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President's Memo
President's Memo
The Legacy of Leadership By John F. Schlegel, PharmD
BECOME
ANAPhA MEMBER AND BENEF1T There are 12 ways to benefit by becoming a member of the American Pharmaceu tical Association: 1) National Representation, 2) The APhA Political Action Committee, 3) Periodicals and Publications, 4) Meetings, 5) The Pharmacists Insurance Programs, 6) Membership Academies, 7) The Professional Placement Center, 8) The Pharmacy Intelligence Center, 9) The Pharmacists Network, 10) The APhA Credit Union, 11) Discounts on Car Rentals and the Gold MasterCard, 12) Comprehensive National Awards Program.
For an APhA membership application see page 22
proverb of forgotten origin says, ''A born leader sees which way the crowd is going and steps in ahead." What that proverb fails to say is that the born leader often sees which way the crowd is going even before the crowd itself does. In modem parlance, the born leader is able to recognize and interpret trends and then assert directions which make the most of them. Those who do that best are remembered as bold and visionary leaders, and they find a place in history. Daniel B. Smith and William Procter, Jr., were leaders like that. In 1852, a time when the source of the nation's drug supply was in chaos and its very quality was highly suspect, Smith and Procter had the vision to assert their leadership, and the American Pharmaceutical Association was born. It is doubtful that many realized the importance of that act when Smith and Procter became APhA's first president and secretary, respectively. But their actions are truly APhA's legacy, and all that has transpired since then has been possible because of their visionary leadership. APhA's and the profession's history rings with the names of other leaders who left their enduring mark on the building and strengthening of this great Association-Joseph P. Remington, James H. Beal, Charles Rice, Albert Ethelbert Ebert, and more recently, the likes of H.A.B. Dunning, Robert P. Fischelis, William S. Apple, and Hugo H. Schaefer. APhA is blessed with a rich history of men and women who have been able to first see where APhA should be going and then point the way to get there. Taking that high road has not always been easy. Many of these outstanding leaders were not hailed in their time for their vision and boldness. To the contrary, because it was their nature to take unpopular stands and to advocate actions that could easily be misunderstood by those with less vision, more often they were the targets of criticism and the sources of dissent. For many, the profession's full appreciation only came later when their vision and wisdom became apparent and thereby their greatness became widely recognized. Although we owe eternal gratitude to these leaders and others like them, we honor them as much for their courage and vision as we do for their specific accomplishments. Although our heritage is based in what they did, our more precious legacy lies in the reason that they did them. Without exception they looked ahead to where pharmacy and the profession should be going and then showed the way, no matter what the personal consequences might prove to be. APhA is the strong and influential organization that it is today because of what those who have gone before us have taught us and the example they have set. They taught us that APhA's leaders must constantly look ahead and not back, and that they must have the vision and the courage to lead the Association into the future, in spite of inevitable questioning and dissent. They showed us that vision and courage, no matter how controversial at the time, eventually will be rewarded with the profession's appreciation and gratitude. What a precious legacy to guide our present and future leaders! ®
A
American Pharmacy, Vol. NS27, No.6, June 1987/367
3
The Legacy of Leadership By John F. Schlegel, PharmD
BECOME
ANAPhA MEMBER AND BENEF1T There are 12 ways to benefit by becoming a member of the American Pharmaceu tical Association: 1) National Representation, 2) The APhA Political Action Committee, 3) Periodicals and Publications, 4) Meetings, 5) The Pharmacists Insurance Programs, 6) Membership Academies, 7) The Professional Placement Center, 8) The Pharmacy Intelligence Center, 9) The Pharmacists Network, 10) The APhA Credit Union, 11) Discounts on Car Rentals and the Gold MasterCard, 12) Comprehensive National Awards Program.
For an APhA membership application see page 22
proverb of forgotten origin says, ''A born leader sees which way the crowd is going and steps in ahead." What that proverb fails to say is that the born leader often sees which way the crowd is going even before the crowd itself does. In modem parlance, the born leader is able to recognize and interpret trends and then assert directions which make the most of them. Those who do that best are remembered as bold and visionary leaders, and they find a place in history. Daniel B. Smith and William Procter, Jr., were leaders like that. In 1852, a time when the source of the nation's drug supply was in chaos and its very quality was highly suspect, Smith and Procter had the vision to assert their leadership, and the American Pharmaceutical Association was born. It is doubtful that many realized the importance of that act when Smith and Procter became APhA's first president and secretary, respectively. But their actions are truly APhA's legacy, and all that has transpired since then has been possible because of their visionary leadership. APhA's and the profession's history rings with the names of other leaders who left their enduring mark on the building and strengthening of this great Association-Joseph P. Remington, James H. Beal, Charles Rice, Albert Ethelbert Ebert, and more recently, the likes of H.A.B. Dunning, Robert P. Fischelis, William S. Apple, and Hugo H. Schaefer. APhA is blessed with a rich history of men and women who have been able to first see where APhA should be going and then point the way to get there. Taking that high road has not always been easy. Many of these outstanding leaders were not hailed in their time for their vision and boldness. To the contrary, because it was their nature to take unpopular stands and to advocate actions that could easily be misunderstood by those with less vision, more often they were the targets of criticism and the sources of dissent. For many, the profession's full appreciation only came later when their vision and wisdom became apparent and thereby their greatness became widely recognized. Although we owe eternal gratitude to these leaders and others like them, we honor them as much for their courage and vision as we do for their specific accomplishments. Although our heritage is based in what they did, our more precious legacy lies in the reason that they did them. Without exception they looked ahead to where pharmacy and the profession should be going and then showed the way, no matter what the personal consequences might prove to be. APhA is the strong and influential organization that it is today because of what those who have gone before us have taught us and the example they have set. They taught us that APhA's leaders must constantly look ahead and not back, and that they must have the vision and the courage to lead the Association into the future, in spite of inevitable questioning and dissent. They showed us that vision and courage, no matter how controversial at the time, eventually will be rewarded with the profession's appreciation and gratitude. What a precious legacy to guide our present and future leaders! ®
A
American Pharmacy, Vol. NS27, No.6, June 1987/367
3