I’ve been on this earth now just over 55 years. I don’t claim to know it all. In fact, I doubt there are any who do, though some might “think” they know it all.
But what I do know, with every fiber of my being, is the people you love, build friendships with, work alongside, and walk through life with… matter. A lot. Like more than anything else. It’s the people you get to be with who make life meaningful. When I’m gone, if all that’s ever said about me is that he was, “good people,” then that would make me a pretty happy dude.
My wife and I talk about a number of our friends and families in this way. If you make the “they’re good people” scale in our house, that says a lot. I’m extremely fortunate, as I have a lot of good people in my life. Some are family, and aren’t going anywhere. Some have been here and gone. Some are with me through thick and thin. Some are likely yet to come along.
I’ve been married to my wife now for 32 of those 55 years. She’s known me over half of my life, warts and all. And one of the things I love most about her is that she challenges me to always be thinking. Many times, at the end of the day, or if we’re sitting around sipping coffee on Saturday mornings, my wife will ask, “So, what do you know today?” Or, she’ll say to me, “Tell me a story.” I suppose they’re really the same thing, just said in a different way, but regardless, she does it to get the gears inside my head moving.
Sometimes, I’ll tease her and answer with silly things like: “The sky is blue. The grass is green. Water is wet.” Like I said, silly.
More often though, her prompting brings us together in deep and thoughtful conversations. We talk about love, life, faith, goals, dreams, where we’d like to travel someday, things we remember from childhood, what life was like when we first got married, what we’d do different if we could go back in time, and the list goes on and on. I’d like to think because of her, and because of her efforts to inspire conversations, we’re way better partners for each other. It’s made for some great conversations with our five sons as well.
I don’t know about you, but I always get a bit reflective around the holidays. I think a lot about the things I’ve done, the things I wish I’d have said or done, and work toward making plans to be better at all the things in the year ahead. But if I succeed at only one thing, I hope it’s in being a good person. So someone, somewhere, says, “He’s good people.”
Sadly, there are some really good people leaving our board at the end of this year and I want to take this opportunity to say thanks to each of them for all they’ve done for me, and of course for NASGW.
First of all, Laurie Lipsey Aronson, who has served on the board since I came to NASGW in late 2014. She was NASGW’s first woman chair. She was part of the group of board members who offered me the job. She’s been an incredible asset to this organization and the industry at large. Equally important, she’s been a tremendous advocate and friend. She’s challenged me when I needed it, encouraged me to think outside myself, and stood behind me when we tried to do big things. She’s a rockstar and she’ll be missed.
Chris Means is also leaving the board this year. Anyone who’s been around the industry for any length of time knows Chris. He’s one of the most genuine and likable people I know. His attitude and willingness to try new things are an inspiration. He most recently was with Countrywide Sports and I don’t know what he’ll do next but no matter what it is, I know it’ll be good.
Ryan Link left our board earlier this fall. He was a quiet, unassuming, but exceptional professional. He wasn’t one to jump in and say a ton, so when he did, it was wise to pay attention. Sadly, Big Rock Sports has ended it’s shooting sports business and Ryan fell victim to that, but I hope he finds his way back to the industry in the near future. He’s a smart and thoughtful leader and his voice in our industry is needed.
We’ve also got some incredible new people joining us on the board for 2026. We’re welcoming Mark Emonet of Lipsey’s, Brent Taylor of Orion Wholesale and Justin Gorman of Kinsey’s. Each of these gentlemen arrive at an important time in the lifecycle of NASGW. They’ll join Bill Sumner of Chattanooga Shooting Supplies, Malcolm Getz of Camfour, Wayne Tumlin of Davidson’s and Clay Halla of Iron Valley Supply in taking NASGW into new territory as we launch our new industry product information catalog called VAULT and we continue our expansion and offerings in our SCOPE data program.
2026 is also a year for some backend changes at NASGW. We’re moving the office from Iowa to South Dakota and we’ve changed a few things in the way we’re staffed as an organization as well. We’ll talk more about some of those changes as we get into 2026. While things may have a new look, or there’s a new way to interact with the organization, one thing you can count on is the people you’ll be interacting with, aspire to be good people. Meg Pawelski, Tom Hopper, Brandon Roper, Nicole Lemke, our newest team member, and myself, along with some really great marketing and media partners, Expo partners, will be here to provide (hopefully exceed) the level of service and support you’ve come to expect.
I hope you all have a wonderful and Happy Hanukkah, Merry Christmas and an incredible New Year! I’m excited about all the great things to come in 2026, but I’m more excited about the good people I’ll get to do it with.
Until next time,
Kenyon Gleason
NASGW President