PRESIDENT'S MESSAGE
Thank You for
the Opportunity
to Serve
Margaret Hughes Vath
Georgia State University
School of Law
It has been my great honor to spend this past
year as the 110th President of the Atlanta Bar
Association. One year ago, I wrote and spoke
about my theme for the year: gratitude and re-
sponsibility. And I shared with you the wisdom
that had been shared with me: “To whom much
is given, much is required.”
And much was given to me this year. One year
later, I leave this position enriched and enlight-
ened. The opportunities afforded me as your
President were substantial. On a professional
level, I developed as a leader. On a personal
level, I’ve made connections and strengthened
friendships.
I am so gratified by the Atlanta Bar Association’s
accomplishments this year. In addition to serving
as your President, I was proud to serve on the
Board of Directors of the Atlanta Bar Founda-
tion, the CLE Board, and the LRIS Board. I saw
first-hand the inner workings of our marvel-
ous association and was awed by the amount of
labor and love that goes into each facet of the
Atlanta Bar.
6
May 2018
This year, to name only a smattering of the At-
lanta Bar’s successes: we honored law enforce-
ment officers at the Legal Run Around and the
InterAgency Law Enforcement Appreciation and
Memorial Service Program. We danced along to
Yacht Rock at the End of Summer Band Party.
And we ate peach-flavored everything at the
Multi-Bar Leadership Council Cook-off. We had
the first ever Membership Appreciation Month
where every day in April was filled with some-
thing new: free headshots, social media training,
a wellness session, and trivia giveaways—includ-
ing tickets to the Braves and Atlanta United. The
month culminated with the Reception about
Nothing. “No speeches, no program, just friends
and fun.”
On behalf of the Bar, I made great progress in
my quest to reach out and connect the talents
of our Atlanta legal communities by fortify-
ing the relationships with our sister bars. I was
honored to serve on the Atlanta Volunteer Law-
yers Foundation board; to witness the swearing
in of the talented, powerful African American
women presidents of the Georgia Association of
Black Women Attorneys, Georgia Association for