TROA TO MOAA PAYS OFF

Last year your association made the turnaround that we counted on when the members approved our name change from The Retired Officers Association. We started the 2006 year with some 360,000 members (including almost 65,000 auxiliaries) and set a goal to end the year with 360,000. We actually finished with 362,771, nearly 1 percent more than our target.

Forty-three percent of the members recruited were active-duty officers and 15 percent were in the National Guard or Reserves. This leads us to conclude that (1) our outreach programs targeting currently-serving officers are succeeding, and (2) we’ve overcome the reluctance shown by these officers to consider joining the association when it was TROA.

LtCol Fred Edwards, USMC (Ret)
Past President, Florida Council
Chairman, Councils and Chapters Committee
National MOAA Board of Directors

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Back in May 2005 I posted to this blog (in its earlier form) an article on recuiting I had gleamed from San Pedro/South Bay Chapter’s newsletter written by Chapter President Cdr Don Mitchell. Well lo and behold today it received it’s only comment and it’s a good one. You have to just click here for it - http://www.cal-moaa.org/blog/2005/05/12/san-pedrosouth-bay/#comments  The author is also the one behind the notification about the September 16th Area 8 group meeting. This is always a well attended, rotating host chapter, annual meeting. It will be even more so this year since they are having MOAA President VAdm Ryan as guest speaker. Luncheon reservation forms are available at -

http://www.cal-moaa.org/pdf/Joint-lunch.pdf 

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RECRUITMENT CHALLENGES AHEAD

A Seattle Times Independence Day editorial suggested that elections run best when more of us participate, yet there is now evidence of apathy creeping up in the age scale beyond the 20s to the 30s to the early 40s, not good news for civic involvement, civic health, or of course elections.

Now the younger people often won’t even vote.

Apathetic 20-somethings typically get more involved after they land a job, marry, have children, and buy a house.  But new research data shows a disinterest in civic engagement persisting much longer. 

The trend dovetails with and exacerbates the drop in participation in civic life supposedly brought on by more women working, television, the computer, suburban design, and longer commutes. 

Americans are increasingly separate from family, friends, neighbors, and democratic structures.  Fewer of us attend club meetings, have friends over and make time for family dinners.

 Need more?

A report out of Washington, D.C. July 5th suggests that the popularity of electronic media could be the death knell for tourism at U.S. national parks, according to a study in the July edition of the Journal of Environmental Management.  It looks like the fact more Americans are spending much more time watching movies, surfing the Internet, and playing video games, as well as the cost of gas, will drop future total visits to the parks.

So, difficulties recruiting new members in large part are strategic rather than local structural issues, and it’s making it much harder for many California chapters to recruit new members.

 Robert Putnam, in his book Bowling Alone, says, “…compared with our recent past, we are less connected.  We remain interested and critical spectators of the public scene.  We kibitz, but we don’t play.  We maintain a facade of formal affiliation, but we rarely show up.  We have invented new ways of expressing our demands that demand less of us.  We are less likely to turn out for collective deliberation–whether in the voting booth or in the meeting hall–and when we do, we find that discouragingly few of our friends and neighbors have shown up.  We are less generous with our money and (with the important exception of senior citizens) with our time, and we are less likely to give strangers the benefit of the doubt.  They, of course, return the favor.”

Too bad.  The author goes on to say that civic engagement makes us healthy, wealthy, and wise.

Add to this situation the fact so many military and naval installations in our chapter areas have closed and local Reservists are being deployed multiple numbers of times, leading to problems with individuals and families, and it’s easy to understand the lack of interest in MOAA and local chapter membership, something which is a very low priority with many active duty, Reserve members and veterans.

What’s the response to all this?  What can and should we do, if anything, to keep chapter membership and active participation numbers up and growing?

This might be an issue for consideration and discussion at the upcoming Council “Rally” in Sacramento.   

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MEETING INTERESTING PEOPLE

Somehow I made it to a local MOAA chapter luncheon some years ago. I didn’t know anyone, but soon followed a member to one of the back tables, where we started to get acquainted. He was alone, well dressed and dignified, apparently glad to have my company, looking tired and even hungry. He soon told me he was a member of the chapter, but didn’t seem to know anyone well.

Before long, in the course of the conversation, he told me he had been a high school teacher in Burlingame, CA for more than 30 years, then retired, and was enjoying life. Actually he looked like a high school teacher, with the horned-rimmed glasses and all. Since I had been an Army basic training instructor, I was interested in his work and asked about his teaching experiences. He told me he taught wood and metal shop classes, but also an aviation class.

Now, that was different. A high school shop teacher also teaching an aviation class. I asked him about it and he described all kinds of aviation related topics he taught his students. And he got excited, and was soon telling me how United Airlines at the San Francisco International Airport maintenance facility supported him and his students, donating money and materials.

At one point I asked him if he was an aviator and he told me he was, with service during WWII. I asked him where he learned to fly and where he served. He told me of a couple air facilities in Texas and elsewhere, and how, upon earning his wings, flew an aircraft to Florida, then south of there, across the Atlantic, through the Middle East and on to India, finally arriving in China.

I asked him what kinds of aircraft he flew and he told me fighters. Later he told me specifically it was the Curtiss Tomahawk P-40B. Then it started to dawn on me, and I asked him if he was a part of the American Volunteer Group, General Claire Chennault’s organization of the Burma/China theater, commonly known as the Flying Tigers, and he said that he was. Amazing.

I took a close look at the officer and just wondered what people would think if they knew the wood/metal shop teacher had been a member of the Flying Tigers, even shooting down Japanese aircraft many years ago.

I knew at that moment I was in the company of some very interesting and accomplished officers and their ladies, and I decided to join the chapter and enjoy some wonderful conversations in the days to come.

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Why Recruit?

National MOAA has a new 2006 contest underway and with effort chapters might gain new members and even win a financial prize.

Why do we really need to recruit?

As you launch your new effort, you’ll probably find you may not have the member support you really need, and that’s because there are those who feel there are plenty of members now. Just don’t need any new members. But organizations that are not always bringing in new members lose strength, and on balance chapter membership numbers are going down fast. That’s something all volunteer organizations have in common.

Why should you ask others to join? Why does the chapter need them? Why do you need them?

–There’s strength in numbers
–With more people we can get better ideas
–We can have more skills represented in the group
–We need a “critical mass” to be effective
–Those in authority won’t listen to only a few of us
–It makes us more powerful
–We can’t get what we need from the system alone; we need the chapter

Ok, that’s one perspective, important organizational or public oriented reasons, but there may be other reasons more private and personal for chapter members.

–It’s interesting to hear other people’s stories
–It’s very pleasant to be with other people
–Sometimes conversations with others serve as springboards to new ideas
–Other people think differently, and will help members see things in ways they can’t now
–There is a sense of community that comes from the group; people ask about me when I don’t show up
–We can’t do everything by ourselves; we need the chapter

So, there are benefits of recruiting for MOAA and the chapter, and personal benefits as well.

If your chapter is moving ahead with a “Give Me 10″ campaign, you might want to be ready when others ask why you’re working so hard to recruit. Write down the organizational reasons. Write down the personal reasons.

Chapters are recruiting to replace members lost, those who have died, moved away, members who have developed relationships more interesting than the chapter, those who have burned out. Chapters, on balance, are losing members; obviously if new members are not recruited, numbers decline.

The community changes. New ideas will be needed to meet different times. Perhaps it’s time to find “new blood”. Chapters that have the same officer groups and members year after year may not be interested in trying new technologies (like this weblog), methods, or strategies that may be needed to meet current challenges.

Being able to recruit new members shows the chapter still means something to people today. It’s a test of the organization’s worth and present importance. You might note that one well established fraternal organization in the community that for years would not change its basic appeal. It just wouldn’t recognize that men of the years 1990-2005 were not interested in the same activities that interested men in the 1950’s.

The organization’s newsletter read like the obituary sheet; the most important news were its dying members.

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ONE RECRUITMENT EFFORT OUTCOME

Periodically National MOAA is able to provide chapters with contact information for national members who are not participating with a local chapter. Such lists can be used for recruiting purposes.

This is how a recruiting drive worked out for Silicon Valley Chapter late last year.

The list provided had about 550 names. Working with small groups, and over a period of weeks, all were contacted by mail at least twice and about 15% received followup telephone calls.

The first mailing included a very nice letter invitation to an upcoming general membership meeting luncheon, information about benefits of local chapter membership, and an offer to provide various kinds of support. Enclosed was a copy of the chapter’s current newsletter, a high quality and rather impressive 8 page document.

Some telephone followup calls were made, simply to inquire if the materials had been received, and to extend the luncheon invitation in person.

The second letter was similar to the first, except that it provided more advanced information, an invitation to meet in person, and an offer to provide more extensive support and resources. Again, a copy of the newsletter was enclosed, making sure that the meeting speaker would appeal to a national member visitor.

As before, a number of telephone followup calls were made, again to extend a luncheon invitation, but this time with a focus on determining reasons why the officer appeared not interested in local affiliation.

In the case of both the written, mailed documents and the telephone calls, a maximum effort was made within the context of resources available. It was clear early-on that recruitment drive expenditures would likely exceed total first year dues receipts.

547 solid contacts were made; the chapter gained 12 new members, just about a 2% return. And we’re told that’s a reasonable expectation for a mostly direct mail campaign.

Reasons for turning the offer down were all over the board, from just wanting the national magazine, being geographically too far away, haven’t got the time or interest, and even the implication that a local chapter didn’t offer anything more than National. For whatever reasons, there are hundreds of National MOAA members in the area who choose not to join the chapter.

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NOT PART OF LOCAL CHAPTER?

If you are an officer, or former officer, of one of the uniformed services you might want to consider MOAA National or local chapter membership.

And, if you are already a National member, you might find local chapter affiliation interesting, profitable, and personally satisfying.

We are finding that many National members not affiliated with chapters, or even local chapter members, do not participate actively for a wide variety of reasons, but retain membership in a professional association working hard to make a difference.

–To inculcate and stimulate love of our country and the flag;
–To defend the honor, integrity, and supremacy of our National Government and the Constitution of the United States;
–To advocate military forces adequate to the drfense of our country;
–To foster fraternal relations between all branches of the various services from which our members are drawn;
–To further the education of children of Service personnel;
–To aid active and retired personnel of the various services from which our members are drawn, and their dependents and survivors, in every proper and legitimate manner; and
–To represent their rights and interests when Service matters are under consideration.

There is real value being a part of, and providing resource support for , an organization dedicated to the best interests of the military community.

Why do so many MOAA members choose to participate actively with a local chapter?

They do it because they have devoted themselves to meeting, informing, doing the chapter’s business, sharing a fine meal together, having good fellowship, all within the context of a common bond.

They do it because they’re interested, often times need something worthwhile to do, enjoy the people and camaraderie, have some fun, and other reasons.

But in large part, MOAA members see themselves as part of a military oriented world changing community, motivated by the opportunity to make a difference.

Full information about membership and the location and contact information for local chapters can be obtained by going to the MOAA National website, www.moaa.org.

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DOWN DOWN DOWN

Recently when asked the question, “How many members do you have?” the president of an Air Force Association chapter replied, “About 800. But we’re dying. All the military organizations are dying!”

Here are some membership numbers:

Chapter 99 00 01 02 03 04 05

Marin County 394 355 298 263 230 199 164

Solano County 313 302 283 300 237 238 235

Contra Costa County 208 222 209 232 219 206 206

East Bay 256 236 ******Out of Business******

Monterey County 270 254 221 214 200 185 169

Silicon Valley 699 573 473 436 422 357 349

San Francisco 298 293 149 128 128 129 112

Santa Cruz 53 52 53 69 102 108 98

Sacramento 826 809 714 615 540 569 373

Orange County 304 297 258 219 217 199 185

Palm Springs 148 162 153 124 103 113 109

Riverside/March Field 593 581 534 534 515 480 418

San Diego 286 238 243 266 256 196 190

Will we ever make the TROA to MOAA transition, attract the younger active duty and active Guard and Reserve officers, and grow chapter memberships?

If ever there was a time for us to come together, raise these issues and others, have some discussions on line or otherwise, and take decisive action, it’s now.

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