Some thoughts about BA-MARC - Jeff Bray W1GRS
As requested--and a good idea at that--it's good to take time and think about what our group means to us and what we mean to our group. Some years ago, I was a member of a jazz band (Sax and drums when they would let me). That was harder than a marriage, but the same questions applied; am I good for the group, is the group good for
me... A band is dependent on its musicians in order to make music.
MARC is like a band when we consider the mission of providing communications support to other groups and their activities. The group (MARC) depends on each rider and radio to keep a communications net active.
Beyond working events, we wouldn't be talking about this if we were not all interested in motorcycling and ham radio; both of which we could each pursue without ever being in any sort of group, but here we are. For me, the group is a superset of our interests nurtured only by our desire to do so.
Managing by committee (officers) gets us into the politics that naturally grow out of any group. I think we need to be aware of the control issues this might lead to. As long as we keep things informal (unofficial, non political) and at the same time take responsibility for the care and feeding of our group, we will all enjoy working and playing together.
To this end, we need to determine what ongoing activities are required to keep our group running (money, newsletter, flyers, monthly meeting, weekly net, and so forth). Then, those of us who want to take on managing one of these tasks, can do so. Beyond the routine activities, there are special projects, such as rider skills training, and building a net control van that can add
to the experience of each member.
Thanks for listening,
-Jeff
