As Thai New Year festivities of Songkran approach, we are reminded to pause and reflect on all that we have experienced over the past year. It is an opportunity to give thanks, practice gratitude and honor those who have helped teach and guide us. It marks the transformation as we shift into the new year and set intentions for the future.
Though it seems like an eternity, it was just over two years ago when Covid-19 ripped through Thailand and the world and destroyed everything in its wake. For CMRCA and Progression, it was a devastating time. It came on the heels of the closure of Crazy Horse Buttress, an area we had been developing and managing for 17 years. Yet as difficult as the closure of Crazy Horse was, the pandemic was a giant in comparison. In a period of just under three weeks, we saw more than 90% of our bookings disappear, the forced closure of our business and were left with a choice no leader wants to make: Lay off more than 30 team members or go out of business.
Our family members were incredibly supportive and we are forever grateful for their sacrifice. Like many organizations we paused and closed our doors. Then shifted to online work. It was a trying time and it wasn’t clear we would ever recover. Yet something happened during the pandemic that reminded us of who we were. It reminded us of our Core Values. It allowed us to reconnect without purpose.
We exist to fuel the progression of individuals, organizations, and communities to discover their highest potential.
As we reflect over the past two years as an organization, we have been tested and have faced unimaginable obstacles. Yet at the same time, we realize we have much to be grateful for and much to celebrate. We have grown from the experience.
Business and life, like climbing and caving can be difficult and messy. However if we stay focused in the present, obstacles become smaller and we can begin to see a way over and through. We hope that in this newsletter we can share some of what we have learned and what we are excited about as we look to the future.
When we started thinking about moving our office and building a new wall, we weren’t sure how ready Chiang Mai would be. It has now been more than one year since we built Progression Vertical Climbing Gym and introduced climbing to more people in the last year than ever before.
Our collaboration with British cavers in an International Expedition to Tham Pha Peung, the deepest cave in Thailand in Nan Province gave us a chance to Seek Growth and Development. It serves as a great example of how embracing challenge and facing our fears head on helps us to Fuel Progression.
Though our beloved crag was been closed for more than four years it was not difficult to remember our core values of Commit To Community and Take Responsibility. With these values as our guide, we spent 10 days giving the area some tender loving care to the crag we love.
Reminding our team of our value to Love What You Do has given energy, enthusiasm and commitment to our efforts to prepare for the European / American summer season and our recently restarted guiding climbing and caving experiences for individuals and families searching for adventure.
In the spirit of Living Adventure, we are gearing up to provide some amazing summer adventure experiences for youth in our Summer Progression Adventure Camps.
Through it all we have continued to Strive For Quality as we have developed and facilitated exciting new experiences focused on organizational development for corporate groups and delivered new international school programming has throughout the country including Chiang Mai, Lampang, Saraburi and Krabi.
Most importantly we are grateful for our incredible team and are reminded to Think Like A Family. Many of our family members who were let go have been able to rejoin. We have welcomed many new people with a spirit for adventure and together we have been learning again what it means to Work As A Team.
As we Embrace Thai Culture and prepare for Songkran, we realize that like climbing and caving, Covid-19 gave us a moment to pause and reflect and focus on who we are at our core. To honor those who have helped us to become who we are. And to be grateful for the incredible people we work with and the opportunities that are ahead. Thank you for being part of our journey. We could not be more excited to share adventure with you as we look ahead to the future.
Fuel Your Progression
Josh and Kat Morris
