Pub. 8 2019 Issue 3

7 F A L L | 2019 President’s Message M E S S A G E Who We Are, What We Do By Steve Yeakel, CAE VACB President & CEO R ecently, I had the privi- lege of taking in the Forum on the Future of Representative De- mocracy, hosted in Wil- liamsburg by Ameri- can Evolution, a broad coalition of individuals and groups working this year to commemo- rate Virginia’s historic 400-year anniversary. The opening keynote was delivered by Carly Fiorina, former CEO at Hewlett- Packard and candidate for president briefly in 2016. Always an energetic and in- teresting speaker, this speech was particularly remarkable because it was as deep and thoughtful as it was provoca- tive and inspiring. Fiorina reminded me of why I was so proud to be in Virginia again at this point of my life – “Virginia and Virginians have always been at the center of our national experience. Virginia was the place where both democracy and slavery were born in America. And in the sear- ing contradiction between liberty and enslavement, Virginia has always been the crucible for an ideal: that we are all created equal and endowed, from God not government, with certain inalienable rights; among them, life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. We cannot fully understand the present, or effectively face the future, unless we fully understand the past.” After a fascinating recounting of Virginia’s earliest days, a student of history and philosophy from college classes drew out a number of timeless lessons. Among them, I found two in particular that spoke so di- rectly to our work together, from our communities to the nation’s capital. First, she noted that while ideals and principals are critically important (real and powerful, according to Plato), absent practical- ity, they lack effectiveness. “When insight into what feeds the human spirit and experience about what works in the real world are combined with principals and ideals, then the world can change. This interplay between practicality and idealism is America’s story, and our gift to the world.” Later, she drew on that idealism/practicality paradox to reveal another more specific truth: “Last ing change does not happen all at once. Positive change always happens from the ground up, driven by people trying to make a better life. Smaller, incremental experiences are important preparation for groundbreaking declara- tions. Leaders are not always those with enormous power or lofty positions. Leaders are those who change the order of things for the better, wherever they are.” I’m not sure that there is a more fitting description of what Virginia’s community bankers do, and who you are. It’s an honor to represent you, to be your voice, in changing things for the better.