President's Message

All,

The end of biennium is just a few days away, hopefully all of you have gotten your necessary credits and have renewed your licenses and not procrastinating to the last day.

I went to the Broward Chapter Meeting last night for the viewing of the Legacy Lecture of Doctor Dave Gibson on “Professional Concepts”. Even though they had a little technical issue to start with, it all worked out and was well attended, not only in the room with a standing room only crowd, but also a packed group on Zoom from around the world. A big thanks goes out to Todd Bates, PSM for starting the process to bring this particular lecture out to the FSMS membership. But we can’t forget it takes a lot of effort, and he had lots of help and assistance from UF’s Katie Britt, Dr. Youssef Kaddoura, Dr. Amr, and others. So many thanks to the Geomatics program at UF.

It’s truly amazing the effects this man, this Professor, had on the Surveying Profession in Florida and still has. We were honored that his wife and son also attended by zoom last night, as well as FSMS members and students from across our state. Dr. Gibson’s legacy holds the test of time, and we’re proud to celebrate his life and dedication to our profession. He gave us something special, his heart and soul, which to this day, his name makes people stand up and listen.

“Profession”, that was the main subject of this lecture and his words to his students then, still holds true now for all of us as Surveyors. I hope everyone that attended last night got something important out of that lecture and carry it forward with you. We call ourselves professionals, so we as a Society should always promote, celebrate, and encourage all Surveyors to act and present themselves as true professionals in everything they do. The term “professional” doesn’t just stop at the doorstep of your place of work, it extends into your whole life. How you present yourself to others, how you treat others, and how you listen to clients, friends and family. Your commitment to doing your job to the absolute best of your abilities, and your ability to admit to and learn from your mistakes. As a professional, your life experiences, not just your education, come into play every day. How you handle yourself under stress with staff, clients, family, and th e general public can make you or break you.

Being a professional is a big commitment and not everyone is cut out for it. Once you go down this path to being one, there’s no short cuts, only a life of commitment and dedication to continue to learn as you go. You should seek out other professionals to meet with, collaborate with, hold open discussions with and even respectfully argue with if needed. True professionals give back to their profession, and are always looking to assist those coming up behind or next to them. And true professionals are not afraid to share their work with their peers, because there’s no better way to justify your professional work than to have other professionals’ critique and hopefully agree with you, and if not provide suggestions or possibilities to make your work better in the future.

Respectfully submitted,

Richard D. Pryce, RLS/PSM