Page 5 - The Edge - Fall 2018

A MESSAGE FROM THE PRESIDENT

BY JILL BARRAGAN

A Selfish Leader or a Selfless Leader?

I recently had the pleasure of attending the ASBO he was distinguished among his fellow POWs for his creative
International Meeting and Exposition in Kissimmee, Florida. methods of underground communication. He also served as
The theme of the conference was ethical leadership and the the camp chaplain for two years.
keynotes and breakout sessions engaged in all aspects of the Years after his return home, Captain Plumb was eating in a
theme. Kansas City restaurant when someone approached him and
Standout for me was the keynote session on Sunday exclaimed, “You’re Captain Plumb! You flew fighters in Vietnam
morning from Colonel Arthur J. Athens, USMC (retired). He on USS Kitty Hawk. You were shot down. You parachuted into
currently serves as the Director for the Vice Admiral Stockdale enemy hands and spent nearly six years as a POW.” Plumb
Center for Ethical Leadership at the U.S. Naval Academy. His replied, “How in the world did you know all that?” The man gave
goal as our keynote speaker was to explore how school business a huge grin and responded, “Because I packed your parachute!”
leaders can become more effective at the fulcrum point and Plumb was speechless and stood up to thank the sailor who
lead our districts to higher levels of motivation, achievement had done his job well to assure the pilot’s survival. The former
and fulfillment. A key to achieving this is to be a selfless leader, sailor grabbed Plumb’s hand, shook it hard, and said, “I guess
and not a selfish leader. In his time, he engaged us with several it worked!”
stories, but I want to share two of those. First was an example After his retirement from military service, Plumb became an
of perhaps a selfish leader, and second, an example of a selfless author and professional speaker, sharing his POW experiences
leader. with audiences around the world. His most important story was
Colonel Athens begins with a story about a person that many the chance meeting with the sailor who packed his parachute,
of us had heard of, Scottie Pippen. Pippen, Michael Jordan and which ultimately saved his life. He took every opportunity
the Chicago Bulls had accomplished some incredible feats in to ensure that people knew how appreciative he was of his
basketball in the early nineties. Before the 1993-94 season, parachute packer and to ensure we all take time
the great Michael Jordan retired. Scottie Pippen emerges to recognize and appreciate the parachute
from Jordan’s shadow as the leader of the Bulls. They have an packers in our lives. Our jobs aren’t done in
incredible season and make it to the 1994 NBA Playoffs. In game exclusivity, rather our successes are shared
three of the Eastern Conference Semifinals against the New with all those we work with and credit should
York Knicks, the Bulls are down 2-0. With 1.8 seconds left and be given to each and every contributor.
the score tied at 102, coach Phil Jackson created a play for rookie Captain Plumb will share this message
Toni Kukoc in which Pippen was to inbound the basketball. for the rest of his life, making him the
Pippen, immersed in his anger at not being the center of the perfect example of a selfless leader.
potential game-winning play, sits on the bench and refuses to
re-enter the game. Kukoc made the play with a 23-foot fade
away jumper. Unfortunately, there was little celebrating as the
team and the press realized what happened. Pippen’s actions
reflected those of a selfish leader, one who wanted to be the
center of attention for all team victories, rather than sharing in
that success as a team.
Colonel Athens then leads in to a story about someone
most of us had never heard of, Captain Charlie Plumb. Captain
Plumb, graduated from the U.S. Naval Academy in 1964, flew the
F-4 Phantom and was assigned to the aircraft carrier USS Kitty
Hawk. He flew 74 successful combat missions over Vietnam.
On his 75 mission, which was five days before he was set to
th
go home, his plane was shot down and he was captured and
tortured. He remained a prisoner of war in North Vietnamese
prison camps for 2,103 days. Throughout his time in captivity,

FALL 2018 | THE EDGE 5