Because this is my first article as president of the Young Lawyers Section, it seems appropriate to follow in the footsteps of my predecessors with respect to the subject matter. In other words, I have to do some brown nosing.
First, I want to once again thank Sherri Worman for her leadership of the YLS Board this past year. Sherri consistently held meetings to one hour or less, and she always made sure we had an unlimited supply of peanuts and beer at the meetings. Those are the types of actions that separate the great leaders from the good ones. Sherri, I pledge to you and the other YLS Board members that I will do my best to maintain the high standards that you have set (although the one hour thing will be difficult if we read the Oath of Attorney before every meeting). I also encourage Jim Moseley Jr. to institute similar policies. I know Jim may struggle with the concept of serving martinis and margaritas at the Big Board lunches, but the amount of creative thinking that would be fostered could affect the JBA for years to come.
I also want to thank Troy Smith for his hard work as the social chair this past year. Under Troy’s watchful eye, we were able to move the average cost of a Happy Hour from $200 to $750 (i.e., slightly less than the cost for a family of four to attend a Jaguars game). Troy, we will have to spend considerable time determining who is going to fill your shoes (and your beer mug) this year.
I could not in good conscience write this article without telling Tatiana Salvador how grateful I am for her making a 10 - year commitment to put on the Law Week program. We all know how much time and effort went into this year’s program, and that, coupled with the upcoming delivery of Tatiana’s and Julio’s second child, makes the long-term commitment even more special.
To Diane Gill, Shotsie Main and the rest of the JBA staff, your tireless efforts never go unnoticed. We appreciate you doing all of the work and allowing us to take all of the credit.
To the returning members of, and the new additions to, the YLS Board, I look forward to working with you to make this a great year for the YLS. I particularly look forward to giving you all the opportunity to help write these articles. It truly is good for the soul.
My request to the other members of the YLS is to get involved and stay involved. We have a lot of fun, and that is part of what makes the JBA the best in the state (ask Braxton Gillam how much fun the other Bar Associations have). We just have to remember that we cannot delay anyone’s cause for lucre.
Enjoy the rest of your summer.