June 2009 155
Executive Vice President
Mark Smith; [email protected]
Ed Noulin coaches the 95th Street Group club members on how
to safely run our mower.
Just look at all those energetic 95th Street Group members
sprucing up our flying site.
I belong to several clubs and one at which I fly frequently is the 95th Street Group. Founded by Bob Miller a decade or so ago, we
take great pride in our flying site.
Take a look at all the members helping spruce up the place under the leadership of our president, Mark Dennis, and vice
president, Don Oppliger. Great job, guys, and keep up the super work! Photos by Ed Noulin.
HI, FOLKS! This month I want to share
something I feel is vital to a club’s health
and prosperity: your brand.
To illustrate how important this is in the
business world, a guest speaker at one of my
MBA classes presented the following about
Microsoft. You see, Microsoft’s book value
is approximately $31 billion (before the
recent drop in the market). That’s the stuff
that the company owns or its tangible items.
Now the things that Microsoft is known
for and the compelling reasons that people
seek its products is the company’s market
value, also known as its brand, and that’s
valued at a whopping $239 billion!
Now some of you may think this is some
business term that has nothing to do with
our local hobby, but believe me, nothing
could be farther from the truth. Each club
has a book value—we own mowers and
shelter houses; however, our market value is
what those around us feel about our personal
brand.
Why would anyone be compelled to seek
a person out? Our market value needs to be
stronger than our book value. This is what a
brand can do. IBM is not known for its
machines, but rather for its solutions.
Our AMA logo is a visual representation
of our brand. Please be mindful that every
action and deed we do is a direct reflection
upon our AMA brand.
How does the AMA brand relate to us?
Here are just a few examples:
• Taking care of our flying fields
• Club participation in community events
• Making charitable contributions
sponsored by your club
• Training students
• Educating youth about
model aviation
Another example of being
mindful of our AMA brand is
these three members of the
Kansas Barnstormers: Ed
Reynolds, Pat McGhee, and
Darrell Watts. Their field is
located close to the Hillsdale
Lake, which is south of Kansas
City, Kansas.
This is a bunch of great guys
who love the hobby. One of the
club’s spark plugs is a longtime
friend, Darrell Watts. Yes, he’s
the same Darrell Watts who was
CD of the Midwest Regional
Float Fly in the Detroit area for
several years before he relocated
to Kansas City.
Darrell was also an integral
member of the Chrysler Camp
Jeep team where he exposed
thousands of spectators to our
hobby. So Darrell is now in the
KC area and assisting Pat
McGhee who is building a great
event named The Heart of
America Float Fly.
These three gentlemen are
painstakingly building this
beautiful model to raise money
for their club and to show off our
great AMA brand. The model is a
Spectra II, which was featured as a
construction article in the June 2008 MA.
The event is June 6-7 and one that will
surely be a hit. Super job, guys, and thanks
for your hard work!
Until next month, have fun and stay in
touch!
Mark Smith
Executive Vice
President
14632 W. 50th St.,
Shawnee KS 66216
Tel.: (913) 568-4347
B arns tom er s builders Pat McGh ee and Darrell W atts
pose with c omple ted project. MonoKoted b y member
Ed Re y nold s.
Cust om scratch builders Pat McGh ee (L) and Darr ell
Watts.
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Edition: Model Aviation - 2009/06
Page Numbers: 155