New Kent Charles City Chronicle

News for New Kent County and Charles City County, Virginia | March 29, 2024

Editorial: By humbling yourself, you open up opportunities for others

By Andre Jones | March 30, 2021 10:36 pm

Sometimes, you have to take a step back and humble yourself and be thankful for the opportunities you receive. At the same time, you have to be the person to make those opportunities available to others as well.

This editorial comes in consideration of the several blessings I have had over the years, along with the realization that in order for us to grow in our society, we have to provide our younger generation the opportunity to lead.

When I was first employed by Alan Chamberlain for the Chronicle, he allowed me to do some freelance work because he had seen some of my writings from my college day. I will let you know that he and his wife changed my life because of the opportunity. I was in a place struggling to find stable employment and to have a realistic salary. He opened that door for me and then, he trusted me to carry on with the newspaper upon his retirement. His faith and trust in me is why I work hard everyday to provide the most accurate coverage of Charles City and New Kent County. He did it for more than 20 years and is well-respected for his work. I just want to live up to his standards to make sure I give him the best representation because he took a chance on a 30-something year old looking for a way in life.

But as I stated earlier, you have to be able to know when it’s time to step aside for others to excel as well. I can say that I’ve done that on a few occasions, and I am so proud to have successors. The first time was when I stepped down from coaching girls’ high school basketball after eight years. My energy was low and with the program reaping success from my previous stints, I didn’t have the ability to take it to the next level. That is when VaShaun Otey came through and elevated it to the next level, guiding the program to state competition. One of the players was Hailey Holmes, who returned to the school system two years ago. When the position for girls’ basketball came open after Otey left to support his children in their sporting endeavors, he supported Holmes and I followed suit as she had played under me as a middle school athlete. I received my first coaching job at the young age of 21, and I knew she was able to handle it at a young age as well.

So, blessings will come whether you’re the one receiving them or the one starting the chain for somebody else to be the beneficiary of it. I am thankful to have worked with so many people who I entrusted and opened my eyes because they were the ones who knew what was best for me, even though I didn’t say it out loud.

So, when an opportunity comes for a person to take an opportunity to lead, give them a chance. The best thing you can do is support and guide them along the way. It only takes a moment for them to receive a lifetime of lessons through your support.