Alright, good morning everybody. I got, uh, Stephen Hartz here with Charles Hall, kicking off with the H&H Impact Podcast number 15 on July 6th, post-4th of July. Charles, how are you doing? Post-250, post-celebration 250. It was wonderful.

How was your weekend? It was awesome. Family-oriented, which is always very nice. And we’re up here in Anacortes, Washington, and fireworks display was over the water around the San Juan Islands and small town, big parade and very, very patriotic. Loved, loved, loved this weekend and what it all represented.

You? Much the same. I got to spend it with my family. I had my daughter and her son-in-law in town and my sister-in-law. We went over to Army Navy and a great view.

We got to see almost all of the flyovers over Washington, D.C. Which was, I mean, unbelievable, spectacular to watch. And then we got to watch the biggest fireworks display in the world. I’ve never seen so many fireworks, the explosions, the sound, the colors. It was absolutely incredible.

And it was just great time with the family. Great to celebrate the 250th in DC. And yeah, now we’re ready to kick it off for the second half of this year and all. Oh yeah, I think you missed something. I think you’re a forever pilot and you took your youngest son, You want to talk a little bit about that?

Okay. Oh yeah. We’ll take Coast Guard, but what I heard and what I saw was pretty spectacular. Yeah, I got to go out and take my son to a friend of mine, Lieutenant Andrew Boyle, who’s with the Coast Guard. He used to fly with me when I was the OIC out of Whidbey Island.

He had his aircraft out at Manassas Airfield. And so we got to go out and see them. They were getting ready to do the flyover for DC. He got to see the Coast Guard helicopter climb through that and meet the pilots, and they gave him a nice patch. And then we got to see the Chinooks, and we got to see some Army Blackhawks.

And then when we were leaving, he got to see the Navy’s Leap Frogs, which is Navy SEALs on their shore tour that were getting ready to do the jumps into DC. So it was awesome to get a picture with them. And he is all excited about the military right now. At 10 years old, he already knows what he wants to do. Feels like this will be a generation.

Your old man, he was Navy. You’re Navy. And feels like at least one, if not both boys, would be prepped to here in due time to join the service as well. What a great generational service family that you have. Yeah, I think so.

I, uh, I would be very proud if they take the choice to, uh, to go into the service. You know, I think it’s, uh, I don’t think most people realize that less than 1% of the nation serves the country and the service. And a big reason is a lot of people just, you know, today aren’t able to qualify for it. But if my son has that opportunity, I would love to take it. So very good.

But, uh, I’m excited. You and I haven’t had a chance to do a podcast in a while, the two of us. We’ve been having so many guests on, which is always awesome, but it’s nice for you and I to get back together, kind of refocus as we dive into the second half of this year, reflect back on the first half, kind of look at the next half. And I’d love to hear your thoughts. What did you think about the first half of this year, Charles?

Well, So in our world, this is our 33rd rotation officially doing this and getting into our cadence. I think it’s always a sprint from January into May, June timeframe where it’s a bit of a blur. We have conferences and clients and we’re at one side of the United States versus another. If we slightly reflect, I mean, we were in San Diego, but then right before that we were in Miami and we were in Chicago, we were in Denver, we were in Seattle. It just kept going on and on.

We love what we’re doing with our clients and STRAT plan and budgeting and coaching and the whole nine yards. It’s, it’s really good that it’s July right now. I agree. I think, you know, this is the time that a lot of our clients also tend to slow down. They take vacations with their families, going to the beach.

This gives us an opportunity to kind of reset ourselves, you know, and I think that’s the fun part of this. As you look back at last year, we had a lot of client engagements, finished up some great content, contracts with our clients, especially Conway down in South Carolina. Great organization to be a part of with them. And then, you know, we look into what we got coming into the end of 2026. We have new clients coming on board.

We have new states we’re working with. I’m excited about the future. How about yourself? Yeah, it’s, uh, you know, when I reflect a little bit on, uh, the kind of the H&H journey is a good way to say it. Lots of great shoutouts.

I mean, we kicked off last year H&H EMS Solutions. We had National EMS Management Association. We, this year, took on the National EMS Quality Association as well. And that’s been phenomenal. You’ve led a good portion of all of that with our EMS leaders.

You want to talk a little bit about just that reflection side on just how far EMS has gone? Yeah, you know, I think EMS has kind of always been one of those in healthcare that’s overlooked to a degree. You know, they don’t always fall under healthcare. I think, you know, even under government, it falls under the Transportation Department. But as we kicked off EMS, we saw that need out there.

Not only did a lot of our rural clients have EMS agencies that were struggling, whether it’s, you know, figuring out how to pay for it, staffing issues, But a lot of municipalities were having challenges. And so as we developed our team, uh, big shout out to Todd and Fred who were on our podcast earlier this year, um, had been working to grow the organization on EMS to handle their problems, everything from billing and coding to just implementation for EMS agencies. And it’s been great. I, I don’t think it’s going to slow down. I think EMS is one of those aspects that it is not a, um, necessary service in every state.

It’s not always funded, and so helping organizations figure out how to fund it, how to make it maximized to its potential- things like mobile integrated health, community paramedicine, where these, uh, paramedics and EMS professionals are practicing at the highest level of their licensure. And you’re seeing that a lot. The RHTP funding for many of the states has EMS integration listed as one of their top necessities for all critical access hospitals nationally. It’s not just rural, but it’s across the nation. So I’m excited with EMS and where they’re going.

It’s got a lot of potential, and we have a lot of great people coming on board with us, a lot of new 1099 workers that are going to be coming on and helping us in many ways. Yeah, you know, when I, when I reflect and watch and, and we’re working on impact is a really great statement there. You know, I’ll put that strengthening leadership as a cornerstone, equipping with the right knowledge and the skill set for our EMS leaders. That’s what much of our services are. But then there was this awesome conference, EMS on the Hill, that we managed, coordinated, partnered with NIMSMA.

To do our first annual national conference there in DC. How amazing was that? It was great. You know, I think with the NRH- or, uh, sorry, NEMSMA conference that we had on so many conferences- the NEMSMA conference we had this year in Washington, DC, being the inaugural conference, was outstanding. Over 260 people attended, um, You know, we had phenomenal sponsors that came in and the incredible speakers.

It was a great first conference. I don’t think you could have asked for it to be a better first conference. And then from that to lead right into NAEMT’s EMS on the Hill, it gave EMS professionals the opportunity not only for leadership, but how to impact leadership when they went to meet with governance up on the Hill. And so it was great in many ways. Yeah, it was pretty phenomenal.

Internationally, actually. EMS leaders from around the world came there and participated, and wow, coordinated kudos. We’ll give a lot of kudos to a lot of folks, one of them specifically Pat Songer, national expert, the executive director for NIMSMA and NIMSQA, and the great work that he did and how it was all organized. Lots of kudos to the team and for the work that was done. Yeah, I give an incredible amount of kudos.

Pat’s great, and ways. It’s amazing how much he works to make sure that EMS gets their due and really focuses on leadership. And, and I’d also give a big shout out to the NEMSMA board. I think they really put forth a ton of effort. They had the vision to really put this conference together and to make it successful.

So looking forward to 2027. Uh, I can tell everybody now the 2027 conference is going to be the April 4th, 5th, and 6th. 2027 in Washington, D.C. Again, it’ll be followed right after that by NAEMT’s EMS on the Hill. So again, it’s a great week of just, you know, from leadership development and training all the way to influencing leadership at the highest level. So it’ll be great.

Loving, loving every aspect of- I can’t say it’s a full startup anymore. I think it’s in full swing and We’re across the nation on EMS as well, just as fast as we were on H&H Leadership Solutions, and really excited to work with national and international experts in making that impact. Absolutely. Well, this- the rest of this year, what do we have on the docket? Torch, EPHC, NRHA, EMS World, Pinnacle, and that’s just to say a few of the conferences this year.

And strat planning for clients, budget development, professional coaching. What else to say about the next half of this year? I think the next half of the year is going to be interesting because I think a lot of the nation in general has been a little worried, leery, concerned are all good words, adjectives to describe it. And I think it just permeates throughout the rural environment and healthcare as well because everybody’s wondering what’s going to happen with the big beautiful bill, cuts to Medicaid, RHTP funding, all these different challenges. And I think what it leads to is challenges are typically opportunities in some way, shape, or form, whether for the organizations to kind of reinvent themselves or open up new ways to do something, or ourselves, organizations looking at new ways to help clients.

I think as we get into the latter half of 2026, you know, we’re going to be opening up up a lot of work in a couple new states, which is awesome. We’re always excited about that. We have some new clients coming on board. Uh, we’re continuously doing the recruitment side with new opportunities for executives at all levels- C-suite through directors, providers. I think we as an organization have an opportunity- we’re kind of going through our own growth challenges right now as we are in what we call a breakpoint, as we’ve learned, uh, to, to take it to the next level.

So just as we work with other organizations to help them on their process and their people for their purpose. We’re kind of doing some self-reflection and doing that on our, our own, working with our board of advisors and our leadership team to improve our process. So I’m very excited for what the second half of 2026 has to offer. Yeah, I’ll dive in a little bit, uh, kind of that RHCP, um, I’m gonna- that’s a bucket. Let me throw another bucket in, you know, healthcare leaderships, whether it’s on the hospital clinic side or on the EMS side, in that full spectrum of stakeholders that we work with.

My goodness, this is a new day. The bill came out almost a little, whoa, last year, last week, a year ago last week, the big beautiful bill. And we’re from state to state discovering what the state process is in allocating those monies. And in fact, Steve, when we put our fingerprints in, I think we have 18 states right now. Is that right?

Yeah, that’s right. In 18 states. Each state is different. They’re on their own pathway. The application process is very different.

Some of them directly work with their state associations, whether it is the state or the regional associations, to get the application money. Some of them are group funding as well. So of course, workforce is the cornerstone. Infrastructure is another cornerstone that’s there.

I would love to offer somebody advice on a state approach, but the states are so different. Some are already in the beginning throes of allocating those monies, while other states are just in that application process. But either way, the goal is to master the application process and to focus on things that are sustainable and not one-timers. Steve, are you hearing all that and seeing that? Absolutely.

I am. I think, you know, you hit the nail on the head. The last statement being one of the biggest is what’s sustainable. I think a lot of states are worried that if they start a project or an initiative and they don’t figure out how to sustain it, then money will be pulled back in some way. And a lot of hospitals are familiar with that.

You take grant money to start a program and then it’s not necessarily sustained because the grant money runs out. And so I think the federal government’s trying to reduce that. Possibility of happening. I think it’s always still gonna happen. I think the other side that, uh, organizations are looking at, uh, to your point, is leveraging professionals, whether it’s their state rural agencies, uh, their hospital associations, or consultants like us that, uh, can help them, uh, do better in their grant writing, make sure that they understand how to utilize it, uh, and to make it as effective and efficient as possible for the organization.

You know, the objective of this $50 billion is to help rural healthcare be as sustainable as possible. Now, some people may argue with what does that mean or what does that look like? But that’s a debate for the 600-pound heads in Congress, if you want to call them that. Our goal is to try to help organizations be as successful as possible. And we’re learning as they are in many ways.

It is interesting. I do think, like you mentioned, Charles, every state is so different. Like some states just- their applications just came out 2 weeks ago. Where other states have been on this for like months already. I think that also shows some of the challenges with the, just in the states trying to figure out how to make this all work.

Well, you know, I’ll put that invitation out to all those that are listening here. We’d love to have a conversation with you. Though every state is different, the cornerstones are still there about the need. Many of you may have the desire for assistance in how to brainstorm shoulder-to-shoulder work, or how to set up that narrative of what those needs are so you can work closely with decision makers of each of those states. We’re there, uh, to brainstorm.

We’re there to assist in that setup of that narrative and that application process. We’re doing it from state to state, so of course there’s, uh, specific ways to position yourself to, to get that attention so those funds have a higher likelihood of coming to you. We’re, we’re able to do that. We want to do that because those funds are essential for that, especially that rural environment of sustaining care, uh, not this year, not just next year, but for the years to come. Absolutely.

You know, and I think when you look at some of the, the biggest things, when you look at the priority investments, if I were to lump up an average, so to speak, of the states, we’re looking at things like regional networks, EMS integration, behavioral health, virtual care, workforce development, which is an ever, never-ending challenge for organizations, data sharing, and population health tend to be some of the biggest challenges that these RHTPs are looking at nationally, you know, so not state-specific, but just generally speaking. I, you know, the other things I would throw out there, the Medicaid funding uncertainty, You know, how does that really affect organizations with the big beautiful bill? And, you know, they talk about cuts to Medicaid, but those cuts are really if your population isn’t doing what’s required to show that they need Medicaid. It’s not just an automatic cut off the top. I think service line sustainability, we know in a lot of rural environments, we talk about the obstetrics deserts that are out there, need for expansion on surgery, oncology.

Dialysis. I can’t tell you how many times we hear dialysis is a desire and the community needs assessment for an organization, but it becomes very, very, very difficult to make it financially work in rural healthcare because of the population size and the cost of it. What are some other challenges you think are out there, Charles? You know, I think you hit the cornerstones, you know, increase in access, the workforce. Financial stability.

I think what we’re seeing, in fact, last week we were spending some time with a rural hospital out in Nevada, and in reflecting on that conversation, you have a select number of knowers and obviously doers. It’s just our language we say kind of deal when we dive in there. You know, tell me who your experts are and tell me who your workers are and What we found was that we were in the weeds at the highest level. And yes, it’s a comfort zone for many of us to be in those weeds because it’s our specialty, it’s our background, we’ll say finance. But really at the end of the day, you know, we want to equip the entire team with that knowledge and to make sure that we’re not leaving value on the table, especially in the rev cycle.

To make sure that that value on the table truly gets realized in cash. And I can’t say it enough, the development of the individual is the key to success, to sustaining healthcare. If we don’t have that development of that leader, of that specialist, the reality is we’re just spinning our wheels. Yeah, I think that’s so true. I think, you know, so many people in hospitals and health systems, and it really isn’t just unique to rural, even in large systems, you know, you become a subject matter expert, you’re a phenomenal radiologist, you’re a phenomenal phlebotomist, or pick your profession, and then you get thrown into a leadership or selected for a leadership position because you’re so good at your job.

But that gap between being great at your job and then having the knowledge of leadership, um, whether you call it baptism by fire or however you want to describe it, is a challenge for a lot of people. And it, again, it’s not just rural, it’s in large systems too. You know, you don’t, you don’t get trained to have crucial conversations or how to build a budget when you’re going through nursing school or you’re going through radiology school. Those are things that tend to happen on the fly, and that’s where you could have a lot of gaps in, in knowledge and capability when those things aren’t occurring. And so, you know, always encourage everybody to get as much training as humanly possible and as affordable as possible so you can help your organization be successful.

But, uh, yeah, I’m very interested to see how this RHTP program will come. I know this is like the first year of implementation, and then we got 4 more years to kind of figure it out, make it work, and maximize as best we can. Yeah, loving it, um, loving the journey, and loving speaking with people across the nation and spending some time with them. Whether it is the skill set and some knowledge around developing the culture or the individual’s leadership or even the technical aspects on budget variance, dashboards, regulation, compliance, you name it. All those things, we are all on that same journey at one level or another.

Please know that we are there to make that impact in the rural environment, to work shoulder to shoulder with anybody out there who’s willing to sit down and talk with us a little bit and to help brainstorm where you’re at, what those needs are, and what is needed to move forward for sustainable healthcare. Well, absolutely. You know, I think there’s so much going on in that, in that space. I’m excited to see where we’re going to go. Um, you know, I, I look at some of the states that we’re in, when you look at, uh we talk about the differences, I look at some of the differences just between Kansas, Oklahoma, Texas, Colorado, Washington.

They all have very, very unique ways. Like, for instance, you know, in Washington, one of their top 4 priorities is tribal health. That’s the same with Montana. But if you come down to Texas, tribal health isn’t in their top, you know, their top is sustainability, independence of critical access hospitals, and financial reliability, you know. And so I think that’s the challenge when you try to reach out to your networks.

It’s really going to be regionalized. It’s going to be based on your state as you’re going forward, or you’re reaching out to consultants that can help to navigate some of these challenges. So awesome. I’m looking forward to it. So what’s our next topic?

Well, I love to do some shoutouts. You know, we were blessed to know many leaders across the nation, and we work closely with them. And there’s a number of folks that I would really love to mention just because they’re leading, they’re in the trenches, they’re working in their communities, they’re coaching and mentoring their leaders within their organizations. They’re making a difference. You know, how about we do that first one?

Let me go a little bit distant. Somebody who- some client that we’ve been working with for the last few years, MedRVA. That’s been your client. You know, our fingerprints, both of our fingerprints have been throughout that organization. But man, they’ve come a million miles in who they are yesterday to who they are today.

Oh yeah. You know, MedRVA is- it’s a whole list of different organizations from the Low Vis Center to the Foundation to the surgery centers. You know, they do a lot of incredible work in Richmond. And a big shout out to their new CEO, Shirley Martell. She was placed there about 90 days ago, has hit the ground.

I wouldn’t even say running. I would say like full-on Usain Bolt type sprinting. And I think what’s phenomenal about her- but such in a way that the team is with her every step of the way. I mean, she- though she’s sprinting, the team is running with her. It’s been amazing to see.

They are. Absolutely. And, you know, it’s always a challenge when you have a new leader coming into an organization, right? There’s so many things that go on to it. It’s the unknowns.

It’s the great unknowns. It’s the relationships that need to be built and all that. And I think, you know, some of her strengths as a leader that, you know, were reasons she was selected. She’s humble, she’s driven, and she doesn’t sleep. And she doesn’t sleep.

No, no, she doesn’t sleep. And, you know, she empowers those who make the patient care journey as awesome as it can be. So big shout out to Shirley and the, uh, Med RVA team out of Richmond, Virginia. Uh, they’re doing incredible things there. Yeah, they- yeah, I’ll throw- add a little bit more for, for those who don’t know Med RVA.

They’re a multi-system surgery center, um, that is out of Richmond, Virginia. Serving thousands and thousands of patients a year, made up of owners as well as independent providers and surgery groups who come together to really affect those in need in that area. So it’s not just clinics, it’s not just hospitals, but it’s also surgery centers and that great that great team, that great work that team is doing to, uh, support their patients. Absolutely. I think they’re phenomenal.

But, uh, our next shout out I’ll give will be over to, uh, to one of your lead clients, Cascade Medical Center out in Leavenworth, Washington. Uh, and, you know, they just got a new leader, um, outstanding leader, and I’ll let you talk about it. Well, you know, we’ve been working with Diane Blake and her team for the last few years, and, uh, What a great team. What a great transformation that she has led. We’re in the midst of that transformation as well, just that next chapter for some of their leaders.

One of them is Glen, and Glen is a COO with tremendous specialty and clinic background. In collaboration of Diane and her team, we were able to help shepherd-fun word there-shepherd Glen in and spend some time with him He is a hands-on leader. He is detailed, inspirations to his people. And though he’s been there just for a handful of weeks, looking forward to his fingerprints in that community and on that healthcare system. Yeah, you know, that’s another organization that, you know, has done a great job of fostering and growing its leaders.

You know, one of the very first clients that we had was Cascade Medical Center, and awesome to see how they invested so much in their leaders, top to bottom, from their C-suite all the way down to the managers and supervisors, putting every director through a cohort training program, their managers and supervisors through an abbreviated cohort leadership training program. And they saw the value in it. They saw it not only in improvement in culture, but bottom line. Their, their bottom line in the organization went up significantly when they made those investments. And I know Glenn is going to be a phenomenal asset to the organization.

It comes with a wealth of experience and just the drive and personality to help them go to the next level. And, and they got a lot going on. They got a 10-year master facility plan. They’ve got so much growth opportunities out there. It’s going to be awesome to see it be successful.

Loving it. Well, let me, let me focus on one of your lead clients. New Britain in Connecticut. You want to talk a little bit of that and do a few shoutouts? Oh yeah.

You know, I, a big shoutout to Patrick Cirillo, the EMS chief out of New Britain, Connecticut. We worked with them for the last year on leadership growth and development. They, they went through a major change. They had a prior CEO in there for 15 years, and then Patrick took over. And talk about a shift going to an organization that was on the cusp of being in the red every year to last year doing over $1 million in the black for a small organization.

Now, this is a 13-square-mile community that did over 20,000 EMS calls in that period of time. I mean, they, they’re hitting it at the highest levels. And Patrick and his team, uh, his, his right-hand, uh, A-Chief, uh, Alex, and then all the others, uh, from Matt and Sean and, and Vince and all the officers that are down there, just an incredible job. One, keeping the culture at the highest level. Uh, two, constantly focusing on the training and how to be the best they can be for their patients in that community.

Awesome, awesome to see on the EMS realm. And then, you know, Patrick, uh, just an outstanding leader, how he, how he takes his team to the next level. And he’s got a phenomenal article coming out right now about, uh, being an EMS chief, being a CEO of a nonprofit organization in a community that doesn’t fund their services. I’m very much looking forward to that article, and we’ll have that shared on our website when that comes out in about a week or so. Love it.

Love it. Well, I want to do a shout out. I will do just one or two more shout outs here. But Dane Wheeler, Dane Wheeler, CFO working with Mark Augsburger out of Edgerton, Wisconsin. He’s our new chief financial officer there.

He’s wealth of experience, decades of experience in turning hospitals around and strengthening their bottom line. Edgerton and Mark’s leadership is just phenomenal. And so we’ve been working with Dane for the last couple weeks as he’s- actually a couple months- as he’s working to get onboarded and just arrived, I think, the beginning of last week. What he brings to the table not only a little bit of quirky personality, but also that leadership strength and the team is rallying. He’s another one of those leaders who works 24/7, doesn’t sleep, is a machine in himself.

And as he gets settled into his new home, definitely looking for the great journey that Mark Augsburger, the CEO, and Dane and the rest of the leadership team there is having. So pretty excited about that journey as well. Absolutely. Uh, phenomenal organization out of Wisconsin. Uh, they’re another one that’s invested a lot of time and energy and effort into their leadership team with the cohort training program.

Um, it’s awesome to see just the people take it on, and I’m looking forward to seeing where they’re going in the coming year. So it’s, it’s going to be great. We got a lot of awesome clients out there, and, and too many to name all in, in one podcast. We’d spend an entire podcast talking about each client. But lots going on.

We have, you know, just a lot of the things that have happened in the past 6 months, what we got going on in the coming 6 months, great clients we’re working with. What else you got, Charles? What else is on your mind today? Well, I think as we enter the second half of this year, there’s a couple major evolutions that typically happen for those on fiscal year January. And that’s- we should have already kicked off our budget planning and dot, dot, dot, exploring, researching the initiatives needed for strategic planning for not only the rest of this year, but for the next couple years to come, working with our leaders to cost out those initiatives to make sure that they’re in the budget, to work closely with the board members and the rest of the leadership team to get everybody on the same page so we can have a succinct, successful years to come, including that addition of that awesome SMART goals that come in that drive that organization.

That time of year where strat planning and retreats and budget all come crashing together. You know, August is traditionally when everybody comes back from their vacation and holidays and it turns into a sprint. To Thanksgiving.

Uh, you are- you’re sprinting too. You’re off to conferences from Pinnacle or, uh, to EPHC in Denver or in Texas, um, or in Kansas City. You want to talk about that journey? Yeah, I think, you know, uh, two big conference periods for organizations, whether it’s healthcare, pretty much any industry, are that, uh, you know, February to April time frame and then the August through like October timeframe. So we have a lot of conferences that we’ll be attending.

We have the Torch Conference coming up in Texas. We have the EPHC Conference in Colorado. Uh, we got Pinnacle next week in San Diego. It’s just awful to have to go there in the middle of July. Yeah.

Break, breaks my heart. And then, uh, then we have the NRHA Conference in September, which that is probably one of the biggest conferences I think in It’s pretty awesome because Critical Access Hospital Conference, RHC Conference goes the entire week in September in Kansas City. Great chance to see our clients, meet with team members, learn about what’s new in rural healthcare and some of the upcoming stuff that they’re expecting with some of, you know, midterm elections and things going on. And then we, I think we’ll wrap up or almost wrap up our conference season with EMS World down in Orlando. And that’s end of September.

And so, and then we’re full into strat planning with clients and new organizations for the end of the year, helping them refine their budgets and do those pieces. So it’s a lot going on. I think for me, you know, I’m taking a little time with the family as you are in July, but I also utilize this as a great time for business development. You’re getting out there, reaching out to clients. You know, many of our clients start their fiscal years July 1st..

And so, you know, just making sure they’re off on the right foot and they got what they need to, to be successful. So lots of awesome stuff going on. Um, but speaking of July, you know, Charles, uh, I know, I know you can’t tell everything that you got going on, but you gotta, you gotta fun stuff going on today. You can talk about on where you’re headed. Well, uh, what’s pretty awesome.

It’s the, I’m going to still call today the 4th of July weekend. And I think, uh, we’re all patriotic, um, some at more extreme levels than others. I feel like me and my family are pretty patriotic. Uh, Steve, you and your family, very patriotic as well. And we’re just excited about the World Cup.

You know, we’re, we’re a family of soccer and we’re into soccer year-round, travel soccer all over the place. And so the World Cup is a pretty big thing in, in our world. And the United States moved on, and not only did they move on, they moved on to, uh, Seattle, Washington. So though there may be a pricey ticket, later on today at 5 PM I will be in the stadium, upper deck, in blue, uh, because it’s color-coded, celebrating our team as they as they battle Belgium. That’ll be awesome to be able to go to one of the World Cup games and get to see the US play Belgium.

This is, I believe, the farthest we’ve ever gotten into the tournament. Maybe, maybe we’ve gotten to the quarterfinals before, but if we win, we’re going to go to the quarterfinals. And at that point, I think we’re going to play the winner of the Portugal-Spain.

Um, which, that’ll be interesting. Uh, we’ll see how that comes to fruition. But then after that, you’re going to take a little bit of time off. You and the family are going to go on an exciting vacation that we will not spoil here. Oh, we can, we can, we can probably spoil a little bit here because it won’t be released until after tomorrow.

We- oh, there you go. Yeah, this is our second year where, um, we enjoy a secret vacation that we don’t tell our kids about. Last year we did Alaska, which was pretty awesome, and they didn’t know until they got to the gate, airport gate, where we were going. And then we flew there and then took a sailboat back. And this year we’re off to Hawaii.

We’ve been to Hawaii, but we’re going to the Big Island there and straight R&R. It sounds like the volcano is erupting, so that’s going to be fun to see. And it’s We’re not going to rule out a little bit of early morning work, but they’re 3 hours behind us in Pacific Standard Time. So I’m pretty sure it’s going to force us to relax and be a bit off the grid. Yeah, that’ll be awesome.

I know that’ll be a great time. We always struggle to try to find those times when we get the break with the family, but that’ll be a phenomenal location. Yeah, I’m looking forward to it. I just came back from 11 days of road trip kind of a little bit of work, but more fun than work, going down to Florida, seeing some friends and family. And then I think later this year, maybe in August, might, might sneak away for a little bit of time to go down to my wife’s family and see her family in Colombia.

So we’ll see how all that goes. But this is the time, you know, we encourage people, we encourage our clients, and take time with your family, take time off. You need to recharge that battery. You know, I know as a nation, we always get made fun of because we don’t take the most amount of time for vacations. You know, and I pull this out to leaderships all the time.

And I said, if you got more than 60 days on the books for your vacation, you’re doing something wrong. You got to take some downtime. That’s irregular downtime. And it’s not a good position to role model if you don’t take some downtime. You know, the organization and the leaders have to rest a moment and get recharged.

And for H&H, we try to do that when they do it, like in midsummer time months. And so it’s good. Well, Steve, H&H Impact, thank you for all that, that listen and upload our podcast in. We’re blessed to be able to do what we’re doing, and we’re looking forward to, you know, continuing to contribute to our nation’s healthcare, uh, this year and for the years to come. Absolutely.

Uh, tons of stuff going on. Looking forward to the next year. Uh, you’ll be able to check out this podcast, uh, in the coming weeks. And then, you know, keep a look at our website. We got a bunch of stuff coming out, uh, new articles we got coming out, and, uh, new opportunities for leadership positions coming out.

And really looking forward to the second half of this year and, and, uh, Looking forward to some downtime with the family. Charles, great podcast. Thank you guys for everything. Charles, closing words from you, buddy. All right.

Uh, happy 4th, 250 years of, uh, success as a society, though we’re not a perfect nation. Um, for all those who sacrifice, for all those who, um, really made the red, white, and blue possible for these last two and a half centuries. You know, our heart is filled with appreciation. Um, we love America. We love our freedom.

Um, God bless America. Absolutely. God bless our troops and God bless America. Appreciate it, everybody. Have a great holiday and a great July.