View from HQ-2007/01
This will be my last column as acting executive director. It has been a pleasure and a challenge working in this capacity one more time. It never ceases to amaze me that after 36 years of service to the Academy, each year brings something new to the table. The sport/hobby is changing so rapidly that it is sometimes difficult to keep up with the new technology, much less stay one step ahead.
By now most members know that a new Executive Director has been selected. If you haven’t read about him elsewhere, I will let you know a little about him.
New Executive Director
Jim Cherry comes to AMA from Pensacola, Florida. He brings a wealth of knowledge and expertise to the position, with 27 years of association experience serving as the head of various chambers of commerce throughout the South. His background includes:
- President of the Florida Association of Chamber Professionals (FACP)
- President of the Arkansas Chamber of Commerce Executives (ACCE)
- Past board member of the National Association of Membership Directors
- Past board member of the Southern Association of Chamber Executives
- Former member of the North and South Carolina Association of Chamber Executives
Jim is also a current member of the AMA, and I am looking forward to working with him. Let’s all give Jim a warm welcome.
Programs for New Members
I want to thank the clubs that responded to my October 2006 column concerning how new people were treated at a club field. It is good to see that this is not the normal procedure. Clubs are AMA ambassadors to new people.
We are developing some programs for clubs to use to introduce new members to the hobby. Current and recent programs include:
- Buddy-Box Program for new members.
- Introductory Pilot Program (updated in 2006): allows new members to fly with an instructor for 60 days without joining AMA.
- 90-day trial membership: has done well over the last several years; approximately 60% of trial members become full AMA members.
There are a few more programs in the works for 2007 that we will announce later. I hope your club will take advantage of these and help membership grow.
Club Example: Attendance Raffle
Because of a recent column, I received a letter from an individual about how his club has tried to increase its membership. I will not mention names, but I’ll relay the type of program they tried.
Like many clubs, they are constantly trying to expand membership and promote the hobby/sport. One idea they started this year is a year-end attendance raffle. Entries for the raffle are taken only from sign-in sheets from that year’s meetings, so the more meetings you attend, the greater the chance of winning. This appears to be a good incentive for members to attend meetings on a regular basis.
The problem is where to get raffle prizes. Ideas they have used or suggested include:
- Solicit local hobby shops; new members benefit the hobby shop along with the club.
- Hold a cookout and use the proceeds to purchase raffle prizes.
- Ask club members if they have merchandise they are not planning to use.
- Attend swap meets where you can pick up good deals on prizes.
- Purchase a person’s AMA membership for the following year.
- Give a member one year of club dues at no charge.
It sounds as though this is a great incentive to encourage members to attend club meetings or work parties!
Safe flying.
Joyce Hager Acting Executive Director exdir@modelaircraft.org
Transcribed from original scans by AI. Minor OCR errors may remain.
