Hello, my name is Jan.

I know a lot of people in Champaign.  My job, Director of Community Education, helps.  I serve on boards and committees and I get to "schmooze" people, all in the name of promoting our college's programs.

Oh, yeah, I eat breakfast at the same time, same restaurant, seven days a week.  And I see the same faces and, without too much effort, I've become part of a "community."

Now I'm preparing to leave my job of twenty years (via retirement) and head back to the town where I was born and raised.  As far as I can tell, the folks I've come to know and mostly like here in Champaign are not making the move with me.

Do I start over?  Guess I'll have to.  Funny, but the first thing I want to do when I move is find a place to eat breakfast every morning.  Really.  There's something about showing up at the same place and becoming a "regular" that makes you feel like you belong.

Then I want to make connections.  I already know some folks in Kansas City and I have family there.  I went to college there, too.  How about if I roam around my old college campus, visit the library where I spent so many hours studying, see if there are some classes I could take?

One thing is certain: I have to stay busy or this whole move will be a disaster.  I will fall into deep depression and I won't have my therapist along for the ride (she retired and moved away, too).

Volunteer?  Where? Human Rights Campaign is big in KC.  I'm a Library Trustee in Champaign with a master's degree in Library & Information Technology.  I'd love to do something at the library.  Check it out. Who do I know who works at KC libraries?

"Hello, my name is Jan."

That's good for starters.