Every year as I write my column for the December edition of College Columns I find myself starting off with the phrase, “Hard to believe . . . .” This year I confess that I’m a bit late to the task, and since it’s the morning after Thanksgiving and we have a refrigerator
full of leftovers here at home it’s easier to believe that once again we are coming to the end of another year, and once again we all have much to be thankful for.
I count among those many blessings the opportunity I have to serve in the leadership of this dynamic organization. In the 21 years since my induction in Class IX I’ve witnessed spectacular growth in the College – not just in terms of membership numbers, but in the activities of the College and the contribution that it makes to the good and welfare of the profession.
• I’m thankful for the growth in the number (and quality!) of Circuit Education programs over the years, and have been enriched within the past two years by attending the programs conducted in the Fifth, Seventh, Ninth and Tenth Circuits; hopefully before the College is done with me I’ll get to attend at least one program or event in every Circuit.
• I’m thankful for the incredible ramp-up of participation and acceleration of activity in so many committees of the College, new and old. The reports submitted to the Board for our Spring and Fall meetings reflect this increased activity on so many fronts, made possible through the efforts of an increasing number of Fellows who have taken the opportunity to get involved in our work.
• I’m particularly thankful for the enormous growth of the Foundation and the unparalleled work of its Pro Bono Committee,
in soliciting, evaluating and funding a steadily increasing amount of grant dollars to pro
bono consumer legal services organizations across the country (and this year even in . . . never mind, that’s in Paul Harner’s column, and by the way, Paul continues to do an exceptional job as Chair of the Foundation, along with Judge Janet Bostwick as Chair of the Pro Bono Committee!).
• I’m thankful for the great Fall Meeting that we had this year in Washington, D.C., including a highly productive Board meeting, highest turnout at a Fall Fellows Luncheon in our history, and an afternoon of well-attended committee meetings.
• And (never one to let an opportunity for a natural segue pass by), I’m thankful for the 261 Fellows whose 110 professional firms supported the College’s Patrons & Sponsors Program in 2019!
2019 Patrons & Sponsors Program. Through the generous support of 110 professional firms, we closed out the 2019 Program with $288,000 from 30 Sustaining Patrons, 21 Patrons, 55 Sponsors and 4 Supporters. While we gained back some of the fall-off and managed healthy increases over the 95 firms and $272,500 total from 2018, we still fell just a bit short of our goal of $294,000. So conservatively we’ve maintained that same $294,000 goal for 2020, but already are mobilizing our dedicated group of Patrons & Sponsors volunteers in the hope of exceeding that goal by at least 10%. And with $201,750 pledged for 2020 as of December 6, 2019 we’re 2/3 of the way there, but we need your firm to support the Program that each year provides fully 50% of our annual operating budget – including the educational programs, international law course and national bankruptcy archives projects that distinguish the College in the bankruptcy and insolvency community.
Giving Thanks
Mark D. Bloom, Greenberg Traurig, LLP
President, American College of Bankruptcy
4