The Willow Glen Resident

Photograph by Skye Dunlap

Personal Benefits: Super volunteer Bob Rhodes encourages employees of his accounting firm to perform community service work.

Glenite named president of local Red Cross board

By Christine Frey

It's a wonder that Bob Rhodes has time to be interviewed.

The Willow Glen resident is an active member of the San Jose Rotary Club; he sits on the boards of the Metro YMCA of Santa Clara Valley and the Second Harvest Food Bank; and on July 1 he became the new board chairman of the Santa Clara Chapter of the American Red Cross.

"Once you find out what an organization is doing, and you support it because you believe in the work, then you do whatever needs to get done," says Rhodes, 59, a partner at Brook, Stednitz & Rhodes Accountancy Corporation.

Rhodes says volunteerism enables him to use his job skills in a community setting, providing a balance between business and home. "My philosophy is [that] the only way long-term to have a happy family life ... is to somehow be able to integrate work with family."

And he's done just that at his company. Rhodes strongly encourages his 25 employees to reach out into the community and he supports them in their work; the company covers any costs associated with their volunteerism. "If the employee is involved in some outside activity, it shouldn't be a burden for them to do that," he says. Rather, it should benefit them. "I think our employees are more complete people, and their family lives are more complete," he says.

Rhodes can personally attest to that. His own family has been involved with the YMCA, where he has volunteered for 25 years. His four children attended YMCA camps, and following their college graduation, two became employees of the organization. A few weeks ago, Rhodes and his wife, Joyce, were presented with the John D. Crummey Award for their involvement with the YMCA. The award, which recognizes outstanding volunteers, had never before been given to a couple. "It was quite an honor," he says.

Now, Rhodes is prepared to throw his energy into the American Red Cross. During the next year he hopes to provide strong leadership, improve strategic planning and survey the needs of under-served areas. "What anybody does when they take on something like this is to make it a little better than when they came in, even though it's already good," he says.

One particular project he would like to oversee is the increase in community awareness of ARKs--cargo containers that hold items commonly found in emergency centers, such as cots, blankets and water. ARKs are located at various schools throughout the county. East San Jose has been in need of them, and recently the city set aside funding for new ones, Rhodes says. He wants to give members of the community more information on ARKs to ensure their proper use in an emergency.

In previous years, Rhodes has served on the finance, human resources, strategic planning, fundraising and executive committees of the American Red Cross. He also donated blood for several years.

Rhodes is currently a member of the fundraising committee for the Metro YMCA board, the treasurer for the Second Harvest Food Bank board and a councilmember of the Rotary Club's Rotacare Free Clinics. He is also a member of the California Society of CPAs, the Estate Planning Council of Santa Clara County and the Silicon Valley Planned Giving Council.

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