It's finally here -- the day that Empowered Together launches its first enterprise pilot with LOGAN .  By the stats, it's been: 399 days since I started a pilot with individual parents, 195 days since I was introduced to LOGAN, and  25 days since LOGAN and Empowered Together formally agreed upon pilot terms. I'm grateful to have an initial roadmap for enterprise partnerships. Now I have some learnings under my belt about the process, especially regarding timelines, key stakeholders, and roll-out procedures. Reach out if you're curious to learn more. The other element I try to capture herein is the personal and emotional impact of startups on founders. This morning, my daughter gave me a high-five and said, "good job, Mom," when I reminded her today is Launch Day. She gave me a magenta Mardi Gras-like necklace for the day that I'm wearing. A colleague from my Veterans in Residence program messaged me encouragement as did a lifelong friend whom I've con...

It has been a year and a day since Empowered Together 's pilot launched. On the actual one-year anniversary, I was too tapped out to reflect in a meaningful way. I pulled together a meager post in the evening and called it a day.  How come? Well, I was tired from the day's strategy offsite, reflecting on what's working, what's not, and where we're headed. I also got a couple pieces of disappointing news: I didn't get into an accelerator I was hoping for and a prospective pilot partner declined our proposal.  My life involves a lot of holding things in tension -- family and work, disability discrimination and hope for a better future, knowing where Empowered Together is headed and thwarted on the way there. This all aligns perfectly with the ultimate tension of the "already but not yet" nature of God's kingdom. Things on this earth are complicated and imperfect. I catch glimmers of God at work, of His love piercing the darkness, of Jesus' compa...

A couple days ago, parents across the US felt the gut punch of another school shooting. It reminded me of December 14, 2013 when I was pregnant with my eldest child and stood watching the news. I thought, "I don't want to bring a child into this world." My now 8 year old asked if the teachers in Uvalde had the student do their lockdown routine. This is the world I've brought two children into -- elementary students practice lockdown drills, sometimes those safeguards aren't enough, parents fear for their kids' safety at school, parents struggle to communicate this travesty to their kids. And just how does this affect my startup? Well, my productivity this week has tanked as my heart has been ripped asunder. We're encouraged to bring our whole selves to work. That's especially important to me as an entrepreneur working with families. That makes weeks like these all the more painful. As people cry out about rights and protections, I want to curl up into ...