PLAYED LIKE A STRADIVARIUS – ISSUE NO. 104

This week's article is a little different. We are writing it jointly because we were fooled together. Our friends and colleagues at the Michigan Society of Healthcare Central Service Personnel (MSHCSP) paid us a great honor - well actually two honors - and managed to keep it a secret by having us hide key facts from each other! At last week's annual meeting, Stephen was presented with the Lifetime Honorary Achievement Award for his service to the MSHCSP and the sterilization profession in general. At the same banquet dinner, the MSHCSP awarded posthumously the "Robert Hilboldt Award", the MHSCSP's highest honor, to Ralph A. Basile, founder of Healthmark. To say we were overwhelmed by the honors would be an understatement. Many of the members of MSHCSP are long time friends, but they are also our customers. We could not be more appreciative of their patronage of our business. And yet, these awards do leave us more deeply appreciative for these great people, and this great association which is comprised of our neighbors in Michigan. So, how were we played? We must mention the names of board members Wilma and Stacey, as they are the ones who did the clever bidding of the MSHCSP. In short, they told Stephen that they wanted to present an award to Healthmark and the Basile family in honor Ralph's father, Ralph A. Basile. The banquet dinner is meant for members, so vendors typically do not attend. So, to get the Basile family to the dinner, Stacey and Wilma told Ralph that the MSHCSP would present a lifetime achievement award to Stephen - and it was to be a surprise. The trick for Ralph was to get Stephen to the dinner, without revealing the award! The catch - they actually did plan to give the award to Stephen - while he thought it just a ruse. From there, the fun began, as Ralph and Stephen each maneuvered to get the other to the dinner, to invite family members, etc., all without revealing the reason to the other. In short, we got played! And we loved it! With the most heartfelt expression of deep appreciation: Thank you MSHCSP!