Dr. Cross Elected Treasurer of The Congress of Chiropractic State Associations

In November, Dr. Don Cross was elected Treasurer of the Congress of Chiropractic State Associations(COCSA). I sat down with him recently to talk about his new position and what lead up to it.

Dr. Burkhead: When did you first become interested in COCSA? What has your involvement been with this organization?

Dr. Cross: I went to my first meeting in 2007 as the representative for Florida, as I was the president of the Florida Chiropractic Association at the time. I represented Florida through 2008 and then in 2009 I was elected to the Board of Directors and represented 14 states in the Southeast Region. In 2010 I ran for the Executive Committee but lost that election. This year I was asked to run again and was elected treasurer.

Dr. Burkhead: What made you want to be involved with an organization like this?

Dr. Cross: Well, the changes in National Health Care are affecting everybody, providers as well as patients. I wanted to make sure that chiropractic is included as these changes are happening. To help make those changes you really have to be involved nationally, not just at the state level.

Dr. Burkhead: So how does COCSA do that?

Dr. Cross:   COCSA supports state organizations by acting as a clearinghouse of information, and giving state organizations a national political voice. This is especially important for small state associations that don’t have the budgets or the manpower to do that on their own.

Dr. Burkhead: Why is doing this important to you?

Dr. Cross: Even though I practice in a small town, getting involved in this leadership means I can make a contribution that effects not only the nation, but also my patients on a local basis. That’s important to me.

Don’t Give Up On Yourself

When I tried to quit smoking it took me about 7 years. I had managed to quit for a year while I was pregnant (for which I am still grateful) but a year after my daughter was born, I started again. I hated that she might be subjected to second hand smoke so I was motivated to try and quit. I’d quit for a year or two and then I’d start up again. For a long time I was under the illusion that I could “have just one”. Of course if I smoke one, I’m going to smoke a whole pack. Eventually, I realized that I am someone who can’t even have just one, so I worked on strategies for how to not “have just one”.

I haven’t smoked since 1990, but the lessons I learned from it stick with me to this day.
These days I’m working on changing my eating habits. There are stretches of time where I do really well and then others where I fall off the wagon. But what I learned from quitting smoking is to not give up on myself. Even if it takes a while to get back to working on the problem, it’s OK. Every bit of experience I gain with it helps in the end. I just have to “get back on the horse that threw me” with a new strategy for staying on!

Hey! Doc’s Christmas Lights are Up!

For those of you that haven’t seen them, they are spectacular. Every year he puts them up, and cruising by to see the extravaganza has really become a holiday tradition for many folks here.

Doc started this ten years ago as a gift to his wife. Initially there were a few displays in the front yard, and about 10,000 lights. Now it encompasses the property and has grown to 88,000 lights! He starts in September checking to make sure all the lights work. Can you imagine? Of course if you are a friend or family member of his you can since you’ve probably been co-opted already (Hey! What are you doing this weekend?…..).

The lights are turned on by a timer every night staring at 6:00, and they start shutting down at 9:30. They will be up until about the second week in January. So come and get some Christmas cheer! You can make this your new holiday tradition if you want. The address is 500 Forest Dr. Quincy, Florida. If you need a map to his house, look on our website, www.crosschiro.com.