The year kicked off with James helping open Toledo’s first cat café. RubyCats has now welcomed more than 3,800 visitors and celebrated 40+ adoptions. January also marked the first of three trips to New York City, a place that played an important role in our year and the shared experiences that shaped it.
Theatre was a defining theme throughout 2025. We filled the calendar with performances from local stages to Broadway. Standout favorites included Sunset Blvd. and Maybe Happy Ending, along with Masquerade, Ragtime, Death Becomes Her, Chess, Boop!, Stranger Things: The First Shadow, Just in Time, Spelling Bee, and Titanique. National tours and memorable regional productions like Parade, South Pacific, and Avenue Q rounded out the year.
Here‘s what we saw in 2025:
Wed Matinee: Sunset Blvd.
Wed PM: Gypsy
Thu AM: The View
Thu PM: Maybe Happy Ending
Fri AM: NBC Studios Tour
Fri PM: Sunset Blvd.
Sat PM: Titanique
Wed PM: Maybe Happy Ending
Thu: Sunset Blvd.
Fri: Just in Time
Sat. Matinee: Boop
Sat PM: Sunset Blvd.
Sun Matinee: Death Becomes Her
Sun PM: & Juliet
Wed Matinee: Operation Mincemeat
WedPM: Prince F*ggot
Thu Matinee: Maybe Happy Ending
ThuPM: Ragtime
Fri: Rockettes
Fri PM: Stranger Things
Sat Matinee: Spelling Bee
Sat PM: Chess
Sunday PM: Masquerade
National Tours: Parade, The Cher Show, Les Mis, The Wiz
Toledo Opera: South Pacific
St. Francis HS: Holiday Inn
Croswell Shows: Anastasia, La Cage Aux Folles, Annie, Parade, Bonnie & Clyde, Cinderella
The Dio: Avenue Q
Travel added memorable highlights throughout the year. Miami brought sunshine and time with friends before an unforgettable Western Caribbean cruise, with stops in the Bahamas, Jamaica, Grand Cayman, and Mexico. We closed out the trip with a return to Orlando, marking our first visit back since 2019.
Professionally, 2025 marked a milestone for Matthew as he celebrated 25 years with Maritz and transitioned to a Product Owner role supporting Galderma’s aesthetic loyalty program, ASPIRE. The role brought fresh opportunities, meaningful collaboration, and an exciting new chapter in his career. James presented at a conference in New Orleans and attended a leadership meeting in Washington, D.C. He was elected Vice Chair of Communications, Community Relations, and Marketing for his national professional group. Time in New Orleans also included delicious food, Jazz Fest, and the spirit of the Gospel Tent.
Kitty
Sonoma
Kira
Throughout the year, we celebrated moments both big and small, including our eighth wedding anniversary, time with friends and family, and birthdays for our cats: Kitty turning 15, Sonoma 10, and Kira 7. We remain grateful for good health and the everyday joys that make a year feel complete.
With love,
Matthew, James, Kitty, Sonoma, and Kira