Bulletin Editor Mentor Committee formed and going strong!

An initiative of then-new PROBE President Grady Kerr was to form a Bulletin Editor Mentor Committee. The idea was to have well qualified, certified PROBE bulletin judges available to give encouragement and advice to editors, not just on a one time basis, as in bulletin contests, but one-on-one, for as long as the advice would be helpful to a requesting editor.

Grant Carson, past VP-BE, volunteered to chair the committee, and a call went out to judges to volunteer to be mentors. Would judges, already volunteers for BETY and IBC contests, agree to take on new responsibilities? Not only did judges volunteer, but some of the best judges on the rolls. Here is the current roster of volunteer mentors: Milt Weisman, Don Heist, Bruce Anderson, John Petterson, Jade Walker, Dick Teeters, Harry Squires, Don Goss, Grant Carson. Recognize a few of those names? As just a sample, Don Heist is a former category specialist for L&R, John Petterson is editor of PROBEmoter, Bruce Anderson is VP-BE, and Dick Teeters is in the PROBE Hall of Honor.

Now, the committee having been formed, would there be sufficient clientele, editors requesting help, to be worth the effort? With advertisement in PROBEmoter and Harmonet, the answer is yes.

The requests for help have been varied. Expectations were requests from start up editors. There were those. For example, through correspondence lasting months, Don Heist advised and encouraged Bob Brown, editor of Woodshed Echoes, Beaver Valley, Pa., Chapter. Bob advanced from novice to contender in the BETY. But there were unexpected requests as well. Dick Teeters was called upon to give advice about how to deal with the board of directors concerning publication expenses. The wide range of expertise of the volunteer mem-bers has enabled every contingency to be met.

The services of the committee aren't limited to the BHS. There being no equivalent for SAI and HI, any editor is welcome to receive advice and encouragement. There was one SAI start-up editor who requested assistance, but unfortunately her chapter folded before advice could be given.

The Bulletin Editor Mentor Committee is alive and well, providing advice and encouragement to bulletin editors, a credit to PROBE, thanks to volunteer committee members.