Public Service
My friend, Foster Aborn, taught me the importance of public service. He had a long career at John Hancock, advancing through the ranks to become Chief Investment Officer and Vice Chairman of the Board. It was a lofty position, and upon retirement I would have expected him to kick back and relax.
Instead he works every day, serving on the boards of several non- profits here in New England, both prominent and obscure, but each has a direct impact on people’s lives. Foster also mentors a handful of promising young people to advance their careers.
Because of Foster, I serve on the LifeFlight Foundation Board supporting LifeFlight of Maine, the state’s only emergency medical helicopter service. Maine is the size of the rest of New England combined and the only way to bring highly developed emergency medical care to much of it is in one of LifeFlight’s ICU-equipped helicopters. Many Mainers are alive today because of LifeFlight.
A civil society remains civil when we all contribute some measure of our time, treasure, and experience to the greater enterprise of the common good. My board work takes a chunk of time, but I’ve found that I get back much more than I put in.
