chaptersinaction Recruit Members
MOAA leaders attended the 2011 Chapter Presidents’ Symposium, which focused on recruiting and retention, chapter management, and ways to improve chapter TOPS programs.
A
nother successful Chap- ter Presidents’ Sympo- sium is on the books, with
the wrap-up of the Midwest region symposium in Kansas City, Mo., Sept. 8-10. This year’s symposium included several important changes. For the first time, a separate training track was established for member- ship chairs, who were invited to learn tips on recruiting new mem- bers for chapters. This department’s main article,
“Building Membership,” talks about the focus on recruiting. It’s part of a broader issue we call meeting the membership challenge. The chal- lenge is how to recruit and retain the next generation of chapter members for MOAA’s chapter system. Today’s 62,000 chapter members belong to 411 chapters and 35 state councils. Membership in MOAA’s chapter sys- tem is optional, leaving less than 20 percent of the association to do some of the heaviest lifting. What about the more than
300,000 nonchapter MOAA mem- bers in the association? This is a
On the road: This month, Col. Lee Lange II, USMC-Ret., director of MOAA’s Council and Chapter Affairs Department, will visit members of the Southwest Virginia Chapter. Go to MOAA Calendar, page 80, for the dates.
great question, and every month, I use this column to try to point out why more MOAA members should take a look at a chapter near them and find out whether some of the things they have wanted to do are being done now in that local chapter. Many of you might have been contacted by one of our chapter leaders who offered you a chapter membership. “What’s in it for me?” you asked. I hope they told you sharing camaraderie with others who have a common set of experi- ences plays a role — and so does having a say in what happens to your benefits through grassroots support of MOAA’s legislative ob- jectives. Don’t forget about giving back to your community in a vari- ety of ways — all this is part of the chapter experience. These days, more than ever, mili- tary people need to stick together in groups like our chapters to have a voice in the debate in Washington, D.C., over where to find deficit reduc- tions. You also will meet some great Americans, and you likely will find there’s a wealth of projects our chap- ters engage in that would interest you, too. Some chapters are running TOPS programs, which offer transition assis- tance to second-career servicemem- bers in their communities. Chapters also offer a venue for speakers and
*online: Visit
www.moaa.org/chapters/locator to find a chapter near you. 42 MILITARY OFFICER DECEMBER 2011
programs chapter members are un- likely ever to see on their own, includ- ing conversations with local, state, and federal legislators and officials. They know about MOAA — and its chapters. We can influence the action, but it will take you as a chapter member to do it. — Col. Lee Lange II, USMC-Ret. Director, Council and Chapter Affairs
Building
Membership Council and chapter leaders exchange ideas.
M
OAA’s 14th annual Chap- ter Presidents’ Sym- posium brought together about 130 council and chapter lead- ers, membership chairs, and chapter TOPS liaisons to develop ways to improve their affiliates and support the national association. During the three-day event, leaders and their spouses from 12 state councils and 56 chapters in MOAA’s Midwest re- gion exchanged ideas with members of MOAA’s board of directors and national staff, including MOAA Presi- dent Vice Adm. Norb Ryan Jr., USN- Ret., and his wife, Judy. Council and chapter leaders at- tended a series of specialized work-
PHOTO: STEVE BARRETT
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