July 2012

The woman who coordinated events at the POA Office for the past 34 years, who took care of your insurance needs, who prepared informational bulletins, worked on campaigns, and was the confidante to 5 different Association Presidents has ‘left the building’.  And, yes, that individual would be Yvonne Huey.  

Yvonne recently retired and will be a little upset that she is even showing up in this article because she never wanted any attention drawn to her – but we can’t ignore her many years of service to the membership, that just wouldn’t be fair.

This first column begins with a tribute to my friend John Tennant.  San Francisco Police Officers’ Association has been served, for the past five+ years, by a giant in the field of California public sector labor law.  John, a classmate of our current president at law school, could have worked in any field of law, and for any law firm he wished.  Yet he chose to dedicate his legal career to representing working men and women in public safety.  And he has done so with courage and integrity ever since.

“A hero is no braver than an ordinary man, but he is braver five minutes longer” - Ralph Waldo Emerson

Is it that time already? That sure went fast…

A discussion I have had with scores of members over the years is regarding when might be the right time to walk away from this rewarding but crazy profession. My thoughts have always pretty much been the same; Get out as soon as you can to preserve whatever sanity you may still possess, and to enjoy the rest of your life without too much looking back.