My One Year Anniversary

Last week, I celebrated my one year anniversary with Huntsville Hospital Foundation.

It's been more than a year now since I anchored a newscast. If I had a nickel for everyone who asks me, "Do you miss TV?" I would be a millionaire.

And my answer is always the same.

No.

I don't miss the hours. I don't miss the craziness of TV news. I don't miss the unpredictability of storms and breaking news.

I like knowing that (for the most part) I'll be leaving my office at the same time each afternoon. I like knowing that I'll be home with my husband and kids each evening. And I like knowing that God could dump 10 inches of snow on my house, and I still won't get called in to work.

I love what I'm doing now, and the difference I'm making. I love walking in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit at Huntsville Hospital for Women & Children and seeing precious miracles using medical equipment purchased by my daughter's fund.

And that's not all. Huntsville Hospital Foundation (where I work) manages Melissa's Fund, but it's also the fundraising arm of all of Huntsville Hospital. We raise money to buy lifesaving medical equipment for all departments of the hospital. And we fund life-changing programs. Earlier this year, the Foundation funded a program that taught the girls at the local Girls, Inc., about healthy food choices. They learned how to read food labels, how to avoid fad diets, and how to prepare healthy meals. On the last night, they invited their mothers to attend and cooked a formal dinner for them. As I listened to the girls talk about all they had learned, I couldn't help but be proud about the difference we had made in their lives.

As a reporter, you have the ability to change lives. I hope I did that in some small way, whether it was through a story that helped someone, or through the MDA telethon that I co-hosted for years.

Now, I'm changing lives in a different way. That's incredibly rewarding to me. But the most rewarding part? Being home at night with Chris and the girls. It's truly the best of both worlds.