Ahoy Mateys – Your Board of Directors, your entire club in fact, is in trouble, again, and we need your help. Similar to the past several years, our board of directors has two empty chairs, again. But that’s not all.
Unfortunately our Vice Commodore and one of our Membership Directors have both had to step down for health or job reasons. We all appreciate Philip Freedman and Roger Butterwick for their service to the Arizona Yacht Club, but we also have to recognize that their departures just widen the gaps that we have been facing now for a couple of years.
Their departure leaves all of us with a challenge. We all need a full board to operate our club and to provide the benefits and value that have kept the AYC alive and active for over 50 years. Frankly, we also need more help AROUND the board of directors too. Your club’s success depends on YOUR participation, above and beyond showing up for racing and occasional RC. Please, don’t wait to be asked. Step up. Ask a Board Member, “What can I do to help?”
Please don’t wait to be asked to do a what you know you can do and you can see needs doing. Step up. That’s what sailors do. For myself, being a latecomer to the sport, that “take care of each other” sailor attitude has always been one of my favorite aspects of sailing. “What can I do to help?” It’s what we do, whether it’s as big as a MAYDAY call, or as small as helping a short handed boat coming into the docks…or a making a couple phone calls, or pumping out the LP “barge” head, or helping to upgrade the rigging on one of our shared TTL boats.
OK, so you ask, “What can I do to help?” Well, here are a few things you can do, some big, some very small and simple but still very meaningful.
1) JOIN THE MEMBERSHIP WELCOME COMMITTEE: This committee will greatly assist the welcoming and “on-boarding” process for our club. We need to be more welcoming and helpful to our new members, but that’s a tall task for the small group left on the Board. This task only asks for one hour a month to make a copule calls and chat about AZ sailing with prospective or new AYC members. This one is EASY! Please contact Brenda Shears to join the Membership Welcome Committee.
2) EQUIPMENT MAINTENANCE COMMITTEE: First here, we can all help here by just being “gentler” on our AYC boats. If we all just treat our AYC boats as if they are our own – they are – and with preparation considerations for the next time they’ll be used, then less maintenance will be needed. Our committee boats and safety boats aren’t “rentals” with a hired staff to perform maintance. We need to care for OUR boats as they are OUR boats, because they ARE OUR BOATS. In addition, just like our own personal boats, AYC boats need routine and even “special projects” efforts now and then. To lend a hand here, please contact Trey Harlow for LP boats and George Tingom for TTL safety boats and to help out with routine maintanance on the ASF/AYC fleet at TTL.
3) VOLUNTEER TO BE THE VICE COMMODORE: This is the biggest request of the bunch because it also implies you will run for Commodore next year and stay on the board the next three years as Commodore, Jr. Staff Commodore, and Sr. Staff Commodore. Primary short term duties for the VC is coordination and editing of Compass Points, and if we had a MARKETING COMMITTEE the VC would also Chair that committee. Contact Emory Heisler (602 / 679 0462) or any Board Member to discuss this position.
YOUR club’s success depends on YOUR participation, above and beyond showing up for racing and occasional RC. Please, don’t wait to be asked.
Step up. Ask a Board Member, “What can I do to help?”
Emory Heisler
AYC Commodore
