This past year has been challenging for our community, and as we shift our focus to the new year, we have hope for a vaccine, the new administration, and a fresh start. We have worked to provide support for our most vulnerable residents while helping our struggling business and nonprofit communities. Our collective urgency to combat COVID-19 brought together many partnerships that were instrumental in meeting the needs of our community, from establishing COVID-19 testing sites and supporting small businesses to helping non-profits care for our vulnerable populations and frontline workers. 

Throughout 2020 we saw Howard County come together to support one another – buying groceries, making masks, and checking in on neighbors and friends. To clearly put COVID-19 behind us – we must keep working together. This year we saw new initiatives flourish like our Community Organizations Active in Disaster (COAD), which grew from 15 to 66 member organizations and helped distribute food and masks to tens of thousands of our residents. In 2021, we will also continue our efforts to ensure Howard County is the best place for all. 

This year we have many exciting and innovative projects to introduce and move forward including the launch of a new Howard County website, pressing forward in creating Complete Streets, making progress as an AARP Age Friendly community, updating our General Plan, supporting our small businesses, building Safe and Sound flood mitigation projects for Old Ellicott City, and working with the Maryland State Delegation to advance our priorities like school funding. We know that our best days are ahead, and with collaboration and through resilience, in 2021 we will rise again.