Page 36 - APRIL 2019 FOP MAGAZINE

Mark P. Donahue
LEADING CONTINUED FROM PAGE 35
Job requirements
Lodge 7 Sergeant-at-Arms Bill Burns, the financial secretary for the Knights of Columbus Police Council, led the presidential parade into the hall at the start of the banquet on the night of March 23. Looking back at this cavalcade of union greats, Burns assessed the two characteristics that have enabled them to do their jobs so effectively.
“Perseverance,” he said.
And?
“The big ‘L’ – leadership,” Burns added. “They all have leader-
ship qualities. They have good men and women around them on the board, and leadership is key.”
Success in this job has resulted from focusing on what needs to be done for the members. “It comes from the people you’re working for,” Donahue confirmed. “The police officers on the street.”
Dean C. Angelo Sr.
The job description, however, begins with a 24-hour-a-day, seven-day-a-week commitment. It also includes having to man- age what all presidents have on their desk in some way, shape or form: one of those spindles with a sharp point to stack messages that come in for the president. The pile rarely gets smaller. Those are the phone calls. The advent of email and text messaging has only doubled and tripled the contacts.
The job is also to pick up the phone, to do the media inter- views and to engage with politicians and community groups to advocate for members. The job mandates that there will be times when many members might not agree with the president, but you have to stand up for the position that is best for the union.
And communication has to be impeccable. The president has to speak to and for the members in a manner that is always pro- fessional, open and honest.
“You wind up learning on the fly a lot more of what’s expect-
36 CHICAGO LODGE 7 ■ APRIL 2019