J.R. EVANS: Paul Laing of Damascus, Md., writes: “J.R. Evans
& Co. will be missed in Bradford. I graduated from Bradford HS
in 1956 and get back to occasional high school class reunions. Our
50th reunion was in 2006 and as usual I stopped at Evans to shop
and to talk to Jack. As usual, Jack immediately remembered my name.
This is certainly something you don’t find everywhere. Jack and the
store will leave only memories.”

ATTORNEY BURKE: Do you remember a Bradford attorney named
Katherine Burke who practiced law in the 1940s?

That’s the question today from Ken Herzing of St. Marys who
tells us the lawyer, whose office was in the Hooker Fulton
building, was a distant relative of his. It was unusual, he points
out, to have a woman practicing law in those days.

If you do remember her, give us a call.

IT’S TODAY: If nobody is laying garlands of flowers at your feet
today, you might want to consider a few changes in your routine
before National Boss Day of Oct. 16, 2008.

You don’t have to believe us; We’re only quoting a pair of
management experts who tell us bosses might want to focus today on
taking their leadership skills to the next level.

Bill Catlette and Richard Hadden, nationally recognized authors
and leadership experts, have these 10 tips to create an “Employer
of Choice” workplace:

1. Maintain high standards in hiring and performance.

2. Involve employees in decision-making.

3. Tell the truth … even when it hurts.

4. Recognize people have lives outside of work (recognize
people?).

5. Give people the freedom to pursue things important to
them.

6. Keep “the system” off your employees’ backs.

7. Don’t make exceptions routine.

8. Eschew politics.

9. Keep things in perspective.

10. Invest in ‘Reciprocal Effort.’

We would add a couple: Respect your employees because, honestly,
they often know more about what’s going on than you do. And,
finally, communicate openly and often with employees and encourage
them to do the same. You may be surprised when they feel open
enough to share “the good, the bad and the ugly” about your
business – before you find out the hard way.

TODAY’S QUOTE: “One of the cornerstones of freedom of the press
is that government be prohibited from choosing who can and can’t
exercise it,” said Jack Fuller, journalist, author, 2005.