Recently Ian gave us a hilarious statistic, the proportion of 'oldie' BCSS members that will soon need to be replaced !
Well, his spirited recruitment drive was a success, I did the deed via PayPal* just now !!
I thought that I should do it before it was too late LOL.
I wanted to add this note to that topic (I think it was the discussion about the new logo ?) but cannot find it, does anyone have a copy of those proportions ?
*It's real easy via PayPal
Last edited by MalcolmP2 on Tue Jun 04, 2019 4:51 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Despite comments elsewhere --- I think it's value for money.
AND ........
My daughter has just joined ..... it's about the Branch and how they see members and the suitable programme!
Endeavouring to grow Aylostera, Echinocereus, Echinopsis, Gymnocalycium, Matucana, Rebutia, and Sulcorebutia. Fallen out of love with Lithops and aggravated by Aeoniums.
Currently being wooed by Haworthia, attempting hybridisation, and enticed by Mesembs.
el48tel wrote: ↑Tue Jun 04, 2019 4:44 pm
I think it's value for money...
and this forum as well
Endeavouring to grow Aylostera, Echinocereus, Echinopsis, Gymnocalycium, Matucana, Rebutia, and Sulcorebutia. Fallen out of love with Lithops and aggravated by Aeoniums.
Currently being wooed by Haworthia, attempting hybridisation, and enticed by Mesembs.
The BCSS is certainly value for money. The Alpine Garden Society offers very similar membership benefits but their subscription is about twice ours! The difference between the two societies is that the AGS has an office and a paid director and some of the officers receive honoraria too. People in the BCSS run the branches and the central society simply for the love of plants.
David Kirkbright leaves his position as Treasurer of the Society, having put it on an extremely sound financial footing. However current Society initiatives (website, rebranding, Lullingstone, etc) are costing us a lot of money and I hope that good metrics are in place to assess the efficacy of such expenditure.
Terry S. wrote: ↑Wed Jun 05, 2019 8:56 am
The BCSS is certainly value for money. The Alpine Garden Society offers very similar membership benefits but their subscription is about twice ours! The difference between the two societies is that the AGS has an office and a paid director and some of the officers receive honoraria too. People in the BCSS run the branches and the central society simply for the love of plants.
David Kirkbright leaves his position as Treasurer of the Society, having put it on an extremely sound financial footing. However current Society initiatives (website, rebranding, Lullingstone, etc) are costing us a lot of money and I hope that good metrics are in place to assess the efficacy of such expenditure.
The society is exceptionally good value for money and coming from a business background I am very aware that we will not waste money.
We are however a registered charity and there are lots of rules around how we manage our funds and there are dictates that we are not allowed to just stockpile funds! However, the website, CWL and even the rebranding are all part of our charitable expenditure as they are promoting education, awareness and more importantly giving advice. We have also managed to give travel bursaries to bone fide students too so that is also good. However, as the general membership trend decreases (over a 5-10 year basis) we will need to address this or our financial position will be impacted. When David retires we have plans to replace him with a qualified accountant so we will still be in good hands financially.
There is only one thing that guarantees to be a big financial drain and that is the risk of doing nothing and letting the society slowly waine.
Terry S. wrote: ↑Wed Jun 05, 2019 8:56 am
The BCSS is certainly value for money. The Alpine Garden Society offers very similar membership benefits but their subscription is about twice ours! The difference between the two societies is that the AGS has an office and a paid director and some of the officers receive honoraria too. People in the BCSS run the branches and the central society simply for the love of plants.
David Kirkbright leaves his position as Treasurer of the Society, having put it on an extremely sound financial footing. However current Society initiatives (website, rebranding, Lullingstone, etc) are costing us a lot of money and I hope that good metrics are in place to assess the efficacy of such expenditure.
The society is exceptionally good value for money and coming from a business background I am very aware that we will not waste money.
We are however a registered charity and there are lots of rules around how we manage our funds and there are dictates that we are not allowed to just stockpile funds! However, the website, CWL and even the rebranding are all part of our charitable expenditure as they are promoting education, awareness and more importantly giving advice. We have also managed to give travel bursaries to bone fide students too so that is also good. However, as the general membership trend decreases (over a 5-10 year basis) we will need to address this or our financial position will be impacted. When David retires we have plans to replace him with a qualified accountant so we will still be in good hands financially.
There is only one thing that guarantees to be a big financial drain and that is the risk of doing nothing and letting the society slowly waine.
It is heartening to read this, Ian. All good news. If this Society is to continue it needs to grow: this is only going to happen with energetic, committed leadership, good management, a wealth of positive thinking and enthusiasm from the top. Nil carborundum, Ian!
First it was orchids, then, since c.2001, cacti and succulents. I'm into South African plants, mainly conos, lithops and haworthias, with a few cacti, especially 'posh' mamms, turbs and other smalls. Now it’s stapeliads as well...
and I didnt mean it to be this serious ( see my "hilarious" )
anyhows, I have joined now and dont intend to leave this mortal coil just yet.
MalcolmP2 wrote: ↑Tue Jun 04, 2019 4:31 pm
Recently Ian gave us a hilarious statistic, the proportion of 'oldie' BCSS members that will soon need to be replaced !
,,,
but cannot find it, does anyone have a copy of those proportions ?
*It's real easy via PayPal
Yep, real easy, address all filled in already, no bank details to fuss over, just copy/paste recipient's email, et voilá
