[Hosser]

Ive been looking in to joining a reef club around where I live and it seems that the majority are very political. Maybe its Florida law that established groups be legalized or something but a casual monthly "get-together" or something where its free to join and doesnt really have much more than to it then discussions and trading if wanted. No president, treasurer, etc. If anyone has any idea how hard it would be to do such a thing let me know haha, Id love to join or start something similar but then again I cant make a club my life unfortunatly ( I have to work like most everyone else)

[jimw369]

Originally Posted by hosser

Ive been looking in to joining a reef club around where I live and it seems that the majority are very political. Maybe its Florida law that established groups be legalized or something but a casual monthly "get-together" or something where its free to join and doesnt really have much more than to it then discussions and trading if wanted. No president, treasurer, etc. If anyone has any idea how hard it would be to do such a thing let me know haha, Id love to join or start something similar but then again I cant make a club my life unfortunatly ( I have to work like most everyone else)

Thats what a club is Be thankful there are those people with the time and are willing to fill those positions so you can be part of an organized group also. I cant say enough for the officers in the 2 clubs I belong to. They are the salt of the earth. No pun intended.

YOU CANNOT DO ANY BETTER THAN JOINING A LOCAL ENTHUSIASTIC CLUB!
The benefits are unbelievable. Thre is nothing better than meeting others serious reefers face to face.


Belonging to a club means you help support your hobby and not just participate in it.

[Hosser]

Well, maybe its just the ones Ive looked in to but a 300 dollar a year fee and mandatory sessions arent something I can do . But something more casual would be nice. Paying a little is fine like this site, but most Ive seen here dont seem to like newcomers anyways. I will keep searching

[jimw369]

Originally Posted by hosser

Well, maybe its just the ones Ive looked in to but a 300 dollar a year fee and mandatory sessions arent something I can do . But something more casual would be nice. Paying a little is fine like this site, but most Ive seen here dont seem to like newcomers anyways. I will keep searching

Please tell me the name of the club you have looked at. I would love to talk to them.

[Hosser]

I will try and find it again it took me forever to find it originally, some of us poor folk cant afford much more than a McD's meeting haha

[pogodzib]

I started our local reef club exactly the way that you describe - no fees, officers, ext... We meet every 1 1/2 -2 months to socialize, trade frags, and see each other's tanks. There are other clubs in our area that are much more organized, and for the most part, I think they have less interest and people at their meetings than we do. I think it is because without the fees and attendance requirements, anyone can come at any time so you meet more new people and because their is no officers, it is easier to view everyone as equals. Having a less organized club also allows people to come and go as they please and not need to feel that they have to sit through non-reef related stuff like voting for the officers and discussing finances. All you really need is one person that is willing to setup meetings and post it in your club forum.

[ianizaguirre]

haha any clubs in miami

[pyromaniac398]

What clubs have you found...when I looked I couldn't find any

[jimw369]

Originally Posted by pogodzib

I started our local reef club exactly the way that you describe - no fees, officers, ext... We meet every 1 1/2 -2 months to socialize, trade frags, and see each other's tanks. There are other clubs in our area that are much more organized, and for the most part, I think they have less interest and people at their meetings than we do. I think it is because without the fees and attendance requirements, anyone can come at any time so you meet more new people and because their is no officers, it is easier to view everyone as equals. Having a less organized club also allows people to come and go as they please and not need to feel that they have to sit through non-reef related stuff like voting for the officers and discussing finances. All you really need is one person that is willing to setup meetings and post it in your club forum.

Thats interesting. With ARC it seems to be the opposite. The organized group always has something going on from power buys to all the great speakers they bring in. The people that are not members are always whinning they cant participate in the power buys, get 10% off at local LFS and sell there own corals/frags on the club website. For $30 bucks and to attend one meeting a year sems a little price to pay for the possible benefits. Those that are wanting to dive further into the hobby soon find and make new buddies with the same level of interest as themselves have. It seems a little clicky to some but it works. Im glad I joined. Has really kept my interest in the hobby.

I think Brian and I will both agree that association with other reefers on a personal level is a great way to advance in the hobby!

[Hosser]

If I knew more about reef keeping I would try and set something up locally, however even with decent orginizational skills I doubt I would know where to begin to even get started. Maybe get a simple sign up sheet or something at the LFS and see what happens. Logan, if you know anyone else around Sarasota in the hobby do you think they would do a simple thing every other month or so ?

[WILLIAM1]

I agree ARC is a fabulous for me becuase I live in Atlanta....

[pyromaniac398]

Ya I know a few people. Send me an email with detail of what you are thinking about

[pogodzib]

ARC and LARK may do things different when it comes to membership fees, attendance requirements, etc... as as you will see, both ways can work great. In the larger cities in the midwest, having a club with membership fees and attendance requirements seem to work pretty decent, but in areas smaller than 200,000+ people, not having membership fees or other requirements seem to work good. From what I have seen over the years, three things need to be accomplished to sustain a reef club in a community. They need to be organized with good leadership, the clubs are setup in a way that works good for the local reef keepers, and they need to be flexible. The only way that you can figure out the second one is to talk to other local reef keepers that are interested in having a club and seeing what works good for everyone.