Lessons Learned from Cory Hepola

The phrase Never Judge a Book by its Cover came to mind last week when our community had the opportunity to learn and listen to Cory Hepola during our annual Dawson Community Chamber Appreciation event. Cory started the event by sharing that “everyone has a story.” He shared that sometimes, our story begins with a “catchy headline” or a simple dream, but the story may include many chapters. He confessed that where he is today was a product of various failures and successes along the way, but when he paused to listen, his story started a new chapter. The audience was hooked. How could this successful guy, a former Kare 11 News Anchor, a former WCCO radio host, an Emmy Award winner, and a gifted speaker even have a failure when he is a picture of success? He shared with us how many rejection letters he received, some non-pleasant experiences, and how those detours inspired him to create his Emmy award-winning docuseries “Rural by Choice.” His Learn, Listen, and Mission message resonated with me and the entire audience. You could hear a pin drop, and if you could hear the thoughts of many like my own, they may have sounded like, “Oh boy, if people only knew what it took to get me to be where I am today,” “I remember how many times it took me to..”, “I appreciate living rural because…”. As I leaned in and listened, I thought about what brought me to JMHS. The mission of keeping healthcare local and how this aligned with JMHS’s mission of “Providing High-Quality, Compassionate Healthcare Close to Home.” Thank you, Cory, for reminding our community that a catchy headline or title may not wholly reflect the entire content of a story. We are grateful for our community joining us to create that next chapter! #Coryhepola

Kris Jacobson,  LNHA, LALD, MBA
JMHS CEO