A handshake. A friendly wave from across the way. A hug. A chat, as you catch up with far-away friends and folks you only see when you head to an annual conference and trade show.

Cracked pool surfaces, unsafe playgrounds, social distancing guidelines, rusting site furnishings, new turf installations, unsightly waste receptacles—no matter what your role is, and no matter what type of facility you operate, you're going to come across challenges and issues.

When we asked readers to respond to our annual survey in January, salaries were well up, year-over-year, and in a May Update Survey, we found that the majority had seen no change, as of yet. Tune in here to find out more about recreation, sports and fitness careers in our Salary Survey.

In the current world, where everything seems to change at a rapid pace while we're simultaneously stuck in a strange waiting room of sorts, it's nearly impossible to guess what comes next.

If you've been with us as a subscriber for a while, you know that every June we bring you this special issue, our State of the Industry Report. Based on an in-depth survey of well over a thousand professionals from parks, recreation, sports and fitness facilities, and now in its 14th year, this report broadly tracks industry trends—everything from budgets and revenues to construction plans, programming trends, staffing information and so much more.

More than 1,300 professionals responded to our call for information about their facilities, budgets, construction plans, operations, programming, staffing and more. Plus, hundreds of readers responded to our COVID-19 Update Survey in early May to discuss the impact of the pandemic on their facilities. Here, we summarize the responses.

Your budget, your ability to handle maintenance requirements and your aesthetic needs are all factors to consider when choosing the right surfacing for your playground.

Aquatic facilities are vastly complex operations, requiring a certain amount of know-how just to keep them running efficiently—and taking even more acumen to ensure they aren't a drain on the budget.

As I sit down to write these last couple of pages for the May 2020 issue of Recreation Management (it's April 29 today), there are a lot of question marks. Some of them will likely be answered before the next time I write an editor's letter, but I suspect the vast majority of them are longer-term.

Sometimes what you need is an oasis. A place to breathe. To pause.