LETTER FROM THE CHAIR

Written by Mary K. deLeo, Esq.^*

As I write this column, the temperature here in Sacramento is hovering at a balmy 103 degrees and it feels as if the summer heat will never end. It seems impossible that we will be reaching for sweaters in a mere two months. Equally impossible to believe is that in a little more than four weeks, my term as chair of TEXCOM will conclude. Has it really been only a year since our former chair, Matt McMurtrey, handed off the reins to me? It feels like mere seconds and a lifetime ago since that happened.

Being chair of TEXCOM has been one of the most rewarding experiences of my professional career. I have written about the amazing work that TEXCOM does in previous columns, but what may not be so apparent is the emotional reward that comes with working alongside some of the best legal minds in California to help chart the future course of trusts and estates law. Those who serve on TEXCOM form close bonds with each other, based upon years of shared TEXCOM experience. These bonds create a unique synergy that informs our TEXCOM work and pushes us to achieve the best results we can for our members. The downside to this fellowship is the difficulty in saying goodbye each year to those TEXCOM colleagues whose term of service is up.

But needs must, and it is that time of year when we must say goodbye to our outgoing class of TEXCOM members, a group of wonderful and talented individuals whom I am lucky to have served with and who I (and the rest of TEXCOM) will miss terribly in the future. Their hard work and wise guidance have contributed mightily to TEXCOM’s success.