The rumors of my retirement have been, to borrow from Mark Twain, greatly exaggerated. Or maybe they were just premature. The distinction matters, because what changed was not my commitment to Santa Cruz Works or to this community, but my understanding of what “retirement” actually means.

There was a moment when I genuinely thought stepping away was the responsible thing to do. Leadership transitions are healthy. Institutions should not orbit a single person forever. That instinct led to a public conversation, and eventually to an article announcing a retirement that, in retrospect, misunderstood the problem it was trying to solve. The article is now retracted, not because the sentiment behind it was dishonest, but because it was incomplete.

What took time to crystallize is something science has been telling us for years. Longevity is not just about avoiding bad things. It is about actively doing good ones. Exercise matters. Nutrition matters. Cognitive engagement matters. But over and over, research points to one factor that quietly dominates the rest: community. Purposeful social connection. Being useful to other people.

Helping build, connect, and support a community is not something I need to retire from. It is something that, quite literally, keeps me healthy.

That realization reframed the question. The issue was never whether I should stop contributing. It was whether I was contributing in a way that was sustainable, both for me and for the organization. The answer was not departure, but evolution.

Over the past year, we have grown the team at Santa Cruz Works in a way that meaningfully redistributes responsibility. Mash has joined to take on major strategic initiatives and big, complex projects that demand focused leadership. Neil Erickson has come on board to strengthen operations, execution, and day-to-day momentum. This is not symbolic growth. It is structural change.

The result is a version of my role that looks less like constant firefighting and more like stewardship. Fewer sprawling projects. More mentorship. More thinking. More listening. More time spent doing the parts of the work that compound rather than exhaust.

So no, I am not retiring in the way the word is usually meant. I am still deeply engaged. But I am also clearer than I have ever been about why. Work that strengthens community is not something you age out of. If anything, it is something you grow into.

The rumors were understandable. They just missed the point.

Related Articles

Santa Cruz Works Executive Director Announces Retirement
A reflection on leadership transition and the moment that sparked a broader conversation about stepping back.
Welcome Mash to Santa Cruz Works
Introducing Mash and his role in leading large-scale strategy and complex initiatives.
Our Team at Santa Cruz Works
Meet the expanded team, including Neil Erickson, and how evolving roles are designed to support long-term impact.

Clean, clickable, and mercifully straightforward. Sometimes growth looks like adding links, not footnotes.