RESILIENCE

By Andi Liebenbaum (she/ella)

Nearly every day, I see and re-read a quote from an unknown source that I have hanging in my office. It reads: Peace. It does not mean to be in a place where there is no noise, trouble, or hard work. It means to be in the midst of those things and still be calm in your heart.

Certainly, this message speaks to the biggest issues of our times – war, hate, global warming, disease, politics, finances. But not everything we do is characterized by or in the furtherance of these larger issues. Much of what we do on a daily basis – as practicing attorneys, business leaders, volunteers, parents, children – is juggle the many balls we have, get to the end of the day, take a deep breath, and prepare ourselves for whatever is next. Why? Because we are resilient. Because we are capable, thoughtful individuals who intend to – and do – persevere. We are regularly in the midst of noise, trouble, and hard work, and yet here we are, and here we stake our claim.

Your bar association is characterized by this same resilience. Facing the pandemic on the heels of financial instability, we have come out the other side ready for more and better than ever. It’s true, the Sacramento County Bar Association has experienced some of its own noise and trouble. Yet with hard work from our staff, our volunteer board, and many of you, we stand firm, and we continue to represent the best of what local bar associations are. Just recently we celebrated the most impressive and exciting Bench Bar Reception in memory. More than 450 of us came together to honor our profession, to show gratitude for the relationship between our association and the bench, and to recognize another star in the judicial constellation, Judge Troy Nunley. (Be sure to read about both the Bench Bar Reception on page 16, and Judge Nunley on page 12.) Just prior to that we partnered with our friends at the Sacramento County Bar Foundation to undertake not a single Kids Law Day, but FOUR Kids Law Days! And the future is bright. We are working on additional events such as a recognition of Nathaniel Colley, our association’s first African American member, and a Complex Civil Litigation training program in collaboration with the Alameda County Bar Association and members of the Sacramento Superior Court. We are in the midst of hiring additional staff. We will host our Annual Meeting and holiday celebration in December in anticipation of a new year and even greater successes. Some noise, yes. A bit of “good trouble,” I sure hope so. And a lot of hard work. Because, like you, the Sacramento County Bar Association is resilient.