I’ve been thinking a lot lately about how real change happens, not just in systems or institutions, but in people.

The first time I learned about the Underground Railroad was in grade school. I didn’t know the word “subversive,” but I knew it was brave. People of all hues risking comfort, safety, everything, to give someone else a shot at freedom.

What struck me was how much agency they had, even in the darkest circumstances. As a kid, I wondered if I’d ever have the courage to risk it all for someone else. As an adult, I see that our challenges today look different, but the need for courage hasn’t gone away. It just shows up in new forms.

And I’ve been blessed. People in my corner, Black, white, Latino, and others, have extended themselves for me. And I’ve tried to do the same. Years ago, I shared with someone that I wanted to serve on a corporate board. He brushed me off. A few months later, another man in the same industry listened, believed, and opened a door. That difference changed my trajectory. It reminds me that the spirit of the Underground Railroad lives on, when we step beyond comfort, see the potential in others, and act on it.

Last month, I wrote in The St. Louis American that entrepreneurship and leadership are modern-day escape routes. Not just from economic struggle, but from the generational patterns that keep people stuck. The Underground Railroad of the 1800s wasn’t a train, and it wasn’t underground , it was a lifeline.

Today, the barriers aren’t iron shackles. They’re wage gaps, lack of access to capital, closed networks. And yes, sometimes, they show up in our own mindset. That doesn’t mean we haven’t made progress. We have. And we can make more, if we stay intentional about it.

Freedom isn’t accidental.

It takes courage.

It takes coordination.

It takes people who are willing to open the way , and people who are ready to walk through, grow, contribute, and reach back to lift someone else.

But let me be clear, when you get your shot, you’ve got to shoot it.
Take it. Show up. Learn what you’re supposed to learn. Do what you’re supposed to do. No excuses.

This isn’t about blame, this is about truth. If all things are equal and you simply didn’t deliver, then that shot won’t stay yours. And it shouldn’t.

Do the work to deliver.
Do the work to learn.
Do the work to execute.
Do the work that’s within your ability, and ask for help when it’s not.

And if you don’t do these things, if you get the opportunity but don’t meet the moment, then don’t cry foul. Don’t say the system didn’t work if you never actually did your part. This isn’t subjective. Accountability is part of the freedom equation, too.

What if today’s Underground Railroad isn’t hidden at all?

What if it looks like mentors who return your call, investors who bet on people not just models, leaders who pull up extra chairs instead of building higher walls?

Opportunity alone isn’t enough, you can’t outwork a door that’s locked shut. But when a door does open, you have to walk through ready to deliver.

Maybe for you, it’s hiring someone whose background doesn’t match the usual pattern.
Maybe it’s giving feedback that helps someone rise instead of shrink.
Maybe it’s just pausing long enough to say, “I see something in you.”

I may be an accidental banker, but I am intentional about the legacy I leave. My hope is that we, together, keep building escape routes that don’t just change lives, but transform generations.

Because the new Underground Railroad isn’t made of tracks. It’s made of us.

So I’ll ask:

Whose path will you clear?
Whose escape route will you help build?
And when the door opens, will you be ready to walk through it and make it count?