View from HQ
Don Koranda Executive Director
What image does your club project?
I'VE MENTIONED before just how important our clubs are to AMA's future success. Chartered clubs provide a number of important benefits and services to AMA members, not the least of which is a social structure where modelers can connect with other people who share their interest and their passion for this sport.
My personal view is that we have not paid enough attention to this important relationship, but we are taking steps to correct that and build a stronger and better communications bridge between AMA and its clubs.
One of those steps is a revised publication formerly known as the National Newsletter. If you're not familiar with it, I'm not surprised—and don't feel strange. The truth is that it's not well known except by a few people in your club responsible for the newsletter.
The newsletter is an example of a good idea that grew into a useful benefit for clubs. It came about many years ago when someone had the bright idea that we should share some of the excellent articles we were receiving from clubs across the country.
Because AMA needs to communicate directly with clubs about a host of issues, that publication will broaden its focus, expand its distribution, and change its name. The new name is AMA INSIDER, and instead of just going to the newsletter editor it will also be sent to your club officers.
AMA INSIDER will still contain the articles near and dear to a newsletter editor's heart, but also information on the challenges and opportunities we face in this hobby, safety information, and useful tips on club operations—all from an "insider" perspective.
We're excited about this new opportunity to communicate with clubs and help them grow and prosper, but surprisingly, not all clubs want to grow and prosper.
Some want to remain a small, tight-knit group of close friends. Some want to restrict their activities to a single type of model activity. Some are "unfriendly" toward new modelers and new ideas, and make that clear in the way they invite (or uninvite) people to their flying sites. Some clubs are sticklers for safety and others take a more live-and-let-live approach. It all depends on the club's culture, the reason it was formed, and the people in charge.
Clubs are essentially mini-AMAs, with all the same challenges we face here at Headquarters. They have members who pay dues and expect something of value in return. They elect club officers who are expected to run the club in an appropriate manner for the benefit of the members.
In my travels, I've had the pleasure of meeting several club officers, and the conversations have been lively and enlightening. Most of them are concerned about their flying sites, being good neighbors, safety, facilities, insurance, technical issues, etc., but if you ask them what they are doing to encourage new members and grow the club, or what the trend has been during the last several years, the conversation becomes more muted. The answer is usually "not a lot" or "the trend has been downward and we can't find any new members."
That's not good news for any of us, even those who may be against growth for selfish reasons. Why? Because we're all in this together, and if we don't bring in new members we will eventually relegate ourselves to a smaller and smaller group of elite modelers.
As we shrink, so will our power and ability to influence local, state, and national officials, and our ability to secure flying sites and protect an activity that gives us all so much pleasure.
That really doesn't need to happen if each of us commits himself or herself to growing our sport, and the logical starting point is your own club. It's actually pretty simple to do, but it does require dedication and some attention to the details of membership growth.
Here are a few key questions to ask yourself the next time you're out flying at your local club:
- What image does the club project to a new person entering our hobby?
- Is the club pro-growth, or does management like things the way they are because new members just tie up the field and mean less flying for everyone else?
- Are the members open to new forms of flying and willing to accommodate new members, or do they have to accommodate us?
- Does the club interface with the local community in a way that helps enhance its image as an ongoing, worthwhile recreational activity?
- Do the club officers look for new ideas and new ways of developing the club for the benefit of all, or are they stuck in the same old rut?
The answers to these questions are crucial to developing an attitude that promotes growth and thus the health and welfare of your club and of model flying.
You might be surprised at how "unfriendly" your club might appear to a new person, but with this knowledge you can approach the other members and start asking the tough questions that will put your club on the right track.
Not every club has to grow—and there are times when physical limitations dictate a limited- or no-growth policy—but those should be more the exception than the rule. The really good clubs understand the importance of attracting new members and the benefits that come with a policy that continually promotes the club and model aviation.
If we do the right things, we can grow this hobby in a way that will benefit everyone. That's our goal at AMA. I hope it will be yours as well.
Safe flying.
Don Koranda Executive Director [email protected]
Transcribed from original scans by AI. Minor OCR errors may remain.
