I imagine every President is nostalgic for the past year in their final President’s Message. It has been an honor to work with the ASE and a very busy year. Please check out the joint Presidents’ Page on the value of Sub-Specialty organizations to the field and your career that will be published in an upcoming issue of JASE. ASE’s focus on cardiovascular ultrasound allows us to advocate for the field and patient access in a way that larger organizations with multiple stakeholders cannot. I am proud to say that the ASE has become the “Go To” organization on the Hill for all things involving our field. We certainly should be, because we are the experts, and we have the talent to prove it.
I know our membership appreciates the skills of our amazing staff. They are employed directly by the ASE, rather than a management company, and are well experienced in professional society governance. They work really hard, and our members can count on a personal email if they write regarding an issue or with a question. Our CEO, Robin Wiegerink, is the epitome of professionalism and expertise. However, does anyone beside my family think that it is odd that Wieger(s) is the President of a Society of which Wieger(ink) is the CEO? There is no relationship that we can tell. My Wiegers ancestors came to the US in the 1870’s from Germany and ran a saloon in Hoboken, NJ. Robin’s family has far more distinguished Dutch roots. Hilary Lamb, the COO, has been with ASE for almost as long as I have been a member. I admire her directness in communication (“UMM… NO!”) and her ability to foresee problems large and small. This past December my nephew stood me up in Madrid on my extra day in Spain after EuroEcho (he is 23—schedules optional!). I was thrilled when Hilary called me to say that due to a luggage problem she had missed her plane. So we had a great time in Madrid for the day.
We just celebrated staff member Mary Alice Dilday’s 30 th year at ASE. The very first year I gave a talk at ASE Scientific Sessions, the schedule was suddenly changed, and Mary Alice was so helpful and calming as I was suddenly dealing with the “Kid, you’re on in 5 minutes,” and I became a devoted fan. Mary Alice once was called down by a desperate AV company at the ASE Review course when the faculty and attendees were going into the 12 th hour of Q and A. Mary Alice showed up with her clothes on over her PJ’s to give us the ax! We have 25 staffers so you know that I can’t mention them all but they are all special and dedicated to our organization’s success. Staff member Rhonda Price is very knowledgeable about the international scene and arranged for that very inspiring 2015 Scientific Sessions presentation by the Andes plane crash survivor and ASE member Dr. Roberto Canessa. Irene Butler, ASE staff member who knows her way about D.C. as well as the most seasoned senator, is a whiz on all of the advocacy issues and has done a great job in connecting our membership with that work and our lobbyist. Andrea Van Hoever, ASE’s Vice President of Research, helped me organize the abstracts program over the phone when I had no Internet connection in my mother’s ICU room many years ago. The final staff member I will thank here is Deborah Meyer, who helps every month with this task and sends the gentle emails, “Dr. Wiegers, did you know that your President’s Message is due TOMORROW??!!” I am very grateful to all of the other staff who have made this year so special and am very fond of them as well.
