In Best of Miami, role models to emulate, reasons to smile
This week’s Best of Miami section rests firmly on a cardinal belief of Miami Today: we like our community and want it to be the best it can possibly be.
Everything we do as a company is based on that bedrock principle. We highlight the best in every edition even as we point out the possibilities – and needs – to improve. Criticisms, we believe, should be due to a desire to get better and should point to paths to do exactly that.
The best way to improve might be to hold up a mirror that shows Miami at its best in significant rather than trivial categories and allow readers to build on that inspiration. The press can mold community thought and action based on what it highlights. Focus on crime and you get more of it. Spotlight philanthropy and it grows.
That’s why our weekly profile is labeled The Achiever. We pick role models, people whose accomplishments others will emulate or use as inspiration for their own achievements, both professionally and in the community.
So how does the Best of Miami differ from that weekly spotlight on a menu of events, organizations and individuals that Miami Today chooses to write about?
The biggest difference is that in this week’s section, we at Miami Today didn’t choose the organizations and individuals whom we highlighted. They were chosen by you, via surrogate experts, observers and leaders who nominated Best of Miami choices. This newspaper didn’t get to vote – you did, by highlighting the best you could think of.
Another difference is the title, “Best.” Each week we highlight Good, but we don’t label Best.
In fact, we know that even in this week’s special section we’re really talking about being among the best. “Best” is subjective, and not every outstanding person or organization could possibly be considered when our community experts made choices. Miami is blessed with high-quality people, many of whom could rightfully be chosen among the best at what they do.
No, scientific our choices are not. Heartfelt they definitely are. As you read this edition you will see how strongly many of the nominators feel about their choices.
The chosen persons and organizations that we already knew are good selections. And in the process of putting together the Best of Miami we discovered many excellent people and organizations that had not earlier crossed our radar. They’re definitely worth knowing.
Think of the multiple values of this edition. We find achievements that had flown under the radar, new ways to be involved in the community, and a new collection of future leaders. Plus, we compile a selection of role models well worth emulating.
Beyond all that, we find new reasons to feel good about our world. Many news media can be depressing. Our presidential candidates tell us the nation is going to hell, and quickly. Crime seems to abound. But we’re telling you that, at least in Miami, you’ve got a lot to be proud of and to smile about.
We’re not wearing rose-colored glasses. Miami Today can be highly critical of issues such as transportation, education, leadership, government structure and a host of others. We often are.
But isn’t it refreshing to see in a single newspaper so many people accomplishing so much? And to know that in Miami, at least, there are few barriers to getting involved and having the opportunity to follow these stellar roadmaps to excellence.
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