Words our Team will be Singing in 2026
By Angie Matthiessen, Chief Executive Office
We were gathered in our conference room just before the holidays—bodies present, minds already drifting toward rest, family, and a slower pace. The year had been relentless, and all of us were ready to lay it down for a moment. It was hard to name where our next steps would land when what we needed most was simply respite.
There was laughter—maybe a little slap-happy laughter—the kind that comes when a team has given everything it has. We reviewed what mattered most heading into 2026. And in that simple act of sitting together, something important happened. We remembered who we are.
Then, out of nowhere, a line popped into my head: “I write the songs that make the whole world sing.”
That’s when I knew how this year’s word column wanted to be written.
Each January, I look forward to sharing the words our United Way Charlotte County team selects for the year ahead. If you’ve been following along, you know it’s a tradition—revealed at our Christmas party, anticipated with curiosity and care. Each staff member chooses a single word, not as a slogan, but as an intention for how they want to show up in the year to come.
This year, it clicked: these aren’t just words.
They’re songs.
Each one carries a rhythm, a tone, a meaning shaped by lived experience. Alone, a word matters. Together, they become music—harmonies that steady us, guide us, and remind us why we do this work.
I recently read that songs bring peace to the chaos of living. That feels especially true now. Our world is loud. Our community is navigating real and persistent challenges. Families, seniors, workers, and neighbors are doing their best to hold it all together. What they need most isn’t noise—it’s something steady. Something hopeful. Something human.
That is where our mission lives: to mobilize the power of our community so all can thrive.
And that mission is accomplished not through grand gestures alone, but through daily actions.
In 2026, the words our team will be singing include: abide, peace, nourish, breathe, endurance, synergy, flourish, heartwhim, grateful, surrender, patience, and connect.
These words show up in action when we abide with families instead of rushing past their pain.
When we create space for peace amid crisis.
When we nourish systems that support stability and growth.
When we pause to breathe, so we can respond wisely.
When we lean into endurance, knowing lasting change takes time.
When we practice synergy, recognizing that collaboration multiplies impact.
When we work so our community can truly flourish.
When we recognize a heartwhim, gratitude, and patience.
When we surrender control and trust partnership.
And when we stay committed to connection, because no one thrives alone.
This is the song we are choosing to sing—together.
It won’t always be perfectly in tune. Some days will be quiet, others loud. But when each of us brings our part with intention, the music carries beyond us and into the community we serve.
And that, I believe, is a song worth singing.
Step into the rhythm of it all, follow the harmony, and help shape what comes next. To see how you can be involved, please visit unitedwayccfl.org/2026Words
For more information about United Way Charlotte County’s mission: Mobilizing the power of our community so all can thrive, please contact Angie Matthiessen, Chief Executive Officer. She can be reached at director@unitedwayccfl.org.