Cheers to Our Administrative Professionals!

When I was a teenager, I got my Ski-Doo stuck in a deep snowdrift. Being a young, strong farm boy, I figured I could save a few minutes by essentially lifting and pulling it out as opposed to the smarter—but longer—approach of digging it out.

On the third aggressive pull on the machine, I felt something in my back kind of tear apart, and in an instant I was on the ground, barely able to move.

I somehow made my way home and spent the next couple weeks laid up with agonizing and debilitating back pain. The doctor said I had torn a muscle in my lower back. My back has never been the same since. Sometimes it’s okay for months at a time, and then something will happen and I hobble around for the next couple weeks before a mix of Advil and time help sort it out.

Those who have never had trouble with their back are unable to appreciate how essential the back is for a good life. And those who do have trouble with their back are likely nodding in agreement as they read—don’t nod too vigorously, you might trigger a spasm!

By now you’re wondering where I’m going with this. Well, Wednesday is Administrative Professionals Day.

As I was reflecting on the role of administrative staff, I was reminded of things that serve an essential purpose in achieving something great, but are either hidden from view or quietly go about the work away from the spotlight.

The metaphor of a back seems a fitting image. Administrative staff members in many ways hold up an organization and allow it to move with agility.

My purpose in sharing this reflection is to honour the unbelievable contribution that all support staff and administrators make, day in and day out.

So to the administrative staff at CLAC and to support staff everywhere, THANK YOU for the work you do. Your organizations simply couldn’t function without you.