Lindsay Kough

I help grow companies | Navy SEAL Veteran | Former Chief of Staff to the Under Secretary of the Navy (SES-III)

My why:   to serve God, country, and family by inspiring and empowering others to achieve their greatest potential living out their own why.

Gallop Strengths:   Self-Assurance | Achiever | Belief | Responsibility | Activator

Kolbe A Index:  5-5-7-3

President

We solve problems, and grow client companies in the United States and abroad.  We focus on innovation in architecture, engineering, healthcare, space, and defense.

CAGE Code:  95F88
DUNS Number:  015451889

www.trident11.com

Seven…


Seven years ago today, our dear daughter, Leslie Sharon Kough, aka "Lulu," ascended into heaven. 

She was 18 years old.  Suicide.



I have written about Lulu on this platform many times. 

Some of you have been with me since the beginning... 

Some of you are reading about her for the first time. 

To all of you, thank you for being here. 

Your love has carried our family in ways you may never fully understand. 



Before you read any further, know this:  this is not a post about death. 

This is a post about love. 

Lulu's love. 

And the love she continues to pour into all of us.



Seven is a number that means something to me. 

In our faith, seven represents completion. Perfection. The fullness of God's plan. 

I do not pretend to understand that plan. 

But I have spent seven years learning to trust it. 

Seven years of learning that grief does not define me. 

That loss does not own me. 

That the deepest pain I have ever endured has also produced the deepest love I have ever known.



Lulu was the greatest servant leader I have ever known. 

I do not write those words lightly. 

The most profound example of leadership I have ever witnessed came from a teenage girl who poured herself into her relationships with developmentally disabled classmates… 

Who volunteered at the VA hospital on Sundays, listening to veterans' stories, calling each one "sir," and thanking them for their service… 

Who knelt beside the homeless at the shower trucks with the Order of Malta, serving with a heart so pure it could only have been a gift from God. 



That was Lulu. 

Pure love in action.



Seven years later, Lulu's fingerprints are still everywhere. 

I see them in her siblings.

Servant leaders as a firefighter and paramedic, an Apache pilot and Company Commander, and as an Army surgeon.

I see them in strangers who reach out through this platform to tell me that something I wrote about her gave them the courage to ask for help. 

I see them in every one of you who has sent a message, said a prayer, or simply held space for our family. 



You have loved us through the unimaginable. 

That love matters...  heals...



I don't believe in coincidences. 

I believe in blessings. 

And Lulu continues to bless us every day, even now, from heaven.



To those of you who are suffering right now… please hear me.

You can still find joy. 

I found mine through prayer, and when I finally raised my hand and my heart and asked for help. 

That decision changed my life. 

If you are struggling, please reach out. 

To me. 

To someone you trust. 

You are not alone. 

You are loved more than you know.



Leslie, seven years later, your light still shines. 

You still make us better people. 

You still teach us that the most important thing we can do on this Earth is love one another and serve others above ourselves.

Thank you again, sweetheart.



I love you, Lulu.  We miss you beyond words.

Love, Dad



P.S. Forehead kisses.

Consultant at Centelon

Experienced Software Engineer with a demonstrated history of working in the computer software industry. Skilled in Mobile Application Development, Vue.js, Application Programming Interfaces, Java, and .NET Framework. Strong engineering professional with a BSc focused in Mathematics and Computer Science from University of Exeter. 

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