KING RANDALL: In Albany, we are who we keep

There’s something we don’t talk about enough in Albany, but it’s one of the heaviest truths sitting quietly in the background of our progress: We keep losing our best people.

I’m talking about the ones who light up classrooms, who mentor in silence, who try to open small businesses, who bring fresh ideas, who love this city deeply but feel like it doesn’t love them back. The folks who want to serve, want to stay, but after a while — they pack up and leave. Maybe it’s to Atlanta. Maybe to Florida. Maybe somewhere they think they’ll be seen, heard or supported.

Some leave for opportunity. Some leave out of frustration. But too many leave because they feel invisible: Like their work here doesn’t matter, like the systems are too stubborn, or like they’ll never get a seat at the table unless they go build their own somewhere else.

And you can’t even blame them.

Because let’s be honest, Albany’s got a bad habit of not nurturing its own. We celebrate folks once they make it somewhere else. We repost them once the world knows their name. But while they’re here trying to build? While they’re sweating and sacrificing and staying up at night just trying to help their city? It’s crickets.

That’s not just discouraging — that’s dangerous. Because a city is only as healthy as the people it keeps.

If we want to change Albany for the better, we can’t just focus on attracting new industries or passing new policies. We have to start retaining the people who already care. The ones already doing the hard work. The ones raising kids here. The ones showing up at council meetings, volunteering on Saturdays, trying to open that corner store, coach that team, build that program, teach that class.

Those are our city’s lifelines:

— If we keep our teachers, we keep our future.

— If we keep our young men out of the system, we keep our families together.

— If we keep our small business owners encouraged, we keep the economy alive.

— If we keep our elders engaged, we keep our wisdom.

— If we keep our visionaries, we just might see something different.

This isn’t about perfection. This is about presence. We don’t need celebrities. We need citizens. We don’t need saviors. We need neighbors.

And if we don’t start recognizing, uplifting, and investing in the people who’ve already chosen Albany — we’ll keep watching them disappear, one by one. And every time a good one leaves, a little more of this city’s potential goes with them.

That’s the real brain drain nobody’s measuring.

But the good news is — we can change that. We can be the kind of community that speaks life into the ones who stay, that thanks them while they’re still here. That shows up to their events, shares their posts, supports their businesses, donates to their mission, claps for their students, and makes them feel seen.

It doesn’t cost anything to say “Keep going.” It doesn’t take much to say “We see you.”

But those little things? They can be the difference between someone leaving … and someone digging in deeper.

I’ve seen it happen both ways. I’ve seen folks move away and find success, and I’m proud for them. But I’ve also seen people on the verge of giving up, and just one moment of encouragement kept them rooted. Just one person believing in them made them stay.

Albany won’t rise because of who leaves. Albany rises because of who stays. Because of who serves. Because of who builds when nobody’s watching.

And if we want this city to stand for something bigger — if we want Albany to grow into the place we all know it can be — we’ve got to start keeping the right people. That means not just letting them stay, but giving them real reasons to.

So if you’re one of the ones who stayed, I want to say thank you. If you’re thinking about leaving, I understand. But I hope you know you matter more than you think. And if you’re someone in a position to lift others up, don’t wait until they’re gone to realize what you had.

We are who we keep. Let’s start acting like it.

King Randall is a youth educator and founder of The X for Boys, a program dedicated to empowering young men in Albany through discipline, leadership and hands-on training.