Neil Holdway Assistant managing editor/copy desk, Daily Herald Number of years in editing: 28 years
Why do you choose to serve on the ACES Board of Directors?
I have chosen to serve essentially because I could help, even in a small way, create this incredible community of like-minded people. In the beginning as treasurer in 2005, I had particular skills that were helpful to the organization. Now, in a different role, I'm enjoying what ACES has become and simply putting my background in ACES to good use while I keep learning from other board members and all ACES members.
What is your favorite ACES memory?
Well, there are many, but I was thinking about this recently: The what have become lifelong friends I made when I first got involved in ACES starting in 1999. We've had some great times while we also learned from each other and supported each other. Even if I don't see them as often now, occasionally we reach out to each other, with the bond still strong.
How do you balance your time as an editor with your time serving on the ACES Board of Directors?
I'm happy to say it's much easier to do this now that ACES has a good staff. In the mid-2000s before the Great Recession, I was granted a lot of time at my paid job to work on ACES -- the two do complement each other, after all. Then with work tightening up I had to spend a lot of my weekend time on ACES -- a labor of love but still tiring particularly in the first quarter of each year before the conference. Now I can more rightly spend just a few hours each week on ACES, with a lot of the labor-intensive work handed off. One still needs a weekend day to be totally a weekend day.
What advice do you have for others who are looking to serve in a leadership role?
Pay attention and listen a lot. Challenge your preconceived notions. Accept help. Use what you know to guide others (or guide others to use what they know). Sometimes you have to be tough; more often you have to be kind.
What city/state do you live in? If someone was visiting your city/town what is one place you would recommend they visit?
Schaumburg, Illinois, 25 miles northwest of Chicago. You should really visit, let's face it, Chicago, and just walk around downtown -- along the lake, Michigan Avenue, State Street, the Chicago Riverwalk.
Are you interested in serving on the Board of Directors?
ACES conducts elections each February for its Board of Directors. The number of positions varies by year, as the officer and board positions are staggered.
Nominations are accepted Dec. 15 to Jan. 15 each year. Voting takes place Feb. 15 through March 1 each year, by members in good standing as of the previous Feb. 1. Information on the candidates is posted online before voting begins.