formalizing a club

[Quinn]

at tony's house those of you that were there will remember that there was a discussion on formalizing a calgary reef club. the idea didn't seem to have much support.

i don't understand the rules and bylaws on this type of thing (assuming there are some), but it sure would be interesting to attempt to bring some speakers in, or at least have some type of semi-formal meeting with presentations and so on.

the reason i post this is because i noticed on ron shimek's site today that he resides in montana, naturally only a hop skip and jump across the border. what are the chances of bringing someone like him up for a presentation at some point in time? considering the fact that he speaks at a fair number of conferences and such, perhaps he is exorbidantly priced and difficult to book... you'd probably have to advertise in the shops to get enough people to come out, and even then you might not get enough :?

any thoughts on this?

[Delphinus]

Well ... I for one am still really into the idea of one day formalizing for exactly that reason: if we have a group it is easier to attract speakers to come give a presentation.

The basic impediment to bringing in speakers is cost. Unlike Rob Toonen who happened to be in town anyways last year, usually a society who invites a person needs to reimburse their travelling expenses, plus perhaps a small honorarium. So the kicker is, if only 5 people are interested, it kind of gets expensive. But if you have more, it's less expensive but the flipside is it's really hard to manage a large group of people. That's where the rules and bylaws come into play, whenever you start collecting funds you have to have accountability and so on.

I agree, I don't know what kind of honorarium Dr. Ron would fetch. But it might not be that bad. Never know until you ask!

I bet that, if we could advertise hard enough, and get buy-in from the stores, and the Calgary Aquarium Society, and perhaps even the marine biology crowd at the U (OK ... maybe a bit far fetched, but Dr. Ron does sometimes teach at Bamfield which has an afiliation with UofC!) ... it could be a worthwhile endeavor to do this someday, somehow...

[Seriak]

Well, as I am in the finance and accounting area, I would be willing to volunteer my services in those areas. Also, I would be willing to contribute to a formalized reef society.

Anyone else?

[Canadian Man]

I'm in and always will be and always have been.

[wayner]

I'm in too, providing we don't have to go on bottle drives or sell garbage bags door to door, I have 2 kids in hockey, been there, done that, never again, from now on its " Where's the check book Dear"

[Quinn]

well if it comes down to it i can throw something in, website or flyer-wise.

[Bob I]

It would not be terribly hard to do. We need to write a Constitution, which explains the purpose of the society. Also a simple set of bylaws, which states the requirements of the members. In addition we need a dues structure, What we need in the way of officers, and their election. We also need to decide on a year end, and when annual meetings are to be held. There may be more, but that is the basics. If you want to register under the Societies Act, the bylaws need to be submitted to them, along with some fees I think. Who wants to do all this?? please step forward. :P

[Quinn]

hmm i have to write a resolution for a model united nations thing in edmonton at the end of the week (poli sci class)... :P probably should leave this to a calgarian with more life experience than me though.

[kari]

I agree with the aboves and will throw in my empties (remaider in cash +/-) :shock:


kari

[EmilyB]

I don't know, I could be wrong, but after the Seattle visit, I am thinking sponsorship is a HUGELY important part of the required funding..... :shock:

I mean can you really see any of OUR local LFS sponsoring a visit from Ron Shimek? Do they even know who he is ?