WBCCI and local Units

[wheel interested]

Originally Posted by 2airishuman

squeeeeeeekie wheel......

old people can be down right stubborn some times....especially when they are officers......of a club.

I have been told those are the members that others refer to as the "red coats."

i'd call or email to ask if you can stop buy the officers home and pick up the goods......and share a cup o' tea....

Take tea and talk---TNT (?) Sounds volitile to me.

if the policy was started after you paid the $$$ and wasn't stated in the membership application or materials....seems you have cause to request a refund.

It was just implimented, last week the treasurer could not remember if she had indeed mailed it to me or not and asked me.

could also send a note to h/q in jc....

I did think about that. It doesn't seem right. If membership dues are solicited by phone and paid by mail, why would you now all of a sudden have to be in attendance to get what you paid for? Albeit it's not much, but for $55.00 I get my directory and BB, and from the unit for $15.00 I get my newsletter .pdf and I should get a local members directory and badge. That is support in my book, and not to be sneared at. There is also principle involved.

On a more positive note, I received my Tin Can Tourists membership package and was surprised by even getting a lapel pin along with our cards and decal. Looking forward to my first TCT rally this spring.

[Condoluminum]

We too joined a Unit in Calif that won't mail badges.. Didn't slow us down at last year's Rose Parade Rally (though people kept asking where ours were..). We just politely introduced ourselves and all was well..

Could be a challenge for International in Salem, which may be our next WBCCI event, as their printed registration materials (paid and committed) indicate unit name badges are required... Unless we can find time and motive for one of two remaining fairgraound rallies, we may have to try the TNT approach...

John McG

[65GT]

These are just more examples of a broken system. While local units are independent, there should be some oversight by the region. They should be reviewing local unit policies looking for red flags that could cause a member not to join or not to review. In this instance their policies could have influenced a members' judgment that could have landed them in harms way.

If Carol really wanted her materials (and it's obvious she does) should her decision to be cautious with bad weather predicted be influenced by being told the only way she was going to get her materials was to show up at the luncheon?

I would have to believe that if any Region 4 officers peer through this forum they'll have some raised eyebrows over what Carol just went through. Their concern should be much bigger than just the events of this morning.

__

[thenewkid64]

I may be wrong, but any member that wants badge holders, or other WBCCI materials can buy them from Jackson Center. There is a table at the big rallies that sell it all, at least at FSR and International. Each unit has it's own policy on supplying badges to their members. I have been in units that require each member to purchase he badges, etc Other units supply the first one at no charge.

I too agree that this is a bad policy, making you show up to get the materials. It seems like an act of coercion to make you participate, even if you cannot or do not want to.

[LuminumTraila]

wheel interested -- after reading your post I have to say I'm both shocked and angry to see a club that I pay dues to behaving this way, even if it's not the particular unit I belong to. I think this would be a good example to write up for the training manual on how NOT to manage a WBCCI unit.

To myboyburt and other NEUnit members and officers -- THANK YOU! for making our unit one that's so easy to belong to .

The more I think about it, the more it seems that he easiest and maybe the fastest way to change WBCCI would be to have more breakaway units start up. The newer units, less rigid and less concerned over rules, bylaws, and mandates, and more concerned with Wally's idea of fun and fellowship (like our N.E. unit), would move forward and grow with the younger (or young at heart and mind) while the older units would continue in their old ways until they just die off.

[Pahaska]

We signed up 9 new members at the Vintage Rally which ended yesterday. By nightfall, my wife who is 2nd VP of the unit and also the Mentoring Chairman had, by email from the Membership Chairman, the names, addresses, and email addresses of the new members. As I speak, she is selecting a mentor for each new member. We try to get a mentor who lives fairly close to the new member.

The Treasurer, I am sure, is just as busy getting membership materials out to the new folks. We were caught somewhat flat footed by the number of new membrs, so we will print additional unit directories for each of them.

We will telephone to remind folks of the first few rallies and luncheons after they join. We will also keep in touch with the additional two couples that indicated that they want to join us in the near future.

We have recently added two couples that belonged to other units and one lady was President of her former unit. They all rave about the night and day difference in our unit compared to their former units. The lady who was President said that she was up against a stone wall trying to get anything done in her former unit.

We have one younger member who set up an informal rally in mid-summer when the unit doesn't ordinarily schedule rallies because so many members travel. His rally has become an annual event and he continues it even though he currently doesn't own an Airstream and is not now a member. We list it on our rally schedule and 12 to 15 members attend each year.

[wheel interested]

Originally Posted by dougjamie

wheel interested -- after reading your post I have to say I'm both shocked and angry to see a club that I pay dues to behaving this way, even if it's not the particular unit I belong to. I think this would be a good example to write up for the training manual on how NOT to manage a WBCCI unit.

To myboyburt and other NEUnit members and officers -- THANK YOU! for making our unit one that's so easy to belong to .

The more I think about it, the more it seems that he easiest and maybe the fastest way to change WBCCI would be to have more breakaway units start up. The newer units, less rigid and less concerned over rules, bylaws, and mandates, and more concerned with Wally's idea of fun and fellowship (like our N.E. unit), would move forward and grow with the younger (or young at heart and mind) while the older units would continue in their old ways until they just die off.

I am trying to get to the fun part and make all these warm friendships. I'm trying to get involved, or at least work up incentive to get involved. They do make it hard...

[62 Overlander]

Originally Posted by myboyburt

Your unit's approach is much different then the approach of my unit. Our motto is: "It's just camping" and our attendance at unit events has increased quite a bit since we adopted this way of looking at/running things.

This is the way the group we camp with feels. So much so that we formed a new unit - The Heart of Texas Camping Unit. Most of us are working families that would prefer a more relaxed outing. We pick a time and place to camp and we show up and have fun. Pot luck breakfasts and suppers, which are optional, and the rest of the time is your time. No business meetings, no dues just getting together and camping for the fun of it.

[GStephens]

It takes our collective skills to make a great community and that is true for our organization. It is probably the strength of PAHASKA's group. In addition to pleasant personalities and genuine friendships, virtually everyone contributes in one way or another. Great rallys don't just happen, they take a lot of planning and work. At this weekend's rally PAHASKA's unit was publicized on the internet, in local newspapers and on TV. Over fifty units showed up. A number had to go to nearby campgrounds or come in for the day on Friday or Saturday. Probably fifty unexpected people came for various meals yet no one went without. Activities included live music, tours of vintage and modern Airstreams, a powerpoint history of the development of Airstream, door prizes, a swap meet, tours of new trailers, seminars, various opportunities for socialization, awards for unique restorations of vintage units, and a concerted effort to make EVERYONE feel welcome. All of that takes a lot of hard work and probably no one works harder than Kay and John; however the real strength of PAHASKA's unit is that everyone gets involved and they all share their respective skills to make each rally an enjoyable experience. I never heard a negative comment by anyone - member or non-member. I heard nothing but glowing compliments. I am confident that is one reason that we gained nine new members on one weekend and have the possiblity of gaining another two or three. They can sense the great times we have and they can see that as a group this group is not married to past memories of greatness but is rather commited to making a great future through hard work and a welcoming atmosphere.
GStephens

[wheel interested]

What about the strongest units helping weaker units get up to speed? Or maybe extend region from Texas to New England?

[myboyburt]

Originally Posted by GStephens

I Great rallys don't just happen, they take a lot of planning and work. At this weekend's rally PAHASKA's unit was publicized on the internet, in local newspapers and on TV. Over fifty units showed up. A number had to go to nearby campgrounds or come in for the day on Friday or Saturday. Probably fifty unexpected people came for various meals yet no one went without. Activities included live music, tours of vintage and modern Airstreams, a powerpoint history of the development of Airstream, door prizes, a swap meet, tours of new trailers, seminars, various opportunities for socialization, awards for unique restorations of vintage units, and a concerted effort to make EVERYONE feel welcome

With the exception of the rally being publicized on TV. How did you guys get this done?

BTW, I wish I was there, sounds like it was a blast!

[GStephens]

As stated in an earlier post, we are fortunate enough to have officers with vision and members willing to help them get things done. Something like this requires a lot of good people doing a lot of things right and we managed to do that.
We also got it done by deciding that we wanted a fun rally and that we wanted to reach not only the members of our Texas Highland Lakes Unit and members of other Texas WBCCI units, but that we wanted to make the rally really attractive to those who might for various reasons traditionally not attend functions such as this rally. In fact our officers PRIMARILY seemed to design this rally so that it would be fun and informative for non members and those whose trailers are not yet ready for the campsite. We tried to make everyone feel welcome and have something for everyone to do. We even attempted to identify all FORUM members at registration and identified them by campsite and name tag so that fellow forum members would have the opportunity to meet each other. Several times during meals, FORUM members were asked to raise their hands to further identify themselves and better facilitate getting to know each other.
I feel our efforts were appreciated by those in attendance. We received numerous compliments concerning what a great time people were having. Just in case we did something right, we invited the leadership of WBCCI so they could see what works. We had the immediate past WBCCI International President and the current International 3rd Vice President in attendance as well as every officer of the Texas/Oklahoma Region (Region 9). In fact, both of the International officers and a number of the Regional officers are members of our Texas Highland Lakes Unit. Hopefully, we are bringing back fun into the equation from without and within. We’re trying.
GStephens

[BowlingAlone]

My wife and I joined WBCCI in July of 2005. Our first outing with the local unit was at an August picnic. The people we met were friendly but not inviting. Almost 50% of the older folks that did say something to us said they no longer owned campers. The only people that took the time to sit and talk was another young (late forties) couple who informed us they would not be coming back.

We decided first impressions were not always right so we decided to attend the October installation rally. The rally was at a private campground that put the trailers so close to each other that our awning just missed the unit next door. The sites were grass but quickly turned to mud as it rained all weekend. We did not see anyone visit trailer to trailer. Ok we thought. It’s the rain! The rain is keeping everyone inside.

The installation rally gave us our first solid hint of a problem. It was formal, regimented, and tired. It was not fun or exciting. Everyone seemed to be on auto pilot. They went through the motions of a meeting but there was no life. It just seemed dead. We were stunned when we received the 2006 rally schedule and learned it was completely based on a retired person’s availability. The schedule was not friendly to working families with kids in school. We were effectively shut out of the camping season. This left picnics and winter events.

We received our second hard hint of a problem when the unit’s November dinner was announced. A local retirement center offered a free dinner to the entire unit as part of a recruiting program for new residents! It took days before my wife stopped laughing about this. Needless to say we skipped the November outing.

Attending the Christmas dinner was our next big adventure. Since I grew up in the sixties and watched a few episodes of leave it to beaver I have an idea of how things used to be. The dinner was like entering a time capsule. The friendships shared by the members were genuine and solid. They sang together, told poems, and played music. There was an obvious bond between them that many younger people would long to be a part of, but it was a bond based on a generation we do not belong to.

We did not fit in. The only couple that decided to sit at our table was the hospitality team and it was obvious they would rather be setting with their friends. They did not intentionally make us feel separate from them but there was a wall between us. The wall was become solid when they told our 15 year old daughter she was not a member of the unit. They did not intend to hurt her feelings because everyone knew kids were not members. It should be noted that the first president of our region later sent us a personal letter with the official WBCCI membership rules attached. It seems you need to own an Airstream to be a member and since most kids don’t own airstreams they are not members.

Perhaps we were expecting too much to believe these people would understand the fragile nature of a child’s desire to be accepted. We wondered if WBCCI culture was family based, or biased toward retired persons. In the end we found it more trouble then it was worth..

We spent the month of January reviewing our experience. We came to the conclusion that there comes a time in a unit’s life when there is no turning back. The sad thing about this is that this unit is very much aware of the direction they are going. They are just too far along to change, and too tired to try.

We will keep our WBBCI membership for a while to see if things change, but we will not renew with the local unit. In the mean time we sent out feelers to Good Sam units, and FCRV chapters in our area. We joined one Good Sam unit last weekend to see what they are like and had a great time.

Sorry for the length of this posting but I wanted to share the experience of a new WBCCI member that does not live in the region 9 area. Almost makes Texas seem attractive!

Terry

[wheel interested]

Originally Posted by BowlingAlone

We did not fit in. The only couple that decided to sit at our table was the hospitality team and it was obvious they would rather be setting with their friends. They did not intentionally make us feel separate from them but there was a wall between us. The wall was become solid when they told our 15 year old daughter she was not a member of the unit. They did not intend to hurt her feelings because everyone knew kids were not members. It should be noted that the first president of our region later sent us a personal letter with the official WBCCI membership rules attached. It seems you need to own an Airstream to be a member and since most kids don’t own airstreams they are not members.


Terry

Insult onto Injury

Terry,

As I started reading your experiences and disappointments I thought to myself that you encountered such as many of us have had, but when I got to the part about your daughter I knew that this was far worse, it wasn't a matter of disappointment, it was an emotional assault, however insensitive to that fact the person was when they said it. As I read on about the president's letter, I thought, oh, good, an apology to you and your family was sent. Then I read they hit you with the rule book! That is the best example of the worst experience that I have heard. And I for one am sorry.