CASM was selected by IPMS as Chapter of the Year. Please click on the link to read President Ken Childres' remarks on behalf of CASM about receiving this award. Congratulations CASM!
CASM was selected by IPMS as Chapter of the Year. Please click on the link to read President Ken Childres' remarks on behalf of CASM about receiving this award. Congratulations CASM!
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Is becoming a member of anything an idea from the past or an idea for the future? This is a day and age where people interested in any topic, modeling being one of them, can obtain a lot of information about the topic electronically while never having to identify themselves. If a person wanted to find out how to mask an aircraft canopy, for example, or have other people see their model and provide comments, for another, then all they have to do is an internet search or post on an electronic forum in cyberspace. Is their any value to coming together as a group, in person, to do the same thing? The CASM E-Board addressed these questions several years ago along with a fundamental question: Are model clubs an idea from the past that has been replaced by current technology?
In the past, there really was no way to exchange ideas with people, in real time, other then to meet with them, face-to-face. Today, there are many ways to meet with people that are not face-to-face and still “get what you want.” So, why in the world would anyone want to become a member of a club? Clubs and organizations have responded over the years to these questions by developing reasons to join. There are benefits that come to those who join. Those benefits run a full range, depending on the organization, that primarily includes discounts on services of many kinds. The basic premise became: the reason to join an organization is because of what you can get by being a member that you otherwise would be unable to get if you were not a member. Lost in the analysis is a concept from the past. I can recall a time when people wanted to become a member of something because there was a pride in being associated with a group of people. The “benefit” of joining was the feeling that came from being identified as a member of a specific group; to be accepted by people who had a similar interest in something. There came with this idea a sense of “pride” to be known as a person who was part of a specific organization. A year-and-a-half ago the members of CASM completed a survey where they expressed what they wanted out of being members of the club. It wasn’t the discounts. People wanted to come together where they could experience fellowship and friendship with fellow model builders. Face-to-face contact with other people who build models provides richness in relationship that makes people want to be a member. The reason to become a member of something is because of the human bond that forms with other people who gather together with a common purpose, not to get a discount. There is a sense of pride that comes with membership that occurs when we identify ourselves as a member of a body that gathers together. A club is not about club business, it is about the fellowship that comes when people gather in a place with a common interest. Being a member of a club is not an idea that has been lost in the past. Becoming a member is an idea that is necessary for the present and the future as so many communication methods distance us from the direct contact with others. Being a member of a club provides for us a sense of belonging and being a member of a community that cannot be replaced through electronic means. Congratulations to all members of Central Arkansas Scale Modelers on receiving IPMS Region 6 Chapter of the Year! It is a great honor to be recognized for all our hard work over the past year. Great work guys and keep it up!
Thanks from the CASM Eboard! To quote Heather O'Rourke in Poltergeist, "They're heeere!" The Scratching Post is back from beyond the grave. What's the Scratching Post, you ask? Well, Central Arkansas Scale Modelers, CASM for short, is the home of the Black Cats (get it? I thought you would... ) and the Scratching Post is a place for us to share news, ideas, thoughts, techniques, reviews, and much, much more.
CASM has been all about sharing, lately. The past few months have been stocked full of new things for us to share the love of modeling, and our club, with you. We have a new look to the website. We want to share with you all the time, so we have brought back the Scratching Post in a new form: The Scratching Post Blog! With all this sharing going on, CASM officers decided we needed some help with this latest project. So we contacted our dear (though not so near!) friend, "UK Mike" Mcellaney, to be the coordinator and moderator for the Scratching Post. Thanks, Mike! In order to keep things going, we need to hear from you! We know that taking photos and writing articles can seem daunting, so we're going to show you how. The demos for the next three months have been scheduled to show each of you how to best share your modeling in devours. August - How to take photos (Ken Childres) Ken is going to show us how to use a simple camera to take amazing photos of our models. He's going to give tips on lighting, backgrounds, and how to utilize the camera's built in features. September - How to write an article (Steve Wilson) Steve will share with us how to write clearly and concisely to best show our thoughts and ideas without confusing ourselves and other readers. October - How to use the website and forum (Brianna Childres) Brianna is going to wrap everything up by showing you how to navigate the website, post pictures and links on the forum, and submit articles. So that's it! That's the game plan. Hold your breath and wait for our next big issue. If you begin to turn blue or feel light headed, take a deep breath and start over... In the mean time, go build something! We need those articles! Happy Modeling! |
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