As we close out 2025 and enter the stillness of the season, we offer this wish:
May this time of year slow us down just enough to remember what truly matters.
The laughter of family. The presence of friends. The quiet joy of gathering. Not because we have to, but because we get to.
We believe the holiday season gives us a glimpse of something timeless. A feeling that is not just seasonal, but essential. A sense that when we gather, something meaningful happens. Something human. Something healing.
At Connect Happy Valley, we have spent this past year clarifying why we exist and what mountain we wish to climb. We are here to peddle connection of hearts. Not through hype, but through humble spaces where people meet, mix, and belong. We are not building a platform for content. We are building a platform for community.
Throughout history, people did not gather because it was nice. They gathered because it was necessary. Farmers helped each other through harvest. Towns built economies on cooperation. Amish barns did not raise themselves. Everyone brought something. Everyone left with more than they came with. One plus one equaled three.
But something has pulled us away from that rhythm.
The villains are clear now. Busyness and our screens.
They rob us of time, attention, and the quiet beauty of being present. They distract us from the people right in front of us.
We believe the antidote is not more productivity. It is presence.
It is pulling away from the scroll and stepping into the third places that bring us back to life.
The cafés, porches, parks, kitchens, garages, sidewalks, and tailgates where real connection happens.
Tailgating in Happy Valley is more than a party. It is a living ritual of joy, memory, and multi-generational belonging.
What if Happy Valley equals tailgate?
What if that became our metaphor, our model, and our mission?
We believe it can.
As we welcome 5 million people each year to Happy Valley, which includes alums, parents, students plus us residents, our work is to help them do more than attend something. We want them to belong to something. Fun with a purpose.
If this speaks to you, we invite you to get involved.
Show up. Share the table. Make time for one another.
Happy Holidays.
May your days be full of joy, your hearts wide open, and your tables always large enough to welcome one more.
Connect Happy Valley
