Autobiography - The Galindo Group

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Ram Galindo THE MAKING OF AN AMERICAN Page 236 This broad enumeration of the role of the association engenders within itself a mandate to its future interpreters to apply the principles agreed to herein to changing circumstances in the industry. The founders, hereby acting as the first Ad-hoc Board of the Association, pledge the funds and efforts needed to carry the association through its initial stage and elect the following officers to infuse the association with legal and business life: Ramiro A. Galindo Ad-hoc President Joe W. Holt Ad-hoc Vice President/Secretary Fred O. Brownson Ad-hoc Vice President/Treasurer Given in Corpus Christi, Texas, this 2 nd day of May 1996 After we completed all the legal formalities, I became the first chairman of the board, followed in later years by Joe Holt and then by David Cardone. Every one of my colleagues demonstrated not only the strength of their word, but also the excellence of their capacity. Without their unreserved and total support, THRSA would never have passed the concept stage. But an almost unsurmountable early problem developed in finding an executive capable of running the organization. THRSA had no income and we could not afford to pay market salaries. Just as we were about to stumble, my son Cid came up with the ideal offer. He would run THRSA as a contractor and would supplement the meager salary we offered with income he would create himself by staging training seminars, industry conventions and equipment shows, and of course, by growing the membership base. Again, the algorithm of our past father-son cooperation worked successfully - I create the beast and he tames and manages it. I think it is a most useful arrangement. THRSA still exists today thanks to him and he supplements his company’s income with THRSA’s programs. We used the years from 1996 through 1998 to strengthen our fledging association. The unsavory experience Aerofit suffered with unfair competition from Texas A&M had left me motivated to seek new legislation to avoid future similar abuses. The Texas Legislature met from January through May 1999. I decided to spend some time spreading my message among its members. With the help of THRSA’s directors, we wrote a draft of the “Fair Competition” bill to present to the legislature. To ensure my access to key representatives and senators, we hired as lobbyist a former state representative from Brazos County, Bill Presnal, who in the mid 1980s had held a powerful post in the legislature. John McCarthy helped Herb Lipsman, who at the time was an IHRSA director, to obtain an $11,000 grant from IHRSA to supplement our lobbying expenses. Autobiography.doc 236 of 239
Ram Galindo THE MAKING OF AN AMERICAN Page 237 From January to the end of April 1999 Bill Presnal and I trampled the corridors of the Texas Capitol one or two days a week. The demand for the legislators’ time and attention is simply hard to believe. Close to 4,000 bills were filed that year, less than one-third passed and even fewer became law. It is simply impossible to be properly heard unless heavy-lifter lobbyists get fully involved. Representative Henry Cuellar (D. Laredo) agreed to introduce THRSA’s bill in the House. Sen. Troy Frazer (R. Flower Mound) did likewise in the Senate. Henry fulfilled his promise and had the best intention to see it through, but was limited by too many other demands on his time. Sen. Frazier did not show the same respect for a promise made. Under the influence of some unknown pressure he suddenly buckled and announced that he would not carry the bill in the Senate after all. Undeterred, we continued trying by following labyrinthine artifices known only to the savvy Bill Presnal. But ultimately Mr. Frazer’s fumble spelled the death knell for the “Fair Competition” bill. To my unverified knowledge, lobbyists from some of Texas’ largest law firms representing tax-exempt organizations and lobbyists from TAMU were at the source of the opposition. Needless to say, I learned a whole lot not only about the minefields any proposal for new laws must clear, which I really think is good, but also about the character of some of Texas’ elected officials. My beliefs expressed throughout this book regarding the genesis of new laws were confirmed. The lobby decides what bills get the attention of lawmakers. If one wishes to effect change in the halls of lawmaking, one must be very well funded. Defeat was not all that we experienced during the 1999 legislative session. Very importantly, we brought an educational message to many lawmakers who confessed they were not even aware of the problem until we presented it to them. We also endeavored to curb unfair competition to health fitness clubs from junior colleges by attaching a rider to their appropriations bill. Fred Brown, the newly elected State Representative from my own district, introduced it. It was his first intervention as an elected official and it was successful. As I described, my term as chairman of THRSA ended in July 1999. Per the by-laws, I served another year on the board and then retired from the association. Under the leadership of the new blood that took over after all the founders retired, THRSA continues to become even more the self-evident representative of the health fitness industry in Texas. I will always see with pride the work that the Cid A. Galindo, Inc. Company does helping to grow and manage the organization. In the eyes of informed observers, the realization of my strategic vision for the unification of the health fitness industry in Texas has been a glaring success. In May 1998, I was honored by an invitation to serve as a director of the Texas Public Policy Foundation (TPPF). My friend Phil Adams, who was already a member, was no doubt instrumental in this nomination. As I outlined in Untethered Dreams (Chapter 1) and other parts of this book, I accepted the invitation because of the organization’s Autobiography.doc 237 of 239
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Autobiography - The Galindo Group

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