ELECTION OF A ST PIXELS MEDIATOR

The 2 nominations are :

LARCH nominated by Busisiwe

PAULLUAP nominated by Jools

CANDIDATES PROFILES:

Larch writes:
I have been a Pixie for a little under a year and gained a lot from it – so would welcome a chance to give a little something back.
Outside of Pix, I work for the Open University. I also work for the General Medical Council, investigating doctors where there are concerns about their practise. I have acted as an Independent Complaints Officer and worked as a Family Mediator (helping separating parents agree arrangements for their children). Hopefully this experience would help me to be fair as a Mediator for Pix.

Paulluap writes:
My name is Paul Wolsko (PaulluaP), living in Hopatcong, New Jersey, USA. I have been a participant of St. Pixels, in its various forms, since May 2004 and continue to support it, since I feel it has value and relevance in a changing world...and I enjoy the people here immensely. Recently. I have been nominated for the position of Mediator.
In my professional life, I spent 35 years in Information Technology software engineering for a large Insurance company, the remaining 20 years as department manager with a large staff reporting to me. One of the most useful management tools for dealing with conflict resolution is "Mediation". It is not always appropriate (i.e. when one person punches another in the nose), but when a situation causes strained relations and intervention is requested, mediation can work nicely, since the end result is not "Winner Take All". It requires the mediator to ascertain the facts, set emotion aside and, probably the most important factor, find areas of agreement between the parties. I have found it interesting that conflicting parties generally agree on more things then they differ, and it's important to stress these. It is a balancing act, as you never wish to belittle people, or to make light of someone's position. In some instances, I feel that I have served in this capacity occasionally, albeit informally, in my visits to St. Pixels. I feel it is a gift that should be used if you've got it.
I retired a few years ago and have my own business doing odd jobs but, primarily, making heirloom picture frames from fine hardwoods. My wife, Kathleen and I have been married almost 40 years. We have two grown sons and a large, nasty, dog who likes long walks in inclement weather.

VOTING INSTRUCTIONS:
Each person who uses St Pixels can have one vote.
Each vote has to be emailed to Jen through the site.
All votes need to be received by Jen by midnight BST Tuesday 20th July

Please post any queries here: http://www.stpixels.com/article?article=529f1f3a-45e9-4431-b0b8-e4add6bd42e0#1525c98e-8ece-40d8-bdcd-6ce514d98baa