“Adversity does not build character; it reveals it.”

This quote, credited to American novelist James Lane Allen, speaks volumes about 2025. The year began with a flurry of activity at the federal level signaling that support for science and health care was under fire as never before in modern U.S. history. Many of us were shaken to our core by the flood of presidential executive orders and other actions that took direct aim at federal investment in scientific research and the integrity of research itself.

This activity set the stage for the entire year. As I reflect on 2025, it strikes me that the year was one of ASH’s most daunting, yet one of its finest. In the face of serious threats to science and health care, ASH rose to the challenge, launching the Fight4Hematology. This sweeping and galvanizing campaign made it clear that the Society stands uncompromisingly for science and its members.

The heart of the ongoing campaign is a call for a robust and sustained commitment to federal investment in research and a mission to advance care for individuals who have blood diseases. This effort proved to be more than a matter of words. ASH almost doubled its own investment in awards so that vital hematology research could move forward, giving hope to patients everywhere. The Society championed and celebrated the global hematology community, giving us a sense of pride and hope when we needed it the most. I believe we all felt that at the ASH annual meeting in Orlando.

What impressed me most about 2025 is that the Fight4Hematology campaign sprang forth and flourished amid all the other ASH initiatives that support clinicians and researchers and advance patient care in hematology. Nothing was sacrificed. Each and every year, ASH offers an array of training, education, and mentorship programs, along with scores of awards that support professional growth and recognize excellence in our field.

The sections that follow in this annual report provide some detail on those resources and programs. Any one of them might be considered extraordinary, but at ASH it is safe to say that the remarkable has become routine.

I’m proud to say that 2025 was a year that brought ASH’s character and those of its members into sharp relief. What we saw — integrity, commitment, compassion, generosity, and vision — is a reflection of your contributions and talents. Thank you to our devoted members, volunteers, contributors, and incredible staff.