Thanks to all who answered our survey, we received many valuable comments! Here is a summary of what you told us, with some answers to your queries.
Newsletter: Many liked the new format with links to existing articles, but we also found many members are nostalgic for the old print edition. Unfortunately, we discontinued the print edition because smaller membership these days makes it difficult to find volunteers willing to do the publishing and mailing work, and because of the expense. One possibility is a return to the pdf newsletter that you can print yourself, but our goal right now is to draw you to the WKC website, which is essentially one big evolving newsletter! By the way, our membership is now growing again.
ACA: There was a resounding cheer for dropping the American Canoe Association membership requirement.
Clinics and Trips: Some said they dropped their membership because of limited trip and workshop opportunities. Be assured, club leadership is fully devoted to providing more paddling opportunities for club members. I think the club calendar today shows we are having some success! This newsletter and website is part of that effort – to communicate to you what the club has to offer, and to draw more members into the fold. And more trips are coming, I know many people who are still actively planning. Our next survey will be to gauge interest in clinics, seminars and classes. We have plans to provide them if you want them!
Trip Calendar: We used to publish a list of trips for the whole year in an easy to read format covering a small number of pages. This was a good idea, so such a list is now available under the Events menu tab. We’ll try to keep it up to date. But the event calendar itself can also provide such a list – that oval floating thing on the right of the web page has a magnifying glass icon on it that can be used to filter the calendar according to event type, date, etc. It’s most convenient when looking at the calendar in list format. This is more effective than the old color-coding system, which we are also attempting to use.
Social events: I really liked the suggestion to have more club get-togethers. We’re still trying to figure out whether to restart monthly presentations or to do something different, like frequent picnics. If this interests you, you’re welcome to join our fun team. We’d love your ideas, assistance and enthusiasm!
~ Dave Ortland