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To my Fellow Craftsmen,
 I
would like to wish everyone a wonderful New Year
with hopes that 2006 will be a wondrous and
exciting year.
While taking a few days off over the New Years
weekend, I reflected on my nineteen year climb
to the Chairman postion of the IAPHC Board. It
was interesting to realize how much my
understanding and appreciation of the
association and it's operations, services and
direction has changed, over almost two decades.
What amazes me most is the fact that when I
first started my life in this association I was
a very busy man. Now I am still just as busy,
but I put in between 10 to 20 hours a week
performing the tasks associated with the
position of the Chairman, and have done so for
at least the past ten years now.
I also have to believe that every other leader
must be putting in that much time, or more. How
have those hours crept into our daily routine? I
would like to believe that it is our love for
this association and what we have received in
return for our efforts, that keeps us mobilized.
Not to mention all the wonderful people that we
have come to know.
Four months has passed since the approval of our
Policy Manual. The association must stay the
course as set out by the 96% majority vote of
the chapters on board the 2004 Cruise
Convention, in support of the new Strategic
Business Plan. We must remember that the over
whelming vote of support for the new direction
was the direction requested by our membership,
and not be swayed by the few that still do not
understand the necessity of change. |
It is apparent that the nature of volunteering
in our Association is also changing. No longer
will we see membersable to volunteer 10 or 20
years. I believe that short term doable
volunteerism is here. One specific example is Al
Zowada from the New Jersey Chapter, who accepted
the one year invitation to take over the
International Printing Week Chair position. The
additional excitement of Ben Franklin's 300th
birthday was a challenge that Al has spent the
last 5 months creating a celebration worthy of
all of this industry excitement. But it is a
short-term committment.
The other day I was talking
with Alan diFatta from Difatta Graphics
and he was telling me how he had just ordered 5
duplicate International Gallery awards from
Headquarters. " The best and the most cost
effective form of advertising I have ever had",
he told me. I agreed and said we were embarking
on our new year and needed the 2006 CAll FOR
ENTRY forms. Alan asked If we needed anyone to
print them and then he volunteered. Again a
short term involvement but vital to our
association.
Again I wish you all a wonderful New Year and
please celebrate International Printing Week. It
would be nice to see as many as possible this
year at Mid Winter, which is the 13th and 14th
of January, so we too can Celebrate Ben's 300th
birthday.
Yours in Craftsmanship,
William Leahy
Chairman
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