Ugh. Given the week prior, leading the SLT meeting on our new night (thank you baseball season), was not top of my priority list. In an effort to not bore you with details, the previous week was a series of recovering from a mis-managed decision, learning about new projects on the fly, time crunches with kids schedules, not to mention a rather high profile meeting (for a lowly parks and recreation guy anyway) for the 8 hours leading directly up to the commute time to the SLT. Needless to say, I wasn’t feeling it.
Then this happened; Castaway got wings, Bump Draft came in person after threatening us with a Teams appearance, Nightshift rolled in, sans Amazon truck, and Scapula was tardy but dressed as a hobo. The remaining cast of the production also came with A performances up their sleeves. With things looking up, we got rolling on what I thought to be a mundane agenda.
Castaway kicked off the opening section of the agenda with updates on work leading up to a launch of PAX Mate, a CARPEX developed app that helps us understand our numbers and trends within the region. While very similar to PAX Miner, this one is homegrown, and seems to have greater flexibility. He also shared with us some of the behind the scenes on an upcoming newsletter for the region. Be on the look out AOQs for info about PAX Mate. For everyone else, we’ll be looking for contributors to the newsletter. If you have as much as a ember of an idea, or if you have a full inferno of writing fury, look for the call for contributors.
Scapula gave us a quick rundown of the Cloudbuster Ruck, and baseball tournament. While we all know about Beano’s prowess in the gloom, it was our unanimous opinion that he has the same vigor and follow through for event making and baseball that he does at 0530. Beano, thank you for your work in making not only F3 better, but running a great ball tournament, as well as raising funds and awareness for the Fitch Pediatric Rehab Center. Keep crushing it.
Our 1s Fs, Bump Draft and Maraschino, are working to secure venues and dates for several AOQ Symposiums to be held in the next couple months throughout the region. Expected to be 2-3 hours they’ll include some new information, as well as ample opportunity for discussion and idea sharing.
YHC also shared the upcoming 2nd F event on Thursday, March 30 at Namu. We’ll discuss the F3 Q Point, Shorties (2.0s) https://f3nation.com/shorties-q1-6/, and follow that with PAX led discussion. Conversation starts at 7:00 p.m. Be looking for reminders and the HC button on the #2ndf channel.
While you have your planners out, add Tuesday May 9 to it. Starting at 6:30 p.m., the SLT is going to hold an open meeting, and we invite any PAX that wants to know what we do, is skeptical of what we discuss, or reads this and thinks, “What the hell is an SLT? And I’d enjoy hanging out with my F3 brothers outside the gloom.”, then this is for you. We’ll have a shortened meeting, followed by an open Q & A. We’ll welcome questions as we go, and ahead of time, especially if the question is elaborate or needs some research. Feel free to email/message/text me, Castaway, or Scapula, and we’ll make sure we respond on the 9th. Location is TBD, but we’ll shoot for something that is fairly central.
Despite missing our 3rd Fs, Brotox and Moore, we did discuss the challenges for the months of April and May. Starting on April Fool’s day, we’ll begin the “Swing in to Spring” challenge. Bust our the KBs, and lets get some swings ahead of Speedo season. The following month, will be “May the Form be With You” challenge. Details to come, but form will be the subject for one full month.
Lastly, and for the bulk of our time, we talked about the mental health of our PAX. Over the past several weeks, we had over 30 PAX and their loved ones get at least familiar, and in some cases certified in CPR. It was acknowledged that for every person with a heart issue, there are many more that are going through some sort of mental health issue. Our discussion was hearty, tongue in cheek at times, and serious in others, leading to a strong consensus that we need to do something. We aren’t sure of a project yet, but this will need to be an ongoing topic.
We did come up with a call to action for the SLT Members, and I encourage every one of you that are willing, to join us. Each member of the SLT offers an open invitation to any PAX to be an outlet to talk about what you’re going through. Years ago, while doing research for my thesis I came across the idea of “Community Capacity”, in a nutshell, it is a community solving its collective problems using its collective resources. Each of us are a resource for each other, each of us can help collectively solve, or at the very least ease the gray days of mental health. The reason we give each other names after our first workout is to show you are accepted into this community. Once you’re part of this community, you are in part, our responsibility. Gentlemen, I love you, the PAX you post with love you (they just may not say it), and we are here to help you get through it and be healthy.
Our F3 brothers were amazing at this meeting. The mumblechatter was a 12 out of 10. The conversations we had were substantial, and it felt like a team. While I lamented my shitty week going into this meeting, what I didn’t say is it was weighing on me, it was decelerating my momentum for working out, for being a good dad, and for being a good friend. It was killing my emotionally and mentally. Sometimes, all it takes is an opportunity to vent, a man being open to hearing and not judging your struggles, having someone to reality test with, maybe even just a series of jokes and ball busting to adjust your situation. I didn’t workout Tuesday morning, but on that day F3 was all three Fs to me, and it made a difference. Thank you fellas.
Gentlemen, we have something special in F3, something that is even more special in F3 Churham. We have a community here, a community in which everyone of you belong, a community in which you are cared for, a community that loves you.
SYITG.