| Chiefnj |
05-08-2007 11:15 AM |
Weir weighs in on Trent Green
WEIR: The Importance of Community
May 08, 2007, 8:59:54 AM by Eileen Weir - FAQ
The Chiefs mourn the loss of Burt Lisman
Jordan Ballor, Associate Editor of Acton Institute for the Study of Religion and Liberty, offers that the associations which once formed a critical piece of American social life are on the verge of extinction. Robert Putnam’s groundbreaking book, Bowling Alone: The Collapse and Revival of American Community traces the decline of social interaction and networks as fewer people meet with friends, know their neighbors, and socialize with family.
As older members become less active or die off, the clubs they formed and sustained suffer. Seen as antiquated and obsolete, organizations like the Lions, Elks, Kiwanis, Rotary, Optimists, and Junior League are in the process of expiring and being replaced by more efficient and relevant Internet chat rooms and virtual communities. Those that are struggling for membership are those that have failed to reinvent themselves and, therefore, don’t deserve to thrive. Ironically even omnipresent social networking communities like Facebook and MySpace have experienced declining popularity as members are relocating to sites that more narrowly meet their evolving needs and interests.
Of greater concern, the decline in social interaction in organized groups has led to increased apathy for public participation.
This week, the Kansas City Chiefs mourn the loss of Burton Lisman, affectionately known as Burt, who unfalteringly embraced and enjoyed these very collaborations of life. An auxiliary member of the Chiefs organization from its first day in Kansas City, Burt claimed the team as his passion. A natural-born salesman, Burt freely donated his gregarious disposition for the benefit of the team for every one of the past thirty-four years. Personally recruited by the team’s founder, Lamar Hunt, Burt was on the front line of selling not only season tickets, but the notion of the Chiefs to the Kansas City community. As an original founder of the Red Coaters and Chiefs Club, the team’s volunteer ticket-selling crew and official booster club, Burt conformed to the belief that the success of the franchise could be achieved through the combined effort of a dedicated volunteer corps.
A frequent visitor to One Arrowhead Drive, often for official business but just as commonly because he liked dropping by to check up on the place, Burt was a welcomed guest. An ad man, Burt never arrived empty handed, his pockets concealing useful trinkets that he openhandedly distributed to the office staff. Diminutive in size if not in spirit, his presence was always announced with his trademark sweeping wave, arm wagging ebulliently over his head.
Emblematic of the enthusiasm felt by dozens of supporters who served alongside him in the Chiefs Club and Red Coaters, Burt and his colleagues continue to serve as icons for the importance of belonging. As a decorated veteran of the Second World War, Burt no doubt learned the importance of cooperative efforts and the consolation of camaraderie on the battlefields of Europe where he earned both the Purple Heart and the Bronze Star.
Man was created to be a social being. Isolation from other people, from causes in which you believe, and from entertainment you enjoy, is just not natural. The encouragement of free assembly is of such fundamental importance to our shared society that our founding fathers expressly included it in the First Amendment, taking implicit care to protect its liberty.
The proper view of civic groups, Ballor insists, is one that appreciates the comprehensive nature of man as a social creature, balanced between the extremes of radical egoism and excessive collectivism. Adopting this rich and complex view of the human society, Balllor contends, makes it impossible to continue regarding civic clubs and volunteer associations as irrelevant.
The image all Kansas Citians have come to expect of a sold-out Arrowhead Stadium is rooted in the efforts of these volunteer groups, and the leadership of individuals like Burt Lisman. With the consistent success of the team for the better part of twenty years, it is easy, if erroneous, to assume that the tickets just sell themselves. They don’t. It requires a concerted, collaborative effort of the team’s sales and marketing staff and the committed energy of loyal volunteers. Moreover, the unwavering devotion expressed by such unpaid workers has served as the bedrock of community and fan support throughout the team’s tenure in our town.
For this, the Chiefs organization and its fans are earnestly indebted.
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