This is how you talk to strangers, Jim Hillman?

After I posted this article on my personal Facebook page about my GHS Bulldogs taking a knee, I got 40+ "angry" faces from people who are not my Facebook friends and this… 

I posted a screenshot of the message on my Facebook page and questions arose: Was this message to me? Was this a hack? People looked up Jim Hillman's profile, his employer, and even his employer's email.

I can confirm that this is a private message in fact sent to me directly. People are suggesting I contact his work to let them know about his words. Others are arguing that this is not work-related. Someone even said, “I cannot tell if he is kidding or not”. (No, contrary to recent public figures' use of this tactic, there are many ways to respond here, but "kidding" is not one I will accept.)

I realized at the age of 14 when in training for my first job at Seattle Gymnastics Academy that with that SGA T-shirt came responsibilities, that how I act in other parts of my life, whether or not I wear the logo, reflect on my employer and on me as a teacher. It was then that I decided that my actions need to always align with what I would want my little gymnasts and their parents to think of me – at all times, not just at work.

That’s when I learned the meaning of “integrity”.

What I find most valuable about this message is the dialogue it incited. Thank you, Jim Hillman.