Vermont Bar Journal, Vol. 40, No. 2 Vermont Bar Journal, Spring 2017, Volume 43, No. 1 | Page 5

by Michael E. Kennedy, Esq.
PRESIDENT’S COLUMN
Spring.
Renewal. Light. Hope.
Trite? Yes. But perhaps for a reason.
And maybe that reason is because Spring
brings these feelings.
Spring reinvigorates. For some of us,
the rejuvenation manifests in visions of gar-
dens blooming lush and bright. For oth-
ers, it’s the sensory overload of that first im-
possibly bright day and a walk past the re-
vived bustle of the outdoor cafes & restau-
rants. For still others, it’s the feeling best
captured by John Fogerty when he wrote
“beat the drum, hold the phone, the sun
came out today. We’re born again, there’s
new grass on the field.” 1 And that feeling
that, at long last, this might be the year in
which the Cubs win it all. Oh, wait.
I hope that each of you embraces the
season and its clichés.
The profession is hard. As I mentioned
in my last column, issues related to addic-
tion and mental health infect our profes-
sion. Then there’s the grind of finding cli-
ents, retaining clients, and getting clients
to pay. As the folks at Above The Law have
written, the profession is not good for your
health. 2 Some of you might be at a point in
your career where you are asking yourself:
“Self, how did it get to this?” Others of
you have stopped asking; acceptance hav-
ing set in.
It need not set in. And that’s whe re
Spring is instructive.
I’m no scholar and I cringe when “Shake-
speare” appears as a category on Jeopar-
dy. But, to paraphrase the Bard, “spring . .
. hath put a spirit of youth in every thing.” 3
That’s my challenge to you: inject a spir-
it of youth into your life. In less lawyerly
terms, be a kid again.
Let’s be clear: I don’t expect to look out
my window and see a bunch of middle-
aged attorneys skateboarding on the con-
crete and railings that surround the Costel-
lo Courthouse. The key word was spirit . . .
“inject a spirit of youth into your life, both
professional and personal.”
Why did you go to law school? What
made you want to become a lawyer?
As an aside, my honest answer is “I don’t
have any idea.” My first year out of UVM I
was working at a gas station on Shelburne
Road. A high school buddy’s father owned
it and I loved working there. I pumped gas,
changed oil, and because everyone needs
to buy gas, generally enjoyed the oppor-
tunity to chat will people from all walks of
life. All the while working a schedule that
allowed me to coach the freshman basket-
ball team at South Burlington High School.
Life was good.
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Until someone (who may or may not
have been my father) asked if I was going
to change oil my whole life. I took the hint.
The poli-sci degree made law school seem
a better idea than business school and,
next thing I knew, a decent LSAT score and
a recommendation from a lawyer-friend of
my mom’s, resulted in GW Law extending
me an invitation to join the Class of 1993. I
accepted, and here we are.
Now, back to my regularly scheduled col-
umn.
Most of you probably chose the law “to
help people.” You know what the desire to
help people is? It’s part of a youthful spirit.
Isn’t that how we felt when we graduated
from law school and started our careers?
We were going to do good. We were go-
ing to help.
This Spring, let’s renew that spirit. Let’s
reinvigorate our professional lives. This
Spring, let’s get back to that youthful spirit
that drove us to this profession in the first
place. The VBA offers many opportunities
to do so.
In partnership with Vermont Legal Aid,
the VBA’s Modest Means Program provides
lawyers and legal services to people whose
income is at or below 250% of the federal
poverty level. An attractive aspect of the
program is that it can be “win-win.” You
can get paid! � That’s right – help yourself
by helping others.
In addition, pro bono opportunities exist
in every county in the State. Mary Ashcroft
serves as the VBA’s Legal Access Coordina-
tor. Through the tireless efforts of Mary and
many others, there are programs through-
out Vermont in which volunteer lawyers are
matched with Vermonters in critical need of
legal services. Again, the various low and
pro bono opportunities are win-win: not
only will your participation help others, it
counts towards the aspirational goal of 50
hours of pro bono services per year.
No time to participate in the Modest
Means or Pro Bono programs? Fear not!
Thanks to technology you can help oth-
ers without ever leaving your desk. That’s
right, within the past few months, the VBA
partnered with Vermont Law Line to join
over 40 other states in offering a forum to
provide online pro bono services. The pro-
gram is Vermont Free Legal Answers and
it’s yet another way for lawyers to help oth-
ers. �
Or, to really get into the spirit of being
back in school, join a growing list of VBA
members who are visiting local schools to
talk about civics. There is no better way
to foster respect for the rule of law, the le-
gal process, and the legal profession than
THE VERMONT BAR JOURNAL • SPRING 2017
to educate young people. The VBA has
teaching templates and boxes full of pock-
et Constitutions for you to hand out at
school.
I’d be remiss if I limited this column
to urging you to return a spirit of youth
only to your professional life. Fortunately,
there’s a growing realization within the pro-
fession that attorney wellness matters. For
example, the State Bar of Georgia urges
its members to tend to their physical well-
being and social well-being. 6 The Ohio
State Bar recommends a work-life balance
that includes, among other things, fitness,
yoga, and humor. 7 The State Bar of Mich-
igan has a resource page on wellness for
lawyers and judges. 8 Wellness has even
made its way into the curriculum at both
Northwestern’s Pritzker School of Law and
Harvard Law School. 9 The Vermont Bar
Journal column entitled “Pursuits of Hap-
piness” brings focus to the outside talents
and interests of lawyers that help those
lawyers maintain a work-life balance.
Like I said, be a kid again. What captivat-
ed your youthful spirit? Music? Take up les-
sons. Sports? Sign-up for a 5K. Languag-
es? Learn one. Whatever it takes to refresh
and renew your energy, do it. We are not
robots and it’s no longer “cool” to pretend
that the all-work, no-play life is a badge of
honor. You cannot help others if you, your-
self, need of help.
Finally, as I contemplate Spring, help-
ing others, and returning to where (and
why) each of us started down this road, I
find myself thinking of ABA President Linda
Klein’s President’s Message in the February
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