A Truly Special “Whole Person”
On Friday I had an opportunity to attend an event that was poignant, funny, somber, and compelling in different stages.
It was a tribute to a friend and colleague, Dave Hauser, who guided our local Chamber of Commerce for a quarter century.
I had the chance to know Dave both professionally and personally. We collaborated on a number of projects including the WorkTrends Conference, the ACE Awards, and others.
I had the chance to serve on the Economic Development Committee, Business Assistance, as a charter member of the Local Government Affairs Council, and finally as a member of his Board of Directors
He was a great foil for me. I like big ideas and I can be impatient and impetuous. Dave was thoughtful and deliberate. I don’t think in the almost 25 years I knew him I ever saw him get angry or respond with anger no matter the provocation.
My favorite times with Dave were typically one on one, discussing one of my “big” ideas over coffee or a beer or his patience with my horrible golf game, which he suffered on more than one occasion.
I titled this a “whole person” both because of the correlation to my first book, Managing Whole People, and because of the glimpse into the wholeness of Dave that his family graciously shared with us.
We got to see Dave as a father and a friend beyond the leader and colleague that most knew him as.
The relationship he maintained with his children and his wife was one that I think would make many wistful if not downright envious.
Dave led in a way that was consistent with the Bible verse, “to whom much is given, much is required”.
He never shirked and he never gave up.
Leading a business association in Eugene is not a role for the faint hearted. On more than one occasion the relationship between business and our elected officials was tense not if actually acrimonious, but Dave never angered or disparaged anyone.
His legacy was illuminated in the many people who passed through employment at the Chamber, developing skills there that they would take on to bigger and more significant roles and the programs that will continue to move forward in his absence and that I for one believe would have been stillborn without his leadership and support.
I think that one of his colleagues described the essence of Dave best when she called out his most significant attribute; not his patience, sense of humor, Midwestern values or even niceness.
Dave was kind in a time and place that we could use more kindness from our leaders.
Those who spoke gently prompted us that remain to remember Dave’s legacy in the most proactive way, keep on and be kind…
I will miss you my friend. You were truly the epitome of a whole person and my life is better for having known you…