From the President’s Desk: Lessons in tenacity from a 90-year-old theatergoer

It all started with a sign on the side of the road.

While driving home from the grocery store in their small Connecticut town, my grandparents spotted it: “Newtown High School Theater Presents: ‘Anything Goes’.” It’s not every day local teenagers perform a 1930s classic, so these two musical lovers in their 90s decided to get tickets.

But, the lights were beginning to fade on their plans when they realized the sign left out where and when the show would take place.

Most of us in 2025 would do the obvious: look online! My grandmother isn’t familiar with the internet, though, so she went analog, picking up the phone and calling the high school. In an era dominated by automated menus and AI-driven service lines, calling around for information feels quaint, and many today even view it as unproductive. But consider this: she had no website to browse, no QR code promising instant answers, and no social media post to guide her. It’s a rare scenario nowadays. When was the last time you had nothing to go on and had to ask yourself, “where do I begin?”

What followed was a masterclass in persistence.

The high school office provided some answers, but not all of them. As it turned out, the play wasn’t happening at the school. It was being performed by a student theater group with no official affiliation. They still didn’t have the date, time, or location of the show.

Undeterred, my grandmother dialed her next source: the town’s Parks & Recreation department (why she thought they’d have the answers or how she got the number, I have no idea). Unsurprisingly, they weren’t involved either. She was down to her last hope and rang the town Selectman’s Office. Finally, after climbing all the rungs of local government, she had the details she needed.

In the end, my grandparents attended the play and loved it. They watched young performers bring an old favorite to life and reminisced about past productions of “Anything Goes.” Their persistence paid off, and their effort was rewarded.

Despite complete uncertainty, my grandmother relied on the mechanisms she knew would provide the right answers, even though it took more time and effort. Often, our instinct is to cast a broad, digital net. When we don’t get results right away, we’re tempted to give up or complain. Instead, my grandmother kept asking tough questions, following each lead until she found exactly what she was looking for.

While you might not relate to my grandparents’ quest to see curtain call, we’ve all experienced not knowing where to start. A new year brings many questions to be answered and challenges to overcome.

So, in the spirit of my grandmother’s determination, what are you currently pursuing, and how can a new perspective or way of doing things help you? Perhaps you know the questions to ask, but are you asking them in the right places and to the right people? And, most importantly, how are you rising to the occasion when you get an answer you don’t like or that doesn’t help?

This year, tackle challenges with the same spirit as a 90-year-old woman hunting down a student production of “Anything Goes.” Ask the tough questions, focus on results, and, when it seems like you’ve hit a roadblock…try something unexpected!

P.S.: After 68 years of marriage, my grandparents have one more tip: remember who’s on your team!

P.P.S.: If you’re not familiar with the outdated-but-still-used term “selectman,” you likely didn’t grow up in New England (or maybe you did, but in Rhode Island). The word originates from the founding of America’s government. Get your history lesson here.