<VV> Membership question -- 100% vs Not.

[Ron]

How about doing something real like decorating your cars and entering a 
parade, enter an occasional local car show, tour to some near park or 
tourist attraction?  These things are fun and get the potentially active 
members out.
RonH

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "John Dozsa" <yanche at verizon.net>
To: "Virtual Vairs" <virtualvairs at corvair.org>
Sent: Tuesday, December 15, 2009 10:50 PM
Subject: Re: <VV> Membership question -- 100% vs Not.


> My local chapter CORSA of Baltimore is a Maryland incorporated legal
> entity.  Decades ago I helped write it's incorporation documents.  At
> the time our club had some participants, I'm avoiding the word members
> on purpose, who drove a Corvair but had no interest in becoming a car
> club member.  They were just people with daily drivers, that were so
> happy to find a resource to have their car serviced.  Several CORSA of
> Baltimore members could, would and did repair Corvairs.  All were part
> time home garage based shops.  These daily driver owners were so happy
> to have found a Corvair expert that when they found out there was a
> local club they wanted to join.  The dues were $6 at the time.  Few if
> any were interested in any national club, especially when the learned to
> additional cost.  SO ...  our incorporation documents has a category of
> local club participant, called "newsletter subscriber", they pay dues at
> the same rate as local club members but only have the privileges of
> receiving the local club newsletter.  They are not CORSA of Baltimore,
> Inc. members in the legal sense, they do not have the right to vote,
> etc.  There's a saying all politics are local, this is an example.  A
> solution to help our local chapters treasury and still keep true to the
> 100% local chapter CORSA membership.  The legally defined "members" of
> our chapter are required to be CORSA members.  They can vote, hold
> office, etc.  Did some "newsletter subscribers" come to a few events,
> yes.  Did some join CORSA, yes.  But in general they just faded away.
> The above is one example of why a Corvair owner would not want to join
> CORSA, i.e. no benefit to them.
>
> Now decades later, our local club membership is fading.  Within the last
> year I prompted a meeting to discuss the folding of CORSA of Baltimore,
> Inc.  A sister CORSA chapter, Chesapeake Corvair, Inc. had folded a year
> or two earlier.  Here's a summary of what was agreed to.  We would keep
> the corporation going.  It doesn't cost us anything to do so and could
> offer some legal protection in a suit.  BUT, in reality not much, as a
> corporation we haven't come close to meeting the standard for a "real"
> operating corporation.   Perhaps the next generation of Corvair owners
> could breed new life into it.  Our chapter does not have 100% CORSA
> membership.  In past years we have paid extra to CORSA for those members
> that have not been CORSA members.  I have no evidence that as a chapter
> we have been billed for non-CORSA members in years.  Our chapter has
> not had any event in years that would need CORSA insurance, no mall
> shows, no moving events, etc.  When we get together for a business
> meeting at the local Chevy dealers meeting room we are covered by the
> dealers liability insurance, the same insurance coverage any Chevy
> customer gets.   Holding a meeting at a restaurant is no different, we
> are covered by the restaurant's insurance.  Bottom line the CORSA
> insurance is of no current benefit.
>
> Some will say we should try harder.  We have, our meeting format is now
> rotating monthly meetings at a member's house along with a tech or
> repair session.  It's helped but still not enough to grow the club.
> CORSA has to find a way to add more value to it's membership.  Insurance
> alone and a distance annual national convention isn't it.
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