In reply to Viktor Nagornyy.

Thank you, Victor, but honestly, I don’t need an apology, even if I agree with you.

Firstly, I’m proud of my accomplishments and don’t need his validation to prove them. His gross mischaracterizes were meant to be self-serving to validate his principles. I don’t adhere to those principles; I know many in the community don’t either.

Building lifestyle businesses that supported my family was always my goal — and I succeeded — for two-plus decades. Those businesses supported other families as well, an incredible achievement for me. How lucky am I? I seriously won the WP lottery, all on the backs of the community.

It all started because a friend pushed me to go to the first WordCamp in SF; I leaned in; I learned from this community how to code; I learned how to run a business from this community; my hobby allowed me to “quit my day job!” I owe so much to the wonderful people in this community, past and present.

I tried to give back because of the belief that I’m indebted to the community. Honestly, it was weak. I quit “contributing” because I was being told, through the actions of the core team, that my ideas and work weren’t good enough. So, I ended up supporting the community on my own terms. As you can hopefully tell, this isn’t the first time “leadership” failed me. I’ve reconciled and matured from that, though … I’ve already won, lucky, and privileged.

Sé is stronger. She’s more committed than I ever have. She deserves an apology. She deserves the respect. Not me.