<VV> CORSA Dues

[Jeffrey B. Aronson]

Ron, you've raised an interesting issue with your poll - at what price 
level do you feel that your money is well spent? I write these thoughts 
as a CORSA member for only a few years, so please accept them with that 
caveat.

The challenge for CORSA is establishing a value for its services. Right 
now the dues get you a monthly magazine far below acceptable club 
standards. I know this because I works as a magazine editor and because 
I have copies of the national Alfa and Jaguar club publications. You see 
a quality of graphics and editing that make the volunteer-written 
articles more readable and the magazine one you want to keep. Since 
there's no state chapter of CORSA, the publication takes on a real 
importance to me and anyone else who lives in an area unserved by a chapter.

You also get a website that is below standards [like others here, I 
build and provide content for websites]; did anyone else log onto the 
CORSA site on the day of the 50th and find NO mention of the 
anniversary? Sadly, you also get a Board that seems to deal, way behind 
the scenes, in issues that seem to be very distant from our shared 
enthusiasm for Corvairs.

And to me, that's the nub of the issue.

Whether you're a collector, a daily driver, a restorer, a shade tree 
mechanic, reliving your past through your Corvair or learning what you 
missed because you were born too late, a parent-child shared project, a 
family fun vehicle, the Corvair fits your needs. The beauty of the car 
is that you can "afford" it at any level you choose - from "tuna wagon" 
to concours trailer queen.

The issue for CORSA is what value does it bring to our shared love for 
the Corvair. Our vendors do it every day by providing a wide range of 
technical expertise, parts knowledge, and enthusiasm for Corvairs. Is 
that the image that CORSA projects?

I try and pretend that a $5 bill in my wallet is joined by lots of 
others, but it's pretty empty in there. However, I do save and pay for 
quality, whether goods or services. When CORSA actually provides high 
quality services - from its volunteer Board to its management company to 
its actual services, I'll pay more than my current dues for them.

Oh, and by the way, I may well find that a number of VV members are 
small business/self-employed individuals who have been forced by 
technology and global economics to change the way they work and the 
services/products they produce - or it may be just me. When client 
expectations change and grow, I need to provide additional services and 
prove my value /before/ I can charge higher fees.That's today's business 
world and not-for-profits need to operate the same way. A lame website 
and a publication that looks just like it did decades ago does not cut 
it in today's "value" environment.

I suggest that very few /successful /organizations today resemble their 
predecessor of 30 years ago, so why does CORSA operate as it did in 
decades past? If the dues are fixed by the "cost of operating CORSA," as 
we often hear, then maybe it's time to look for changes as to how we 
operate CORSA to meet contemporary demands for the services CORSA can 
provide. Maybe as a club we need to ascertain what range of services 
members really want and what innovative and cost-efficient ways can the 
organization provide some or all of those services? It probably won't be 
through the same methods and administration that we're doing it right now.

If we do, then the question of "how much to charge" falls  by the 
wayside, and we'll have a national organization that really foments a 
huge enthusiasm for the Corvair - the reason behind our membership.

Thanks for reading this!

Jeff Aronson
Vinalhaven, ME 04863
www.landroverwriter.com
'66 Corvair Monza Coupe 110/4
'66 Land Rover Series II-A 88"
'80 Triumph TR-7 Spider