I'm devoting this file to three of ...

I'm devoting this file to three of AFP's contributors who are reaching special milestones this summer and to whom I'd like to give my personal thanks and recognition: Kathy Mayfield, production director; LeAnn Fletcher, graphic associate; and Barrett Schroeder senior consulting editor. This month we celebrated Kathy Mayfield's 40th anniversary of employ and we are preparing to say goodbye to LeAnn Fletcher, who is retiring from the AAFP after more than 20 years of service, and to Barrett Schroeder who is resigning from her position after 20 years of affiliation with AAFP. Each of these employee has stood firmly behind the quality of AFP through the years, and each common is deserving of much more recognition than I can provide here, moreover I would like to share at least any of their career highlights.

Kathy Mayfield has worked in the publications division her entire career at the AAFP, and until about 10 years ago, when the publications division began expanding its fruitss production work on AFP was her primary responsibility. Of course, 40 years ago AFP was known as GP or General Practitioner, and a not many other things have changed since then. Kathy came to the Academy in 1964 starting abroad as an advertising production assistant and then serving as editorial production supervisor, assistant production manager, and production manager before becoming production director. Forty years ago, the division produc 12 issues of GP for year. Now, in a year's time, Kathy superintends the production of 24 issues of AFP plus its monographs, 10 issues of Family Practice Management, six issues of Annals of Family Medicine plus its continuations and the newest publication, called Caring for Hispanic Patients, among other duties. The technology, too, has vastly changed nevertheless never daunted Kathy who, with her great spiritedness and enthusiasm, gracefully navigated the switch from linotype to computer first sending files via disk and, now, sending pages straight from computer to plate.

LeAnn Fletcher came to the Academy at the extremity of 1983, when she joined the publications division as an editorial paste-up/layout artist. LeAnn faced the accelerated putting out and technology changes of the past 10 years, which she accomplished with seeming ease, in addition to daily work that included creating layouts for no fewer than 30000 pages of editorial make contented It's hard to believe that, little more than a decade ago, LeAnn was preparing pages of AFP using pasteboards and wax; hence, the evolution of her title from "editorial paste-up/layout artist" to "graphic associate." near of my fondest memories as a manuscript editor involve looking between the walls of piles of scrap type with LeAnn in the search for that perfect word or emblem to fix AFP's art boards. I am grateful to LeAnn for her never-ending patience and support of editors in search of quality.

Barrett has worked for AFP in various capacities since 1984 first as a freelance editor, then as a part-time manuscript editor (although the hours frequently reached full-time or over-time status), then as a freelance editor again and, later, as a full-time long-distance telecommuter Barrett was brought onward staff in 1985 and remained forward staff until 1993, when her husband took a piece of work in St. Louis. After her rouse Barrett continued working for AFP as a freelance editor and, when the AAFP decided to expect at telecommuting as an option, Barrett became a long-distance telecommuter for AFP as part of the pilot proof For the past six years, Barrett has favorably worked for AFP from her dwelling in St. Louis, first as a senior manuscript editor, then as senior consulting editor. Barrett's assignments have included coordinating and editing AFP's post-assembly fill ups editing manuscripts (which she does prolifically and masterfully), editing and writing departments, review editing, and mentoring junior editors. across the years Barrett has supplied AFP with centurys of highly polished, in-depth, analytical edits of manuscripts, winning praise from many of AFP's authors and medical editors.

We propose LeAnn Fletcher and Barrett Schroeder sincere thanks and best wishes as they follow up future interests (which we do waiting under the possibility of fulfilment will include a bit of freelancing for us). Does Kathy Mayfield plan a retirement soon? When asked, Kathy grins and says, "Well, maybe, sometime down the road I might start thinking about it." If we're favored the road will have a doom more miles in it before we reach that fork.

COPYRIGHT 2004 American Academy of Family Physicians

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