[PVRCNC] Fw: Monthly North Carolina Section News Summary

[Jim K4QPL]

I would assume most PVRCNC members are also ARRL, but for those who aren't,
and to put a bit of emphasis for those who are, I have noticed our own
numbers seem to be down on average from the past, even allowing for the
split with PVRC west.

Maybe we should think about having a short, repeat short, program of
contesting interest in addition to our individual member reports.

I seem to always learn something, technical or operating, from the meetings.
The more who attend, the more we all learn and encourage participation in
contests.

This is the ideal season to meet the gang at Golden Corral and let the cold
weather burn up some of those excess calories we always take in!

Meantime, best wishes for the holidays and good hunting in 2005!

Jim, K4QPL

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "ARRL Web site" <memberlist at www.arrl.org>
To: <K4QPL at nc.rr.com>
Sent: Monday, December 20, 2004 9:28 AM
Subject: Monthly North Carolina Section News Summary


> NORTH CAROLINA: SM, John Covington, W4CC - SEC: WA4MOK. STM: K4HA.
TC:K4ITL.
> BM: KD4YTU. PIC: N2COP. OOC: W4ZRA. SGL: AB4W. ACC: N4JCK.
>
> Several times in the last month I have been asked by club officers if
other
> clubs are experiencing a decline in membership, and if I have any
suggestions
> about what can they do to perk up their club. I do, and I hope you will
> forgive me for being long-winded this month.
>
> Some of these clubs have even considered going from monthly to quarterly
> meetings. While I realize for some regional and specialty clubs quarterly
> meetings might make sense, in my opinion this is not a good idea for a
regular
> local club.
>
> Local clubs that switch to quarterly meetings will only accelerate the
exodus
> from their clubs. Less personal contact with other members means less
personal
> interest, and it won't be long after that before many members stop
attending
> or paying dues altogehter. Missing only one quarterly meeting means that a
> member won't see other members for half a year! Keep monthly meetings
going
> even if the attendance is not as large as you would like it to be. It is
not
> numbers that make a good club, it's the quality of the experience.
>
> There are three main reasons people join organizations: to socialize, to
learn
> from others, and to be of service to others. Each person's dominant reason
> will change over time, and family, career and medical matters will affect
> their ability to participate also. So, members will naturally come and go,
but
> our clubs will remain viable if they can meet those three reasons for most
of
> their members.
>
> Clubs of all types, not just amateur radio, are experiencing a decline in
> membership. This is a national trend, and the reasons for this are beyond
the
> scope of my column, but it appears that amateur radio is not alone with
this
> problem. Some civic organizations are reporting they have less than half
of
> the members they did thirty years ago.
>
> One encouraging sign for us is that the latest generation of young people
and
> adults seem to be more interested in volunteering and joining
organizations
> than their recent predecessors. We need to make this trend work for us,
and I
> will discuss that in more detail next month.
>
> As for things you can do now to improve interest in your club, there are
> several things that I discussed at a hamfest forum a few years ago which I
> have included here below. It's not comprehensive, and it won't work for
all
> clubs, but I offer it here as "food for thought." I hope you find
something
> helpful. Many of these suggestions can apply to ARES groups, too.
>
> Top Ten Things A Good Club Should Have:
>
> 10. Interesting meetings. If you only have boring business meetings, then
> people will stop coming to your meetings. Make sure that you have an
> interesting program as a part of most meetings. If you must discuss a lot
of
> business during certain meetings, consider playing a short 10-15 minute
> videotape program, such as those from the ARRL Video collection
> (http://www.arrl.org/ead/videos.html)
>
> 9. Welcoming committee. Make sure that any guests are made to feel
welcome.
> This could be as simple as having someone look for newcomers and making an
> effort to shake hands and talk to them. Introduce guests during your
meetings
> so everyone will know who to greet after the meeting.
>
> 8. Social Activities. A club should have some activities where the whole
point
> is for the members to get to know each other better. If your members
become
> friends, then it is more likely they will continue to come to your
meetings
> and volunteer for the club. If there is no opportunity for members of your
> club to socialize, then your club will be filled with strangers who won't
feel
> a bond to the club, and probably won't participate in your activities or
run
> for club office.
>
> 7. Operating Events (both Public Service and Amateur-only events). Clubs
> should provide a variety of opportunities for members to get on the air.
This
> will enrich the Amateur experience of your members, and make your club an
> asset to your community.
>
> 6. Personal Contact with its Members. Make sure that you make some
personal
> contact with all of your members, especially if they do not attend
meetings
> regularly. Newsletters are important, but there is nothing that will
motivate
> your membership more than personal contact. If you haven't seen a member
> lately, call them on the phone and see how they're doing!
>
> 5. Informative, Timely Newsletter. Although not as effective as personal
> contact, a newsletter is still the most important way that information
about
> your club and its activities is communicated to its members. Most clubs
are
> lucky to have 1/3 of their paid membership at each meeting, so you must
keep
> the other 2/3 informed, or they will drop out. Make sure it comes out on
time,
> so people won't hear about events after they happen. E-mail newsletters
make
> this fairly easy to do.
>
> 4. Educational Activities. Whether working their way up the licensing
ladder,
> or just learning about new techniques, most club members want to learn
> something new about ham radio. Make sure you have educational meeting
programs
> for your members and license classes for newcomers and upgrades (these
> newcomers are also potential members; make sure you invite them to the
club
> meetings while they are studying!).
>
> 3. Family Involvement. Make sure that families are involved in your club.
> Social events are great ways for families to see what the club is all
about.
> Besides, family members can be prospective hams!
>
> 2. Good Public Relations. Each club should have a good public relations
> program. Make sure the public knows the good things you are doing. This
will
> make it easier to recruit new hams, and will help if you need to challenge
or
> avoid antenna ordinances. It will also help you fill license classes and
get
> new members.
>
> 1. DON'T FORGET TO HAVE FUN! Ham radio is both a service and a hobby. It
is
> easy to get bogged down in the details of running a club, but don't forget
> that people want to have fun too. If they don't, you won't have much of a
> club.
>
> January hamfest: Winston-Salem swapfest Saturday January 8. Hope to see
you
> there.
>
> November Traffic: W4EAT 3110 (BPL), W4DAC 1247 (BPL), W4UEF 424, K4IWW
236,
> KF4OCU 183, W0UCE 123, K7UGT 105, KE4JHJ 65, AA4YW 62, W3HL 58, W4DNA 55,
> AD4XV 51, W4EHF 47, KE4AHC 43, K4RLD 42, WD4LSS 41, KG4OQA 37, KI4YV 27,
W4TTO
> 26, W4IRE 18, WA2EDN 13, WA4SRD 3, KE5BAT 2.
>
> November PSHR: W4DAC 140, KE4JHJ 140, W4EAT 130, K4RLD 125, K4IWW 120,
AD4XV
> 120, K7UGT 110, W0UCE 110, W4DNA 90, KG4OQA 87, WD4LSS 84, KF4OCU 80,
AA4YW
> 80, KI4YV 77.
>
>
> --------------------------------------------------------------------
> ARRL North Carolina Section
> Section Manager: John M. C Covington, W4CC
> w4cc at arrl.org
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