Of Unsung Heroes

I have long heard the phrase "unsung hero", but until now, I was not really sure what it meant. My profession is marketing, concentrating on health care, and though I have worked for some great causes and good people, my job was to sing their praises. So they were sung about plenty.

In other arenas---- politics, business, academia---- the heroes were always outed, often by some one like me. Though I have certainly encountered many heroes who were equally effective at singing their own praises.

I had come to believe that the unsung hero was a little like Santa Claus, a nice concept with no true life application.

We Care, an advocacy group from the West Essex Highlands, has been dedicated to halting the development of woods and wet lands behind the complex. Now, I talk about the group as if it had a life of its own. And certainly like any organization, there is a body of membership that helps to move things along.

But the President of We Care, the attorney, environmentalist and truly unsung hero for the woods---- as well as the organization----has been serving in a multiplicity of complex roles for these past nine years. And serving is the appropriate word here. Paul Tractenberg has been the all encompassing resource center for We Care, all members depending on him to research, write and speak on our behalf on all the important issues. He has done so consistently, tirelessly and brilliantly. Paul has had no songs written for him, nor has he had time or interest to use his own voice to sing self-praises.

So this blog is for you, Paul, and like another Paul who was also once affiliated with Rutgers you have created a legacy with your commitment, vision and voice. "We are each other's harvest. We are each other's business. We are each other's magnitude and bond."