After an early season of trip cancellations due to high water, multiple summer and fall club trips were successful, ending with the surprising discovery of how great–and possible–an October Smith River trip can be! Most of the club trips were filled, and had waitlists, as soon as they were offered. This tells me that club members offer great trips, AND we could use more trip coordinators!
We had several first time trip coordinators and co-coordinators this season. Thank you for stepping up! We are also extremely grateful to those trip coordinators who have faithfully been coordinating trips for years! Thank you to everyone who contributed to the successful trips of 2023! And, thank you to all those who worked hard to prepare for, and offer, trips this season that were ultimately canceled because of unsafe conditions!
As a volunteer driven club, the success of our trip offerings depends on members participating and contributing on all levels. If you love seeing a calendar full of trip opportunities, please think about how you can contribute to growing these offerings. It would be great to see a full calendar for 2024.
You don’t necessarily have to jump into solely coordinating a trip. There are ways to ease into being a Trip Coordinator. Offer to support an experienced TC, essentially asking them to mentor you. Perhaps you can do some of the logistics research or handle correspondence with participants and complete paperwork.. Some TC’s would welcome a volunteer to be responsible for documenting the trip and writing a trip report. There are multiple possibilities. Talk to current TCs! These are great ways to gain experience and confidence–and to develop friendships! Co-coordinating is another great option. I am willing to help match people, so please ask.
The upcoming annual meeting will provide a great opportunity to talk to other members in person, to ask about their trips and experiences, and to “float” some possible trip ideas/collaborations for next year. Take advantage of the mingling time the pre-meeting potluck portion of the event offers.
**I believe Zoom mingling will be open for at least a portion of this time–as well as during the official meeting– for those who cannot join in person.**
Thanks again to all who worked hard in 2023, and I look forward to an exciting, safe 2024 season.
See you Sunday!
Brookie
Brookie Gallagher
RMCC Tripmaster
brookiegal@gmail.com