Juneteenth bake & reflecting on missing Michael Johnson

Pre-Order 🥖

I’m baking bread this weekend! Short notice, but I’m mixing the dough today for a regular Saturday pickup.

Limited supply! Only 19 loaves, in honor of Juneteenth.

100% of tomorrow’s profits will be donated to the Boys & Girls Club of Dane County.

🫶🏽

Speaking of… I went to the community visitation at the Allied Drive Boys & Girls Club yesterday to honor Michael Johnson’s life.

I still can’t believe he’s gone.

He was a good and honorable man.

A lot of emotions yesterday, but this awards table made me smile when I saw it. He was humble in his own way, and he would have honestly said it’s all for the kids… but he would have low key liked this table being there. I wonder if that humble yet competitive energy was a Chicago thing… maybe that’s why I resonated with it.

These awards can’t begin to demonstrate what a giant Michael was in the Madison community though.

This essay from Henry Sanders does a nice job capturing one of the big things that made Michael Johnson different. Any societal challenge that grabbed hold of his heart was a challenge that he now felt called to address.

And then he’d just get to work!

Not the typical kind of work that starts with getting bogged down researching what all options have been explored in the past and by whom… he’d just get to work to make things better for people and not stop until it’s done. Often times done to a scale previously unimaginable.

At the visitation yesterday, his wife Toya reminded me of the fact that she & he were always confident that Michael was walking in God’s purpose for his life.

The combination of that self-assurance and his selfless nature made his personality magnetic.

I always left our conversations feeling challenged and encouraged. And seen. He would just really make time for people.

So many people… and families… and communities… and generations are better because of the awesome way be blended love & action & leadership throughout his life.

It’s been over a week and I’m struggling to process that he’s not here anymore. I really wish I could have one more conversation with him.

I’m so sorry for his family’s loss.

50 is way too early to go.