Happy New Year and New Decade! To help keep you from falling into the post-holiday doldrums, we’ve put together a very special issue of Alaska Business focused on the next generation of business professionals, the students of Junior Achievement (JA), and some of the talented people who have been contributing to the business community in one way or another for decades. And they aren’t working just to further their own success: each of the Alaska Business Hall of Fame Laureates is helping to guide the state’s young people to a successful, fulfilling future through mentorships, volunteer work, philanthropy, internships, donations, and… you get the idea. Read all about this year’s inductees and their incredible accomplishments in the JA special section in which we also place a spotlight on educators and volunteers who go above and beyond.

We talk a lot in the business community about the importance of mentoring and making ourselves available to help guide our children to success. The key to successful mentorships and internships and, in turn, students and new graduates is to turn words into action. Most everyone agrees in theory that students who participate in programs such as JA are more likely to not just succeed but excel in the workforce, but we have to put theory into practice in order to make a real difference. Time is a precious commodity, but so are the eager students and graduates looking to us as role models. Each of this year’s laureates (and past laureates) exceed at being professional role models—and for that we say, thank you!