Leadership Series: Public Servant

It appears that some Americans have lost the real meaning of the term “public servant.” Just in case you may have forgotten how a real public servant acts, here are a few examples:

Dr. Jonas Salk. Most everyone knows Dr. Salk or at least the disease that he eliminated – POLIO. Did you know that Dr. Salk did not make any money from his development of the vaccine to inoculate humans against polio? “When news of the vaccine's success was made public on April 12, 1955, Salk was hailed as a "miracle worker", and the day "almost became a national holiday." His sole focus had been to develop a safe and effective vaccine as rapidly as possible, with no interest in personal profit. When he was asked in a televised interview who owned the patent to the vaccine, Salk replied: "There is no patent. Could you patent the sun?" Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jonas_Salk

“No interest in personal profit.” Don’t just read on. Think about the character of the man who had no interest in personal profit, please. Could you patent the sun? Sure. We imagine there are some Wall Street types who, with their legal scholars, are working on that project right now.

Read this man’s biography at the above URL. If you wish to grasp the meaning of “public servant.”

Cicely Saunders. Ever heard of her? She died in 2005 at St. Christopher’s Hospice in England. Why is that location meaningful? She founded the place. As a matter of fact, she founded the entire hospice movement. What is a hospice you ask? It’s a place and a process that most all of us will need, usually late in our lives. Cicely Saunders was concerned about the well being of people who were approaching death. She focused much of her life on helping dying people deal with their pain and all aspects of the end of life. You can read about her at: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cicely_Saunders

We snitched this quote from her BBC obituary, “Her belief that dying is a phenomenon "as natural as being born," was at the heart of a philosophy that sees death as a process that should be life-affirming and free of pain.” http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/4254255.stm

Here’s one more from a British newspaper that we would like to share, “One of the terminally ill patients she nursed was David Tasma, a Polish-Jewish refugee who, having escaped from the Warsaw ghetto, had worked as a waiter. She fell in love with him, and he left her his worldly wealth of £500 to be "a window in your home". That act, which helped germinate the idea that became St Christopher’s, is remembered by a plain sheet of glass in the entrance to the hospice.” http://www.guardian.co.uk/news/2005/jul/16/guardianobituaries.health

We are literally without words when we read these words.

Let’s get back to the US of A. Here’s one more: Clara Foltz. Ever heard of Clara? Clara was a Hoosier, actually a descendant of Daniel Boone. She introduced the simple but overwhelming concept of the “public defender.” Just think of that, in 1893, when Clara was dealing with a multitude of issues, there were no public defenders. She took this system on when the powers to be would not even let her be an attorney. She was the first female to be admitted to the bar in California. Oh, while doing all this, she raised five children. Her husband had split.

Here’s a quote from Foltz’s biography, “Foltz described herself thusly, "They call me a Lady Lawyer, a pretty sobriquet, for of course to be worthy of so dainty a title, I was bound to maintain a dainty manner, as I browbeat my way through the marshes of ignorance and prejudice." Source: http://www.firstladylawyer.com/about_clara.asp   Can you just take these few words and embrace the power of this woman? We encourage you to read about this woman and this lawyer. Not many people know about her but now you do.

Some of these folks are well known public servants. But we, at TheFundamentals, are drawn to a different type of public servant, none of whom are well known. These public servants are our neighbors, our family members, our friends. You know them all. They work hard. They raise and educate their children in difficult times. They help out when needed. Obey the law. Pay their taxes. Vote. Seldom seek an advantage over one another. But don’t care much for those who do. Much less those who do it in the name of public service.

If you want to call yourself a public servant, it is darn well time that you had better at least grasp an accurate definition. By the way, if you call yourself one; you’re not.