Before the MHC Historical Society, I worked 18 years for another newspaper. Part of my job was to receive, then format and publish, announcements and press releases from local churches and organizations.
The oasis in that never-ending line of work was always an email from Johnathan Phillips, the president of the MHC Historical Society. I did not know him back then, but I knew the quality of his work.
I knew that whenever I’d click on one of his emails, I’d be rewarded with a smooth, professional, useful announcement or press release about the Historical Society.
With most submissions, I’d have to spend a good amount of time tidying them up and getting them in format to be able to publish. Johnathan’s, on the other hand, were written as if he himself were on the newspaper staff—not a rookie fresh from college, but a seasoned professional who wrote the book on how to do it.
If my time was limited, and I wanted the most bang for my buck, I’d grab a Johnathan Phillips email out of the inbox because I knew it would be ready to go with no hassle on my end.
After I joined the Historical Society, I learned much more about the depth of his attention to detail.
All day long on my first day at work, I received text messages from board members welcoming me. That idea could have come from anyone, but it sure seems like a Johnathan Phillips special touch.
In today’s world, most people who want to make flyers use the prepackaged templates of Canva. Not Johnathan nor I; we each design from scratch on Publisher. Johnathan’s creations, however, always have that magic spark that draws you in and makes you want to pay attention to his message. He works from a true talent.
Our board president is creative on many levels. He coordinates very enjoyable programs and events. He leads a meeting with grand diplomacy, giving everyone a fair chance at input.
Johnathan Phillips, the Historical Society’s outgoing board president—the May 14 meeting was his last—is a man of many talents; but by profession, he is a nurse. In fact, he has so much nurse education that his name is followed officially by “M.S.N., M.S. Ed., R.N., N.P.D.B.C.”
I don’t know what all that means, but I take it that he’s a big deal of a nurse. That makes sense, because he’s high level at whatever he does.
The Historical Society was just one of a long line of organizations Johnathan has served throughout his life. Among several, I think I’ve heard his name mentioned most with the Jaycees.
Many people like Johnathan give of themselves to make this community a better place by bolstering up and running its charitable and civic organizations.
Thank you to all the Johnathans out there in Martinsville and Henry County who contribute so much. We do not take you for granted.
