My year as STLE President

Dr. Ken Hope, STLE President | TLT President's Report June 2022

Through all the ups and downs, it’s been a great ride.
 

STLE President Ken Hope and STLE Immediate Past President Paul Hetherington with their spouses, Claudia and Lyse.
These past few years have definitely been different for everyone. I started my STLE presidency at the 2021 Virtual STLE Annual Meeting & Exhibition where STLE Immediate Past President Paul Hetherington handed me the gavel of leadership on screen. And now I get to end my presidency in person, which is a good feeling.

This past year, we’ve made many great changes. The STLE podcast titled Perfecting Motion:® Tribology and the Quest for Sustainability by Dr. Neil Canter was launched. STLE now has digital badging and a monthly discussion series titled Industry Insights for members only. The first Tribology and Lubrication for E-Mobility Conference was in November 2021, and we are planning this conference again for fall 2022. I was able to cover some important topics in my TLT columns, including connecting during physical separation, sustainability, friction being beneficial and STLE education. I got to write about a few hobbies and interests as well (the tribology of bowling and woodworking). I also wrote about an artist elephant I saw in Thailand in 2018, the importance of education, how there are things to be astonished about in a positive way and the varied and many ways to find excellent sources of information—STLE is an excellent one, for example.

Although I wasn’t able to travel as much, I enjoyed virtually attending meetings. I attended STLE Local Section meetings in Central America, Houston, Detroit, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Canton, Northern California and Cleveland. During these meetings, I gave updates on STLE activities, conferences, strategy development and the general state of STLE during the pandemic. It is important for all members to know that our society is thriving during a difficult time. This is key because it didn’t just happen on its own. Our healthy position is due to care and diligence in the leadership—people like Ed Salek, STLE executive director; the guidance of the STLE past presidents and Executive Committee; people serving on the STLE Board of Directors—most of these mentioned are volunteers that committed their time and efforts during a very difficult time for our world.

We have all been through difficult times during this past year. Personally, this has brought me closer to My Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, and it has showed me that it is in the difficult times, the times when we are weakest, that His strength is evident. This brought me through the miracle of being able to walk again without back pain, and as I write this, I’m recovering from COVID-19. This is not meant to focus on me but rather how we respond to the pressures and difficulties. Whether they come from our health situation, our work lives or wherever, the main question is, how will you respond? I respond poorly, and my weakness becomes loud, but in the midst of these times, there is often still a small voice that captures my thoughts and changes my focus to where it should have been all along. I am thankful then for the difficult times because, how could I have noticed or been made aware otherwise that when I am weak, He is strong? Just like the friction polish I wrote about in the May TLT, when the pressure is put on, the polish will shine the candlestick. We all need to press on in our difficulties, and I pray it leads you to where He wants you to go so that you will be transformed— maybe even more than you had planned.

There are many key people I’d like to acknowledge who were on this great ride with me. I’d first like to thank my beautiful wife, Claudia, and my family for their love and support. I’d like to thank Chevron Phillips Chemical Co. and the STLE Executive Committee for all of their help and support throughout this journey.

I’d also like to thank my church elders Robert White, Bruce Massar and Dave Kinison who have prayerfully supported me, frequently rearranging the preaching schedule on weekends when I was performing STLE duties rather than being at our small church in Kingwood, Texas.

I also want to thank 2022-2023 STLE President Ryan Evans—the society is in great hands with him. I’ve enjoyed working with him and the rest of the Executive Committee—STLE Immediate Past President Paul Hetherington for his wise council and friendship, Hong Liang, Jack McKenna for ideas and willingness to cheerfully serve and our incoming STLE Treasurer Kevin Delaney who I got reacquainted with after our time on the board years ago. I’d also like to thank STLE Past Presidents Mike Duncan, Mike Anderson and Greg Croce for their friendship and guidance. Of course, I’d like to thank Ed Salek and the people at STLE headquarters. We have all done a lot of good work and have had fun along the way. Working with this great team has been such a joy for me.

Finally, thank you for allowing me to be your STLE President and for joining me on this ride. It’s been an amazing experience, and most of all, I thank God for everything.

Dr. Ken Hope, CLS, is global PAO technical services manager for Chevron Phillips Chemical in The Woodlands, Texas. You can reach him at ken.hope@cpchem.com.