So Long, Farewell, Never Goodbye

Nancy Davis, Executive Director

The beginning of a New Year has traditionally been the time for “Resolutions.” I resolved to stop making those years ago and began thinking of chapters in my book of life. On December 31, 2021, I will officially resign as Executive Director of the North Carolina Caring Dental Professionals. That marks Saturday, January 1, 2022, as the official start of a new chapter in my life. Of course, a new chapter requires an old chapter to close. Closing the chapter of my “11 years” with North Carolina Caring Dental Professionals brings overwhelming feelings of gratitude, appreciation, and sadness. There will always be a bookmark in this chapter to remind me of the many dental professionals who have arrived at the doors of the NCCDP via many different avenues and discovered a successful path for their journey through recovery.

As I start this chapter it will include fond memories of my time as Executive Director and each of you that I was fortunate to encounter. This program became my career passion and provided much professional satisfaction. When I surrendered to my own disease of addiction 36 years ago, I never imagined the joy and blessing I would receive from carrying a simple message of recovery. I am excited about moving on to the many other opportunities in the recovery world. I will take some time to sketch out the next part of the life journey.

I cannot end this final message without saying farewell to the “Jersey Girls”, Susan and Marge. They also have announced their own new paths to travel in the New Year. They arrived on the scene as retired volunteers in 2014. It wasn’t long before they surrendered retirement and became employees. They discovered and embraced how this program and participants become family to all of us. I want to thank them both for the assistance they provided in fulfilling Dr. CV Winter’s and Dr. Jake Thorpe’s vision of an advocacy program for the dentists and hygienists of North Carolina.

Life is about cherishing the past, facing the present, and moving ahead towards new milestones in our future.

Dr. Seuss has said some profound words, one of my favorites

“Don’t cry because it is over; smile because it happened.”

So Long, Farewell and Happy Holidays