Second report on the 2021 Board of Directors Retreat
By Randy Bissell, Secretary
It seems that every organization is struggling to maintain its membership levels. Churches, photo clubs, soccer leagues, civic organizations are all suffering through a general and consistent decline in membership. Most assuredly, 2020 steepened membership declines and forced many organizations to closure.
Contrary to that depressing trend, the Texas Master Naturalist organization is vibrant and healthy. The South Texas Chapter presently carries about 75 active members; we see healthy participation in meetings and activities; we have money in the bank; and there are very strong prospects for growth. As discussed in my report in February, we have a strong mission that resonates with our community.
In our retreat, your board of directors brainstormed the “biggest challenges we face as a chapter.” They conducted an exercise to prioritize and consolidate the many challenges into a few.
The greatest challenge we see is “passing the baton” within the chapter. This means spreading the duties, knowledge, insights, methods, and our values across the chapter and across generations. We need not wait for elections to encourage and promote leadership. Everyone can serve.
Our second challenge, preventing burnout, goes hand-in-hand with the first. If we mentor and prepare properly, no one ends up stuck in a position they’re tired of. Too often, we remain in a duty too long, believing falsely that no one else can replace us – and no one will help us. Quite honestly, no one of us should be indispensable and every one of us should be willing to help each other. We’re friends.
Working down our list, the Board will strive to offer benefit to our entire community, inside and out, with an intention to be inclusive, fun, engaging, and relevant to members and the people served by us.
Having a broad age group within the Chapter is very positive and powerful. Unlike some organizations that stratify by life experience, we have a singular unifying focus – Nature. Our chapter activities and offerings need to address the ever-changing dynamics of our chapter membership.
Perhaps the most difficult challenge is found towards the bottom. Creating in the hearts of our community the appreciation of the natural Texas. We know that education leads to appreciation, which leads to conservation, and conservation leads to restoration.
Identifying these challenges and sharing them with you provides the Chapter with a sense of priority for decisions and policies. We encourage everyone to be a part of the process of leadership! You simply need to express to any Director or Elected Officer your ideas and thoughts on where you might plug in.
In conclusion, we have a very fine Chapter of the Texas Master Naturalists™ and thank you for participating and being a supportive member!