a BA in English and Journalism from Iowa State University. 

She married and had three children – myself, and two sons, Eric and Ryan. She had a talent for floral and garden design, was an incredible home cook, and had a deep love for her children and family. She had an adventurous spirit and loved to travel all over the world, and she knew how to make each person feel appreciated, valued, and cherished. 

When she retired in early 2020, she had over three decades of experience in the media industry and was recognized as an influential leader in the Cedar Rapids and Iowa City area. 

This evening we are here to recognize another influential leader in our community, Jen Winter, Cedar Rapids Public Works Director. 

As many of you remember all too well, in early August of 2020 a derecho hit eastern Iowa causing a whirlwind of destruction that destroyed homes, caused irreparable tree damage, and flattened millions of acres of corn, our farm included.

Later that year my Mom passed away peacefully at our family home as I sat by her side. Be it a terrible natural disaster or the passing of a beloved family member these life events give us an opportunity to decide on how we are going to move forward. Do we crumble into despair and grief, or do we come together to repair our lives, rebuild our homes and our spirit, and rise up stronger than ever before? 

I am learning how to navigate without my Mom’s physical presence – during the past several months I’ve learned to lean on others, to find beauty in what is, and to express gratitude for all of the good that surrounds me. 

We can see this good and hope expressed in the derecho response as well – the community came together to help and support each other, people organized work parties to clean up the debris and individuals like Jen brought their unique talents and skillsets to help the community build back better and stronger. 

In a time when our country is divided, the response to the derecho is an example that when we come together and understand that we are truly one – one family, one community, with one goal – we can prove that we are better together, we are stronger together, and we can lift each other up during challenging times. 

This evening we celebrate the beautiful spirit of my Mom, the women of achievement awards, and Jen for her outstanding community leadership, but we are also celebrating the endurance of the human spirit to persevere over any challenge and the understanding that we are stronger when we come together.