Membership: What Does Being a Member Mean?

Cambridge Dictionary defines a member as: “a person, animal, or thing that is part of a group.” It’s rather a simple word with a simple meaning; but maybe not when we apply it to our sport of dogs.

Our dog clubs have members, but are they really a part of the club? Do they apply for membership only to get voted in and then not come to a meeting, event, or do anything more than pay annual dues?

Perhaps they join a dog club and try to be “part of the group,” but then don’t feel welcomed or included. Maybe the current membership is so tight they can’t break into it; or the club is run mainly by a faction. Maybe they are new to the sport and feel uncomfortable. Or it’s possible they just thought they would fit in the dog world, but don’t.

Most of my clubs are in the lane of trying to attract new members, while sharing the workload of their club with existing members and even helping some long-time seat holders find a way to let go and let another member learn or take on a task or seat.

Members in dog clubs are expected to be a part of our community by attending meetings, helping/volunteering at events, etc. But then, when they don’t, what do clubs do or need to do?

I think we need to bring more and more new people into our clubs. But I also feel we should consider starting new folks as “associate members,” so they do understand they need to attend meetings and contribute. Otherwise, it’s just a name on a list that paid the club $15-25.

Then there’s the other side. Something that I have successfully proposed for one of my clubs is to offer longtime members who’ve moved away or aged-out, so to speak, an Honorary Associate Membership. This is to honor their longtime support of the club, but also to help club quorums for people who are not going to participate, and yet, it still allows those individuals to stay up on what is happening in the club they were once really engaged with!

Now I’d like to flip my thoughts a bit to say, many people join a club and are excited, energized, and ready to help. Then they try to volunteer… and are told, “Oh, that committee is full,” or “You aren’t ready for that role,” or one of my least favorites, “They don’t have the ability or bandwidth to do that job.” Many members have very high skill sets overall, yet, we judge them. Shame on us!

The other situation I currently see is people volunteer to do something, then they don’t (a variety of reasons why) and say, “Oh, sorry, this or that.” I/we get it. We understand “life happens,” but please do not wait until the 11th and half hour to speak up and say you will not finish the task you stepped up to do. I must add that this feels like a completely different value or accountability system than I am used to, as never in my wildest dreams would I say I am gonna do something and then say, “No, sorry.”

We are a “sport” of dogs, right? So, thinking of sports and sports teams, if someone on the “team” did not play/perform, do they stay or get replaced? The reverse applies as well. When a player wants to play but is never put in, do they stay or leave?

I’ve managed a fair number of people in business; but business (the workplace) is far different from the volunteer world. I have also coordinated volunteers for other organizations, from Girl Scouts (and I will add, my values come from Girl Scouts) to local, regional, and national agriculture associations, to even political entities. Our dog show world is more than a little different, and I honestly don’t know why. Well, maybe I do.

Maybe the difference is that we are a “hobby-based” world, versus any sort of “service or business-based” group. In agriculture, people unite together in their associations (clubs) and work together promoting their “industry,” so they can sell their products. In service groups, from Girl Scouts to the Red Cross and Churches, they are bound tightly based on a strongly held values system. I don’t believe dog clubs have any of those foundational elements.

We seem joined by things like running around in left-handed circles, and wanting ribbons, rankings, and even titles more than breeding or growing/saving our sport.

My final parting thought is: If I was in charge of the AKC (laughing very loudly out loud), I would want to investigate becoming member-based like the AAA, AARP, NRA, etc. Imagine if 13 to 14 million people in the US who have purebred dogs paid the AKC $10 in dues—CHA-CHING!

Thanks for reading my thoughts about membership. I’d sure welcome hearing your thoughts.