President’s Message: Call for Candidates 2022

It is time for Chapter elections and I have been asked many times why I volunteer and run for positions on the board. For me the reasons are personal and part of my belief that it is my responsibility to support and enhance the profession that has come to be my final career.

To do this I needed to be involved and AMTA is the path I choose because what happens in one state can be a template of success or a warning of what can happen in another state. If your organization or association is not nationwide, it is not in a position to address or act for the massage profession at large. Being that AMTA is a non-profit, the money that I pay for my membership is being used in true alignment of my beliefs of benefiting its members and the profession.

I realized that I have not been asked what volunteering has done for me or what I get in return? I have been volunteering for as long as I have been a massage therapist, in both large and small roles. From being a delegate and sharing how we feel as membership about issues brought before the Assembly of Delegates which then gets shared with the National Board, to being a Committee Chair, or serving as a board member. During my 20+ years of serving the Washington Chapter, I have grown in my abilities as a massage therapist in tandem with the skills developed during volunteering. 

When I first became a massage therapist I was unsure of my ability to make changes that would help my clients. My time volunteering with AMTA-WA has helped me to become more confident in my skills through trainings and CEs and my ability for speaking to groups and my clients. Being part of board meetings and interactions with team members taught me how to work with my clients and how to truly listen to them, meet their needs, admit to my errors, and then to work with them to find solutions. Through the trainings attended in Chicago and else where, I have developed a extended family of therapists that are my friends.

Honestly, my time as a member and volunteer for AMTA Washington Chapter has made me the massage therapist I am today, giving me the educational foundations, communication skills, and confidence to serve both my clients and my colleagues to the best of my ability. 

As my time for volunteering here is soon coming to a close since I am moving to New Hampshire, I ask “Will you be the one to start your journey to change and enhance your own life while making things better for your colleagues?”

David A. Phillips
Washington Chapter President
American Massage Therapy Association
president@amta-wa.org