I wanted to take a moment, post-APhA2025, to introduce myself to anyone who might not know me. It is the honor of a lifetime to serve as APhA’s president. I have spent my life preparing for this leadership role; as a co-owner and CEO of Towncrest Pharmacy Corporation, co-founder and co-owner of Innovative Pharmacy Solutions and professor of pharmacy management and innovation at Loma Linda University School of Pharmacy. 

As my tenure as President of APhA draws to a close, I find myself deeply reflective of the extraordinary work accomplished this year, the incredible individuals I’ve had the honor of working with, and the collective strength of the pharmacy profession. The theme of my presidency—"All In: One Profession. United."—was not just a slogan, but a guiding principle that informed everything we did as an association.

Like so many of you, we’ve been continuing to follow reports in the media about pharmacy closures. It seems like each of those stories focuses on the obvious downside to the closures—a local place to get prescriptions filled is going away. While the inconvenience of having to get prescriptions filled miles away can be substantial

I remember September 11th, 2001, as if it were yesterday. I was working as a relief pharmacist in Morgan City, Alabama, when my wife called to tell me there had been an airplane crash in New York. In these pre-smartphone days, news traveled a little bit slower and the pharmacy I was working in did not have a television so we made do with a radio. I remember the confusion—there were some early reports about additional planes headed for landmarks across Washington, DC.