Dec. Special Meeting Discussion
From: Barry Hancock <[email protected]>
Subject: Sat. Meeting
Date: December 18, 2013 at 5:45:57 PM MST
To: Steve Guenard <[email protected]>
Cc: Beth Ann Schneider <[email protected]>, DK Gorrell <[email protected]>, Tim Lapage <[email protected]>
Hi Steve,
I don’t disagree with anything you say. Let me clarify a few things.
I totally agree with your point about the C-45. If he has an interest and is willing to fund it, great! If that is what motivates him to donate more, terrific! Of course we wouldn’t look a gift horse in the mouth. We are on the same page here.
As for the plan, yes, the CAF mission statement is important (and easy, as you say), but my questions are more specific to our wing. High level mission statements are great, but become a platitude when it comes to the specifics of what our intentions are on how we fulfill the mission statement. The plan/vision you are speaking of is the ‘what.' What I am talking about is the ‘how.’
I agree that we need to focus on placing us on sound financial footing, but even Dave’s projections involve growth. Again, my question is ‘how’ do we get there? To me it is increasing membership, increasing ride revenue, increasing revenue from use of the hangar through new revenue streams (I outlined many potentials in an email a few months ago), increasing our community involvement, and above all else, increasing the energy from which all this stuff feeds from. This is why I say we need a plan that goes beyond seeing what air shows/events we can book and what rides show up at the hangar. We need committees and prompt follow through (Dave B. didn’t contact me for a month after he said he would regarding the election committee - no better way to kill enthusiasm, interest, and productivity, right?). In short, we need to change a low functioning organization into a high functioning one. The plan I’m referring to is how we get there from here.
To me, growing our organization at this point means growing our bank account, first and foremost. I believe EVERYTHING we do needs to first ask the question, is it making us money or will it help make us money in the short term. It means recruiting. It means activating the members we have and also growing the membership. It means finding new members and giving them a mentor, a job, and a vision of how they matter to the ‘how.’ Once people know they matter, they will more actively participate. Until they know they matter, they need a mentor. When they feel like they don’t matter, they go fishing instead. None of this is brain surgery and I’m not lecturing you guys. You know this as well as I do. I’m just putting my thoughts out there on where I think I our focus needs to be to change course.
Again, I am not trying to do anything other than to speak frankly about what I see as the needs of the organization based on my experience and hopefully be helpful. In my experience if we don’t come up with goals and objectives that are SMART (specific, measurable, attainable, relevant, and time-bound) we will continue to flounder, but if we do, we can see real progress. I’ve seen both, I’ve been a part of both, and I want to do everything I can to help us survive and thrive.
Hope this explains my ideas better.
And I was really hoping for better grub at the monthly meetings…. ;)-
I look forward to Saturday.
B
On Dec 18, 2013, at 5:01 PM, Steve Guenard <[email protected]> wrote:
My inclusion of the C-45 is for this reason. If he were to say he would donate $50,000 to use any way the staff chooses then ,yes, it would all go to making hangar payments. But if he said "I won't pay your mortgage but I would be interested in paying to get the C-45 fixed and back in the air" I would gladly accept the offer and take the money with those strings attached. I am just saying that different people have different motivations for giving.
Barry, your questions are good but answering them for me is not a tall order, it is easy. Anyone who has read the CAF mission statement should be clear on our vision/plan. We will preserve in airworthy condition the aircraft operated by all branches of the U.S. military in WWII. We will display them to the public for the purposes of education and to honor the legacy of those who flew, maintained and otherwise supported them. The Utah Wing is currently assigned 2 of these aircraft which we are tasked to maintain in support of the CAF mission. Our business plan and revenue streams are reflected in the budget proposals Dave just provided. We are not currently working on projects to grow the museum as our focus is preserving and placing on sound financial footing what we have. Once that has been done we will be able to focus on growth, which for our organization means acquisition of aircraft and artifacts pertinent to our mission, and additional space to house and display them.
As to assuring the deep pocket he is making a good investment, we have talked about this before and I am still unable to follow your logic. If we don't get any money we are guaranteed to fail in the short term. If someone donates a substantial sum then he,they are guaranteeing that we WON'T fail in the short term. That is why we are asking for the money. If he asks, "how are you going to spend the money I donate if I don't specify how I want it spent", again, the answer is easy. We have a mortgage to pay off which is what we will spend the majority of the money on. Some portion will be spent on advertising to try to increase our visibility in the community and get more visitors. Some portion will be spent to help promote a local air show/aviation event that will help us raise funds for the museum. Thus ALL of the money will be spent to directly support the museum and the mission. None of it will be spent on food for our members.
==============
On Dec 18, 2013, at 2:34 PM, Barry Hancock wrote:
Beth Ann didn’t hit reply all, so I added you to my response.
Frankly, I can see no reason, under the current conditions, why we would allow ourselves to be distracted by the C-45. The less we have to do to get rid of it, the better, in my opinion. If there is the desire and capability to have another aircraft when we can responsibly accommodate it, I’m sure we can find another aircraft. With our financial situation and the rent we are currently receiving, it would be a double hardship to take the C-45 and displace the revenue generating aircraft that are currently in the hangar. As we all know, we are not in a position to let sentimental concerns (which are valid and occupy some of my thoughts, also) drive the direction of the wing.
B
==============
On Dec 18, 2013, at 2:22 PM, Beth Ann Schneider <[email protected]> wrote:
Yup. Agree with Barry. Been saying this for quite a while. Best case in my opinion would be for him to take the tax write off; we keep the hangar and dump the C-45. BA
==============
On Wed, Dec 18, 2013 at 11:44 AM, Barry Hancock <[email protected]> wrote:
I believe we need to be able to present a coherent vision and a plan to get there. Any guy with deep pockets is going to want assurance he is making a good investment, or at least one that won't fail in the short term. If I were going to do something like that my questions would be:
What is your vision/plan?
Do you have a business plan?
What are your revenue streams?
What projects to grow the museum are you working on the next three months? Six months? 12 months?
It's think we need to be able to answer these questions with some confidence and clarity. That's a pretty tall order, from where I sit, because I don't think I can articulate very good answers to those questions right now.z z
Barry --
==============
> On Dec 18, 2013, at 10:40 AM, Steve Guenard <[email protected]> wrote:
> All,
> Tim LaPage has set up a meeting at 10:00 AM this Saturday the 21st at the museum with Larry, the Albatross owner to discuss the possibility that he might help us financially in some way. One idea is to sell him the hangar if he would agree to lease it back to us for a period of 10 years or so. Another is just a straight donation for the tax right off. Or maybe he would be more interested in directly supporting an airplane like the C-45. Any and all ideas welcome.
Subject: Sat. Meeting
Date: December 18, 2013 at 5:45:57 PM MST
To: Steve Guenard <[email protected]>
Cc: Beth Ann Schneider <[email protected]>, DK Gorrell <[email protected]>, Tim Lapage <[email protected]>
Hi Steve,
I don’t disagree with anything you say. Let me clarify a few things.
I totally agree with your point about the C-45. If he has an interest and is willing to fund it, great! If that is what motivates him to donate more, terrific! Of course we wouldn’t look a gift horse in the mouth. We are on the same page here.
As for the plan, yes, the CAF mission statement is important (and easy, as you say), but my questions are more specific to our wing. High level mission statements are great, but become a platitude when it comes to the specifics of what our intentions are on how we fulfill the mission statement. The plan/vision you are speaking of is the ‘what.' What I am talking about is the ‘how.’
I agree that we need to focus on placing us on sound financial footing, but even Dave’s projections involve growth. Again, my question is ‘how’ do we get there? To me it is increasing membership, increasing ride revenue, increasing revenue from use of the hangar through new revenue streams (I outlined many potentials in an email a few months ago), increasing our community involvement, and above all else, increasing the energy from which all this stuff feeds from. This is why I say we need a plan that goes beyond seeing what air shows/events we can book and what rides show up at the hangar. We need committees and prompt follow through (Dave B. didn’t contact me for a month after he said he would regarding the election committee - no better way to kill enthusiasm, interest, and productivity, right?). In short, we need to change a low functioning organization into a high functioning one. The plan I’m referring to is how we get there from here.
To me, growing our organization at this point means growing our bank account, first and foremost. I believe EVERYTHING we do needs to first ask the question, is it making us money or will it help make us money in the short term. It means recruiting. It means activating the members we have and also growing the membership. It means finding new members and giving them a mentor, a job, and a vision of how they matter to the ‘how.’ Once people know they matter, they will more actively participate. Until they know they matter, they need a mentor. When they feel like they don’t matter, they go fishing instead. None of this is brain surgery and I’m not lecturing you guys. You know this as well as I do. I’m just putting my thoughts out there on where I think I our focus needs to be to change course.
Again, I am not trying to do anything other than to speak frankly about what I see as the needs of the organization based on my experience and hopefully be helpful. In my experience if we don’t come up with goals and objectives that are SMART (specific, measurable, attainable, relevant, and time-bound) we will continue to flounder, but if we do, we can see real progress. I’ve seen both, I’ve been a part of both, and I want to do everything I can to help us survive and thrive.
Hope this explains my ideas better.
And I was really hoping for better grub at the monthly meetings…. ;)-
I look forward to Saturday.
B
On Dec 18, 2013, at 5:01 PM, Steve Guenard <[email protected]> wrote:
My inclusion of the C-45 is for this reason. If he were to say he would donate $50,000 to use any way the staff chooses then ,yes, it would all go to making hangar payments. But if he said "I won't pay your mortgage but I would be interested in paying to get the C-45 fixed and back in the air" I would gladly accept the offer and take the money with those strings attached. I am just saying that different people have different motivations for giving.
Barry, your questions are good but answering them for me is not a tall order, it is easy. Anyone who has read the CAF mission statement should be clear on our vision/plan. We will preserve in airworthy condition the aircraft operated by all branches of the U.S. military in WWII. We will display them to the public for the purposes of education and to honor the legacy of those who flew, maintained and otherwise supported them. The Utah Wing is currently assigned 2 of these aircraft which we are tasked to maintain in support of the CAF mission. Our business plan and revenue streams are reflected in the budget proposals Dave just provided. We are not currently working on projects to grow the museum as our focus is preserving and placing on sound financial footing what we have. Once that has been done we will be able to focus on growth, which for our organization means acquisition of aircraft and artifacts pertinent to our mission, and additional space to house and display them.
As to assuring the deep pocket he is making a good investment, we have talked about this before and I am still unable to follow your logic. If we don't get any money we are guaranteed to fail in the short term. If someone donates a substantial sum then he,they are guaranteeing that we WON'T fail in the short term. That is why we are asking for the money. If he asks, "how are you going to spend the money I donate if I don't specify how I want it spent", again, the answer is easy. We have a mortgage to pay off which is what we will spend the majority of the money on. Some portion will be spent on advertising to try to increase our visibility in the community and get more visitors. Some portion will be spent to help promote a local air show/aviation event that will help us raise funds for the museum. Thus ALL of the money will be spent to directly support the museum and the mission. None of it will be spent on food for our members.
==============
On Dec 18, 2013, at 2:34 PM, Barry Hancock wrote:
Beth Ann didn’t hit reply all, so I added you to my response.
Frankly, I can see no reason, under the current conditions, why we would allow ourselves to be distracted by the C-45. The less we have to do to get rid of it, the better, in my opinion. If there is the desire and capability to have another aircraft when we can responsibly accommodate it, I’m sure we can find another aircraft. With our financial situation and the rent we are currently receiving, it would be a double hardship to take the C-45 and displace the revenue generating aircraft that are currently in the hangar. As we all know, we are not in a position to let sentimental concerns (which are valid and occupy some of my thoughts, also) drive the direction of the wing.
B
==============
On Dec 18, 2013, at 2:22 PM, Beth Ann Schneider <[email protected]> wrote:
Yup. Agree with Barry. Been saying this for quite a while. Best case in my opinion would be for him to take the tax write off; we keep the hangar and dump the C-45. BA
==============
On Wed, Dec 18, 2013 at 11:44 AM, Barry Hancock <[email protected]> wrote:
I believe we need to be able to present a coherent vision and a plan to get there. Any guy with deep pockets is going to want assurance he is making a good investment, or at least one that won't fail in the short term. If I were going to do something like that my questions would be:
What is your vision/plan?
Do you have a business plan?
What are your revenue streams?
What projects to grow the museum are you working on the next three months? Six months? 12 months?
It's think we need to be able to answer these questions with some confidence and clarity. That's a pretty tall order, from where I sit, because I don't think I can articulate very good answers to those questions right now.z z
Barry --
==============
> On Dec 18, 2013, at 10:40 AM, Steve Guenard <[email protected]> wrote:
> All,
> Tim LaPage has set up a meeting at 10:00 AM this Saturday the 21st at the museum with Larry, the Albatross owner to discuss the possibility that he might help us financially in some way. One idea is to sell him the hangar if he would agree to lease it back to us for a period of 10 years or so. Another is just a straight donation for the tax right off. Or maybe he would be more interested in directly supporting an airplane like the C-45. Any and all ideas welcome.