"Compassion and welcoming are the foundation of our organization. I encourage you to be compassionate in all you do. We need each other. We are here for one another."
Recently, Karen was kind enough to send an amazing letter to the Global Board, so here are some extracts:-
"I feel compelled to ask you for an enormous favor as members of this dynamic association. Please continue to encourage members to welcome spouses not by only having a coffee morning or a lunch. I feel it is important to visit the new spouses/partners, to identify an unhappy spouse/partner and not to give up on a spouse/partner even when they appear to be uninterested. We need not be best friends but we can show compassion and to simply give a hug. We must remember that not all of us have the ability to make friends easily. Some of us are shy; sometimes we are embarrassed by our accents or not being able to speak the same language
Spouses/partners must continue to take ownership of their Health Safety and Environment for themselves and families. It is imperative that we take responsibility for our safety and our children’s safety. Please continue to use your SSA passports. Imagine having your health record, your children’s health record and your pet’s health record in one place. This HSE Passport was created by many compassionate people who spent many hours, all for the benefit of the Schlumberger Spouses/Partners.
Lastly I beg you to encourage local spouses/partners to join the SSA. We have so much to learn from them for those of us who are not in our Home Country. Please also remember if we are not living in our home country we must continue to respect the people, the culture and laws of the country.
I would like to thank Andrew Gould for his support and encouragement. To the Schlumberger Management teams who worked tirelessly to assist us in creating the SSA/SLB Guidelines and the SSA HSE Passport. Thanks also to all the SLB Managers and staff who have supported us and continue to do so.
A special thank you to Tracey Mc Tague (the SSA Program Manager) and Marie Brice.(the ex-Global Communications Coordinator). Great big hugs for your patience, compassion and friendship. Thanks also to Liz Fenwick (the ex-SSA Global Coordinator between 2003- 2005) my SSA ‘history’ advisor who always made the time for me.
A big hug to all of you
Take care and God Bless
Karen"