Mar 4, 2020
On this episode of the Life in the Carolinas podcast, Carl sits down with Bill Shilitto, executive director of the CART (Coins for Alzheimer's Research Trust) Fund, Inc.
The 22-year Army veteran carries on a work habit characterized by
precision, long after Bill retired from the military. Having served
in Vietnam in the midst of its highly-controversial war with the
U.S., Bill is thankful that he never personally experienced the
negative treatment that many of his fellow servicemen received
during that time. This resulted in a relatively smooth transition
back to civilian life when he retired, but at the same his
experiences during that rough time in American history kept him
humble and compassionate towards those he would work with in the
future.
When asked about his perspective on leadership after his 22-year
career in the military, Bill begins his reply by saying that “life
can be stressful.” He explains that stress occurs when people are
brought out of their usual environment; therefore, a good leader
should have systems in place to support those who they are
potentially bringing into unfamiliar territory. In short, it pays
to be cognizant and empathetic with other people.
As a Rotarian, Bill was invited to the annual CART board meeting in
2005. CART, being the brainchild of Rotarian Roger Ackerman, had
its first seed planted when Roger’s mother-in-law succumbed to
Alzheimer’s Disease. He looked into the state of the research
currently being done to combat this brain disorder and discovered
that it was severely lacking in progress. One day, Roger realized
that he could simply collect “loose change” at every weekly Rotary
meeting, and the rest was history. This year, CART will be
collecting $9.4 million in loose change.
Bill hopes that diseases such as Alzheimer’s will lose the stigma
it currently has. He pines for greater openness with regards to
relatives of affected individuals speaking on how this disorder has
affected their families’ lives. After all, increased awareness will
lead to further developments in research and, by extension,
possible solutions.
Connect:
www.lifeinthecarolinaspodcast.com
carl@lifeinthecarolinas.com