| 1. |
Why is the 2007-08 Budget based off of 100 Regular Members (page 4)? I thought the Club had 150-200 masters rowers. |
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Last year (2006-2007), the Club had approximately 175 masters rowers. Of these members, about 40 are members through LTR. (On page 4 of the
"Dues Proposal" letter,* you will see a line below "Regular" members called "LTR Members."
LTR members are offered a partially-reduced price for their first year with RCRC as an incentive to continue rowing with RCRC. There are about 35 other members who did not pay membership fees last year due to being coaches,
coxswains, plank members, etc., or because of a significant contribution of time and energy to advancement of the Club. (175 - 40 – 35 = 100)
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| 2. |
Where does the money for boats, a new trailer, wakeless launches, a new ramp, the new dock, etc. come from? |
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Membership dues DO NOT pay for any of the above items. The membership dues only pay for operations and maintenance of the Club. Money for boats, a new trailer, new launches, etc. comes
from fundraising, donations, sale of old equipment, and, hopefully in the near future, from grants and solicitations from large companies.
Even if we were to buy none of the above items this year, an increase in the membership dues is needed to cover operations.
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| 3. |
What does the money from the auction, Junior Crew ergothon, etc. go to? |
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Money from fundraising goes towards large equipment (boats) and large capital items (like the trailer or a new ramp).
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| 4. |
Why can’t we use fundraising money for operations? |
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Since we don’t know how much money fundraising will bring in from year-to-year, we can’t budget our operational expenses off of it. Whereas, if we don’t fundraise enough money, we can put off buying a new boat until next year;
what we can’t do is put off paying our bills.
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| 5. |
We’ve applied for non-profit status, right? Can we apply for grants to run the Club? |
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The Club has applied for non-profit status. Approval of non-profit status typically takes from 6 months to 1 year. Once we are officially a non-profit,
we would like to apply for grants. (See page 1 of the "Dues Proposal" letter.*) However, typically, grants are not granted for operations/overhead.
(Operations/overhead is what our dues pay for.) What the grants could end up applying to are equipment purchases, scholarship funds, partial support of a Program Director, etc.
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| 6. |
Why is there a 33% increase in dues this year? Can’t we just raise dues a little bit? |
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We haven’t had a dues increase for 3 years, even though
our expenses have increased. (Please read page 1 of the "Dues Proposal" letter.*)
In 2006, we barely covered our expenses (see page 5) and we have additional
expenses in 2007 that did not occur in 2006 (see page 1; page 2 and/or 4). Our
operational budget for 2007 is projected to be $65,300 and our estimated
income (with the new dues structure) is only $65,600, a $300 difference.
Without raising dues to the proposed amount, we will not cover our expenses for
2007.
Also, please note that the increase in dues is
the equivalent of less than $9 per month.
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| 7. |
I also store a single at RCRC, so my membership and storage fees add up. Is there anything that can be done to lessen this impact? |
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The Board realizes that this is a significant amount
to pay at one time and is looking into options to lessen the impact on members.
(see #9 below)
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| 8. |
I have a child on the Junior Crew/I have a spouse who also rows. Is there a family membership available? |
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The Board realizes that the dues for a family with
several members can be a significant amount if there are multiple family members
involved in the Club. The dues amount is calculated based on how much it costs
to run the Club on a per person basis. If we create multiple membership categories,
with reduced membership prices for certain classes of membership, every other
"Regular Member’s" cost would increase. We still have to cover the operational
costs. For example, if a family membership means that each member of the family
pays $350, instead of $400, those lost dollars would still have to be made up
in order to cover our costs. Members without children or a spouse would end up
subsidizing the reduced membership. Additionally, creating multiple membership
categories
creates a higher level of accounting and budgeting that we are not set-up to
accommodate. (see #9 below)
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| 9. |
I only use the boathouse once a week. Is there a reduced membership for someone like me? |
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Unfortunately, creating multiple membership categories would create a level of accounting and budgeting that we are not set-up to accommodate. The membership fee is based on how
much it costs to run the Club on a per person basis, not a per use basis.
However, even with all of the above, the Board realizes that there is an impact on individuals and families. Now that the details of this year’s budget have been worked out, the Board intends to address
options for payment of storage fees as well as other ways to subsidize the membership of junior crew members who also have a parent member of the Club. While we cannot guarantee that we will be able
to find a solution to these dilemmas this year, we are looking into possible options. Potential ideas include a staggered payment of storage fees (i.e., membership fees are due July 1, boat storage fees are
due September 1) and subsidizing junior crew rowers (who have a parent who’s also a member) through scholarship fund money. If you have ideas about how we could simply accommodate these situations, while still
covering operational costs, please share these ideas with the Board.
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| 10. |
I noticed that I’m now required to contribute 20 hours of volunteer time to the Club. I haven’t had to do volunteer hours in the past, why the change? |
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The Club has always had a volunteer requirement, but has not been specific about the extent to which each club member is expected to contribute. In the past, the majority of the volunteer
effort that has been required to keep the Club functioning has fallen on a small fraction of the membership. The Board decided to quantify the number of hours in order to make sure that all Club members are involved
in Club activities as well as to provide a concrete amount of time so people know what is expected of them. In addition, due in part to the revival of our committees, there will be a large increase in the volunteer
opportunities available this year compared to past years. The Board hopes that Club members will take pride in our Club and help work towards making it a great place to row.
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*
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