The President’s Pen

Aloha everyone. 

As we continue to deal with the aftermath of hurricanes Katrina and Rita, we will need to embrace for other outcomes related to these natural disasters.

There has been talk about Federal cuts to fund the rebuilding of the devastated areas.  The rising costs of fuel and other items could mean less for the working poor.  It could mean less federal monies for some of our local programs, which rely on federal funding. 

As we go through these difficult times it is important to remember how an event thousands of miles away has an impact on our systems.

We need to be ready and advocate for what is in the best interest of the clients and communities we serve. Please join us for a forum on November 2nd, 3:30 pm—5:00 pm at the State Capitol to discuss these issues.

 After the forum, please stay and join in our celebration as we recognize the individuals who helped pass HB 1146 SD2 that established title protection for state social workers. Our celebration will be November 2nd, 5:30 pm—7:00 pm at the State Capitol (see enclosed flyers).

The Chapter Board held its quarterly meeting on Saturday, October 1^st.  We welcomed Kathy Piscusa our newly elected Vice President and approved a work plan for the coming program year.
(Click here for a copy ) This plan serves as a guideline for how our Chapter resources (staff time and your dues) will be spent. Please take some time to review it and feel free to contact me or Debbie, our Executive Director, with your comments.

In September, we were fortunate to have Evelyn Tomaszewski, National staff person for HIV/AIDS Spectrum Project,  present two workshops on 1) Hepatitis, and 2) Mental Health and Substance Abuse in HIV Care.It was her first trip to Hawaii but we hope it will not be her last.

Thank you to Alisa Au, social worker at Kaiser, for providing the location for these workshops.  A workshop on Sexual Exploitation and a licensing exam preparation class are being planned for the end of the year.

Also please save March 17, 2006 for our annual awards luncheon. We are planning a panel discussion with the media and a silent auction prior to the luncheon.

This month I have taken on a new role as interim director of the Kalihi Palama Health Center.

I realized as social workers, we seem to have certain labels placed upon us which may not bring administrative roles to our profession.  Since we are in the business of helping people, we sometimes believe that we are unable to manage business aspects of running a non-profit or for profit.  These misconceptions must stop if we are to have social workers become the next generation of Executive Directors or CEOs.

As social workers we need to become more business savvy.  We need to learn the idea of marketing and branding of our non-profits, how we can improve workflows to establish more revenues and productivity, and how we market ourselves to be competitive.   We need to be able to not brag but advertise the skills and outcomes our agencies and professions have. 

For social workers to be considered in leadership positions in agencies we have to demonstrate these skills and abilities.  It is extremely important that we strive to have social workers become leaders not only in their fields but the agencies we work for.

Also included in this newsletter is an opportunity for you to develop those leadership skills. We have a call for anyone who would like to serve on the Board of Directors.

My experience on the Board has been rewarding, challenging and fun! As NASW increases its presence in the community and gains political power, we are constantly faced with making tough decisions about the position and direction our Association should take.

It’s exciting to be a part of the discussion and decision making with other dedicated social workers.  I encourage you to join us and become a leader for the profession. 

Till next month,

Darrin Sato, LSW
President

October 2005