A year of accomplishment and gratitude.

• Author: Ashby, Robert L.
• Position: President's Corner

It has become customary for TEI's President to use the May-June President's Corner to review the accomplishments of the year. It's hard to believe that this is my sixth column and that 12 months have passed since incoming Officers and Chapter Presidents met in Tucson to work on the Institute's 2001 Goals and Objectives. As I reflect on the past year, I am filled with pride for what TEI has accomplished; admiration for the dedication and hard work of the Institute's volunteer leaders and staff; gratitude for the courtesies extended to my family and me during my term of office; and, certainly not least, confidence in TEI's future. A year ago I said that as TEI President, I wanted to contribute to the Institute's "moving the yardsticks forward." Although we did not accomplish all we set out to do (isn't that what "stretch objectives" are all about?), I think we have made significant progress.

Rising to the Occasion

A year ago, it would have been hard to imagine the set of challenges that would confront us. From September 11th to Enron and Andersen to an economy that stubbornly declines to bounce back, we have all had to cope with events and consequences that would have been deemed fanciful a year ago. But in these unanticipated challenges--and in the anticipated ones, too--the Institute has found and harvested countless opportunities to advance our mission of serving TEI members and their employers through education, networking, and advocacy.

Nine months after the fact, the terrorist attacks on September 11 still seem unreal. The attacks forever changed how Americans and others view travel, issues of liberty and personal security, and our place in the world. No one, no organization was unaffected by the attacks, and in my view TEI responded with sensitivity, maturity, grace, and speed. We worried about our members and colleagues who were lost or personally affected by the attacks. We immediately lent assistance to the IRS and other tax agencies in addressing how tax obligations were affected by the horrific events and communicating the guidance to the tax community. We sought and received authorization from TEI's Board of Directors to make donations to September 11-related charities, and were gratified when several local TEI chapters also made substantial donations. Finally, we modified the tone of our Annual Conference, both out of respect and in recognition of the new reality, and in light of increased travel restrictions, undertook to offer...