Forward Janesville - TheReport - Second Quarter 2020

4 • W W W . F O R W A R D J A N E S V I L L E . C O M John Beckord • President, Forward Janesville • johnb@forwardjanesville.com taking care of one another I expect most of you are dealing with something similar to what I have struggled with: an avalanche of information about COVID-19. My inbox is filled daily with information about how to protect yourself, your employees, and your family, how to position your business to survive the slowdown, and how to access various assistance programs. I am not going to add to the avalanche of information. Instead, I am going to write about how resourceful the community has been, how so many gestures of generosity have given us a renewed sense of community, and how adversity can bring out the best in people and organizations . I have been challenged by some with whom I discussed this idea. They point out the hoarding, those who ignore exhortations to practice social distancing, and the tendency to turn every issue into a partisan political squabble. I will only respond by saying fear causes some irrational behavior, there has always been a tone-deaf segment of humanity, and we are heading into the final stretch of a presidential election. There is so much more to consider. When the decision was made on March 16 to close public schools, I wondered how in the world the school district could move instruction online in a matter of days and how so many kids who depend on the district for meals every day would cope. Janesville School District Superintendent Steve Pophal reported that within ten days they deployed 7,000 laptops. They moved classes online starting March 30. By April 6, the district set up wifi hotspots at every school parking lot so students/parents could download content even if they didn't have a connection at home. They set up a system to provide lunches and breakfasts to any child 18 or younger. During the week beginning March 30, 23,294 meals were served. I suggest to you this is an incredible example of resourcefulness and resilience. On March 23, Mercy Hospital contacted Prent Corporation to fill a shortage of essential open face shields. The initial plan—to provide Mercy with 2,000 shields by March 27—grew into distributing 10,000 face shields to all healthcare workers and first responders in Rock County. Prent went from learning of the shortage to delivering product in 48 hours, two days ahead of schedule. This is a remarkable example of a business being resourceful and finding a way to help solve a critical challenge: protecting our health care workers. Kudos to the whole team at Prent Corporation. You will read in this issue of The Report about other people, businesses and organizations who have stepped up in a variety of ways to generate resources, help a neighbor, or adapt to very challenging circumstances. As I write this column, we are still in a selective lockdown with an increasing number of people infected with the virus. Experts are giving us hope that the peak is near and that when May rolls around we will begin a phased return to some form of normalcy. My hope for you is that you stay well, that you connect with family, friends and community in new ways, and that this strange experience somehow brings out your best. I am proud of so many friends and family members who have shown amazing compassion and generosity. We ARE a resilient community. Our economy WILL recover. And we WILL have a renewed sense of pride in the knowledge that we did our level best to take care of each other.