We’re opening this article up to allow reader comments, with the hope of getting a discussion going on how we might save the club.  We need volunteers for the 2012 board, and if no one comes forward the club will come to an end.  If you’ve got any thoughts to contribute, please leave a reply below.  To prevent spam, all response posts will be moderated, but it shouldn’t take long for your comments to be published.

And just to get things started, I want to share some thoughts I have.

Door Duty
I think door duty may be one of the things people may dread most about volunteering for the board.  It is not always a lot of fun, having to miss some of the dances (at least in the early part of the evening), because you’re taking admissions money at the door.  It hasn’t been all that burdensome in the past, because we’ve usually had about 12 board members and so each of us has had to do it only about once every three months.  But if we only get about 6 volunteers for the board next year, then each board member will have to do it more often.

I think there are several possible ways to deal with the problem.  In years past the club has paid someone to do door duty.  It didn’t cost all that much, and the person doing it might also perform other, related tasks like managing the beverages and organizing the 50/50.  The club certainly has enough money to do this again.  An alternative might be to have volunteers from the club take turns doing it, so it wouldn’t be just board members who are stuck with the job.

Non-Essential Activities
In prior years the board has spent a large part of its time on activities that were fun and certainly worthwhile, but not absolutely essential to running the club.  For example, we organized a book sale, a bake sale and several silent auctions.  In the coming year, if volunteers for the board were less able to devote a lot of time to the club, these kinds of activities could be reduced, or they might be done using volunteers from the club who are recruited for each event or task.

Board Meetings
During the past year or two, we’ve had board meetings once each month.  They started an hour before the dance and usually lasted about an hour.  In the future, if we wanted, we could hold shorter meetings.  There is no requirement they be held once each month.  The incoming board can schedule meetings wherever and whenever it wants.

Showing Up for Every Dance
Some club members say they don’t want to join the board because they think that they’ll have to show up for every Friday night dance.  That simply isn’t true.  There is nothing in the bylaws that says that.  All we really need is one person, a ‘responsible party’ to be at every dance, just to handle any difficulties or questions that might arise, and to make sure the venue is cleaned up before everyone leaves.  This ‘responsible party’ doesn’t even have to be a board member; it could be someone from the club membership who volunteers to do it on a particular night.

Dances Every Two Weeks, Rather Than Every Week
It has been suggested that we might find it easier to recruit board members if we hold dances once every two weeks rather than once each week.  This may or may not be true.  I personally don’t think it matters, because there is no requirement that board members show up for every dance.

What are your thoughts?
Please don’t hesitate to leave a comment below.

Update, December 10, 2011

At the dance last night a number of club members volunteered for the 2012 board.  We’re out of the woods. Thanks to everyone for sharing their thoughts, and special thanks to the volunteers who stepped forward.

The registration deadline is December 9 for the Christmas Party on December 16 at Swiss Park. Be sure to fill out your Christmas Dinner / Dance Registration Form and either mail it in or drop it off at the Friday night dance. If you run out of time, and can’t do either, give one of the board members a phone call or email the webmaster.

It’s sure to be a load of fun. There will be a happy half-hour, starting at 6:30pm. Dinner starts at 7pm, with your choice of Steak Diane, Chicken Cordon Bleu, Salmon or Pasta Primavera. Evelyn and Denny will be our DJs for the evening, and the dancing will start at 8:30. We’ll be honoring Diana Ward that evening as well. If you can’t make it for the dinner, we hope to see you at the dance.

Note: Our first flyer said the deadline for registration was Dec. 10.  The deadline is actually the end of the Friday night dance on December 9, and the flyer has been updated to correct this.

To keep the club going, we need volunteers who are willing to serve on the board next year.    It doesn’t take much, only a few hours each month.  But without a board, we won’t have a club.  And then we won’t have a place to dance on Friday nights.

Our election process is very simple.  From now until the end of the dance on November 11, club members can volunteer themselves or nominate other club members for the board.  All they have to do is speak to any of the current board members.  Email works too.   Or they can drop their nominations into an election box we’ve provided near the sign-in desk.   Voting will take place at the dances on November 18 and 25.

You have to have been a member for 6 months to get your name on the ballot.  But that’s not really an obstacle, because volunteers are as scarce as hen’s teeth.  If you’re a new member but are willing to put in a few hours each month, just talk with any current board member and we’ll arrange for you to be invited to join the new board as soon as it is organized.