Paid vs Unpaid NSPN Members

[prudenceb]

At a recent meeting of the NSPN Board of Directors, we noted that membership numbers are down.

I am writing on behalf of the Board to encourage those of you who are currently unpaid members to either change or update your membership to paid member status. We are aware that some of you have made (repeated) good faith efforts to pay the small annual membership fee of $15 but have run into problems attempting to do so. Many of you may know that we are in the process of making major changes to our club website, and computer glitches may have interfered with your attempts to pay up. (Even a member of the BOD had trouble with this recently!)

If you have attempted to pay the dues but have been unable to, please leave a message on this thread and we will help you resolve the problem.

And if you haven't, please do join up and become full-fledged members of NSPN! The fee is pretty small and the benefits are spelled out on the website. It has been great to see new members becoming involved with the club in the past couple of years, and we'd like that to be the case for you, too!

pru

(prudence baxter, nspn board member)

[Deb Millar]

We have a family membership which I pay when it's due.

However, I'm listed as paid but my husband Bob Clarke, is not.

We go through this routine every year.

I'd love to see this rectified now and not happen in the future.

Deb M.

[prudenceb]

Hi Deb - are you asking for help in getting Bob listed as paid? If so, I'll do what I can. (And believe me, we want to see this get easier for everyone!)

pru

[Deb Millar]

Hi Deb - are you asking for help in getting Bob listed as paid? If so, I'll do what I can. (And believe me, we want to see this get easier for everyone!)

pru

Yes, please do what you can.

Deb

[Doug]

Pru mentioned that we had some website glitches that the board felt was part of the reason our membership is down 35% or so from this time last year. I'm sure some of you became very frustrated by this and simply gave up.

I notice that many of our paid members from past years have stopped renewing their club memberships yet are still very active on paddles and even more so on the forum. It is our paid membership base that helps keep our website going. Software upgrades, website designers, professional fees, annual donations to MITA and facility rentals for free navigation or CAM clinics deplete our resources. We were fortunate enough in the past to have members step up and keep the website fresh and interactive but with the exception of Jason and Rene currently, we have had to seek out paid services beyond our membership to facilitate our current needs.

We are reaching out to those of you that who find value in being part of NSPN to support us as you have done in the past. With this support we will continue be a strong resource for not only the experienced paddler but to those who are just start out with renewed energy and fresh ideas.

If your having any difficulty at all with your membership renewal, free to contact me at (Doug at NEBM dot net) if you feel you'd rather not post your concerns publicly on this thread. People in a non-member status do not have the ability to PM other members. I'd be happy to facilitate a speedy resolution. Phone calls to board members can work as well.

Thanks for your continued support.

Doug

[Phil Allen]

Is there thought of altering the access members and non-members have to various parts of the board? I know the idea of limiting postings in the classified section to members only came up in the annual meeting.

best

Phil

[josko]

From an outsiders' point of view, NSPN could use a few more trips. I've been lurking and posting here occasionally but really looking for an opportunity to meet you on the water. Either I'm looking in the wrong place, or there re precious few trips being announced here. I understand there were more NSPN trips in years past. Could that be linked to a membership dip?

[rfolster]

From an outsiders' point of view, NSPN could use a few more trips. I've been lurking and posting here occasionally but really looking for an opportunity to meet you on the water. Either I'm looking in the wrong place, or there re precious few trips being announced here. I understand there were more NSPN trips in years past. Could that be linked to a membership dip?

A bit off topic, so I am starting a new thread called Quality of NSPN Membership. Feel free to check it out.

[PeterB]

NSPN is a pretty open organization; In the way our website is set up and the way we operate, its fairly easy for non members or unpaid members to participate in many club activities; (our message board, club events and paddles) If, on one extreme, every club activity and every bit of our website is only available to members , we then have too many “gates” between ourselves and the community of kayakers outside ourselves, and we risk becoming insular and in danger of stagnation. If, on the other extreme, all of our paddles & activities are open and there is unlimited access to our website and message boards, there is no incentive or reason for anyone to be a paying member. For instance, if you don’t have to be a member to sign up for a pool session, or attend a workshop or club training or pool session , or post a trip on the website, then there is really no reason to be a club member, other than your personal motivation to do so.

We try to strike a balance between these two extremes, and I think we lean more in the direction of openness than exclusivity. So, as a fairly “open” club, with many past and present members, we really are dependent on the voluntary membership of those of you who involve yourselves with the club by whatever degree you choose.

I think the amount of money that is in question here is quite insignificant; for instance, members of church denominations are often expected to contribute money in the hundreds and even thousands of dollars, our membership fee is $15 at this time, so its unlikely that in most instances a decision to renew or not is about the money. But it is significant in what it means to NSPN and its ability to operate.