Time goes by so fast. Just six months ago our beautiful Southwest Florida was devastated. But look what we’ve been able to do in a short period of time. Amazing.

Devastating things happen to people almost every day around the world. The magnitude of events might be different, but everywhere there is someone who is hurting. When you hurt, it’s often hard to accept the reality of the situation. That’s when you need someone to lean on, and though you may feel alone, the truth is there are many people who want to help. It’s important not to push away that help. Let others support you. If you can put your fear aside and accept things as they are—today—you’ll see through the obscurity, and the next day will arise.

You can plan for the future as much as you want. Sometimes your plans work out, but sometimes you must accept failure. What’s important is learning from the past and putting your focus on the present day. When you live in the now, you’ll be treating your planning with a step-by-step attitude. In his autobiography, Theodore Roosevelt quotes Squire Bill Widener of Widener’s Valley, Virginia, as saying, “Do what you can with what you’ve got, where you are.” That’s good advice.

And here I am, following his advice as we plan our company’s future. We started printing Times of the Islands magazine in 1996. All these years, we’ve been a dedicated print publishing company, and we intend to continue as a print publishing company. But, as I stated in my November 2022 publisher’s letter, there will be some changes as we adopt new technology. We want to distribute timely content faster and with more frequency, and we’ll be doing that in multiple ways through more platforms. This will help us service our advertisers and readers even better in the years to come.

Don’t worry, though. We’re not planning to eliminate our printed magazines. Print has been part of our culture for centuries. People still love it, and we’re convinced that it will remain vital in the future. With the support of our business community and readers, we’ll continue producing the top-quality magazines you enjoy.

For 27 years, we’ve been proud of our superior editorial content and award-winning design. We’re dedicated to quality, just like the rest of the Southwest Florida business community. So, you can expect that we’ll be challenging ourselves to stay true to our roots while we also forge ahead with implementing newer technologies. As we move forward through 2023, we’ll be sharing our progress with you.

Meanwhile, please enjoy reading how others are moving forward in our community. For some good examples, see “Cruising to Recovery” on page 13 about the post-hurricane efforts of Captiva Cruises to support the island communities devastated by the storm; and “Builders Who Care” on page 50 about the charitable activities of the Lee Building Industry Association in providing help to homeowners in need.

Here’s looking forward to a year of optimistic transition and positive change!

Daniela J. Jaeger
Group Publisher, TOTI Media, Inc.