It is fascinating to hear about an American family with three generations of Olympians. Jack Shea won two Olympic medals in speed skating in 1932. When the Olympic torch came through Lake Placid, N.Y. on December 29, 2001, he helped carry it at 91 years old. His son, Jim Shea, competed in Nordic combined and cross-country skiing in the 1964 Games. And his grandson, Jim Shea Jr. won a gold medal in skeleton in the 2002 Salt Lake Games. Three generations have been connected through the Winter Olympic Games. Jack Shea was able to pass the torch to his son, Jim and to his grandson, Jim Jr.

OBS is very fortunate to have great librarians as members of OBS-SIS who have connected in the past, in the present and will continue in the future through professional networking, leadership opportunities, research and publication. OBS's third strategic direction in the Strategic Plan is that "OBS Connects."

We can celebrate OBS's great history with those who connected in the past. These pioneers prepared the way for the Section to provide opportunities for professional networking. They did it by providing a forum to exchange ideas and information regarding trends, issues and challenges. Some have served as liaisons with OCLC and RLIN users and their parent organizations while others have been involved in educational program planning. I personally have developed and grown professionally through the networking at OBS.

OBS has provided great opportunities for leadership in the past and the present. Some members have served as officers of the Section while others have served as chairs of Standing Committees. These positions have provided the nurturing atmosphere to gain expertise and to function in a more demanding and challenging role in the AALL organization. During my membership at OBS, two of our members have been elected President of AALL. Even those who have retired and others sitting on the sidelines are cheering the present members and hoping that new leaders will carry the torch in the future.

OBS has provided a fertile ground for research and publications. We are committed to supporting research; therefore, we co-sponsored the Joint Research Grant and Research Roundtable with TS-SIS. Several of our members have published great articles in the Spectrum, and the Law Library Journal. Our lives have been enriched by their published research.

The phrase "OBS connects" is a reality that has been woven in the fabric of its membership.

OBS Elections results:

I am pleased to announce the results of the 2002 OBS Election. Our new Vice-Chair/Chair Elect will be Kevin Butterfield and our Member-at-Large will be Ruth Patterson Funabiki. Congratulations to these new OBS officers!  Thanks to Eloise Vondruska and Arturo Torres for their willingness to serve as candidates.

News:

Brian Quigley, RLIN Chair, has informed me that there will not be an RLIN Committee meeting this year in Orlando due to lack of issues. Please see below for a schedule of OBS Activities in Orlando.

My two objectives as OBS Chair this year were: implementation of the Strategic Plan and enhancing our website. Some aspects of the strategic plan are being fulfilled in a continuous way. We established a new web policy that outlines the duties and role of the webmaster and the Web Advisory Committee. The OCLC Committee has launched its webpage. Thanks to Michael Maben and his committee! We have a new redesign of the OBS website that will be unveiled on July 1, 2002. Thanks to Anne Myers and Anna Belle Leiserson for their outstanding work. I really appreciate the input of the Web Advisory Committee.

This is my final column as OBS Chair. I am definitely indebted to those who have helped me with the operations of OBS. They are: OBS Executive Board: Mary Jane Kelsey, Ellen McGrath, Richard Jost, Susan Chinoransky, Judith A. Vaughan-Sterling. OBS Standing Committee Chairs: Michael Maben, George Prager, Brian Quigley, Brian Striman, Maria Okonska, and Anne Myers. I really appreciate their support and the fond memories. I would like to extend my sincere thanks to Joe Thomas and Linda Tesar for continuing to produce an outstanding newsletter, Technical Services Law Librarian. It has been great to work with JoAnn Hounshell, TS-SIS Chair

And to Anne Myers, my mentor, who has always been there to encourage, provide insight and guidance. I am grateful to my former library Director, Patricia A. Cervenka for her initial support, and allowing me to be actively involved in OBS, and to Suzanne Cassidy, my current Director, for her understanding and support.

Here are the OBS meetings scheduled for the upcoming meeting in Orlando:

Saturday, July 20
4:00-6:00 pm
» OBS 2001/2002 Executive Board Meeting

6:00-7:30 pm
» TS/OBS/RIPS/CS Joint Reception

Sunday, July 21
11:45-1:00 pm
» OBS/TS Research Roundtable

1:15-2:30 pm
» B-3: Rule Maker or Rule Breaker?

Monday, July 22
7:00-8:00 am
» OBS OCLC/WLN Committee Open Discussion

2:45-4:00 pm
» C2: Publications Patterns: Creating Connections in the Serials World

6:15-7:15 pm
» OBS Business Meeting

Tuesday, July 23
12:00-1:30 pm
» OBS Education Committee

4:15-5:15 pm
» I-1: The Catalog vs. the Home Page? Best Practices in Connecting to Online Resources

5:30-6:30 pm
» OBS Local Systems Committee Open Discussion

Wednesday, July 24
7:00-8:30 am
» OBS 2002/2003 Executive Board

8:45-10:15 am
» J-3: How to Avoid "Search Reopened": Hire the Right Technical Services Candidate the First Time Around

And remember, OBS Connects!