KFOC Vice President

[Fid]

I always find it interesting that the current president and last couple of past presidents never visit this site. They could get so much insight here. They'd know more about what's going on and what members are thinking and experiencing but you don't see them here. Joe Frazer, you are correct, KFOC needs to move into the 21st century and seems recent leadership does not understand or appreciate that. These leaders all express a need and desire to grow the membership but they do not seem to understand that everything is done online these days and that's the way it's been for the last 10 - 12 years. Where have they been?  Best of luck to you Jim!  Again, if I was there, you'd have my vote.

[AZ_HJ]

I agree with your Fid!

[kaiserfrazerlibrary]

With regards to the mail in voting, people should be aware of the downside to this.  In order for mail-in voting to be successful, the club needs to have a Nominating Committee or other means for ALL candidates for elected offices officially announce their intentions for office prior to, say, March 1 of the election year.  That would allow time for a mailing of ballots take place to all the members (including Associate Members) so they could cast a vote and get it back to the proper party in time for proper counting before the National Convention.  Members would also have to realize that once they have submitted a vote by mail (email might not be allowable as an original signature should be required to verify authenticity) they could not change their minds or otherwise cancel their vote.  They would also have to be members in good standing as of the date when elections actually take place.

Jim and Gordie's announcements of running for office would have come out too late to have made the mail in voting but this is not unusual; often finding candidates comes down to talking to people who arrive early at a National Convention as few, if any (some years) want to hold office.   We have a lot of gripers about how things are run but practically no one who wants the jobs so things can be fixed.

[Gordie]

That is good advice and we would also need statements from the candidates stating their qualifications and goals and why they want the job.  This could go out as a separate item along with the ballot and in with the Bulletin or Quarterly to save postage.  We will be discussing lots of things in the future that the members would like to see improved.  One of the things that we can think about now is encouraging our non member friends to join us.  More members equal more benefits for all of us.

[Roadmaster49]

It's tough. Some clubs run better when operated by a few key invested individuals but that usually means they are not democratic. It's their way or the highway. Many club members (all clubs) simply want the club magazine and don't care much about the national direction.

The BCA (Buick Club) had me send in a bio and photo by the end of February 2013. Then, in our APRIL 2013 "Bugle" magazine, all candidates were given space in the magazine. With that monthly edition was the printed ballot with a pre printed envelope to send in. We use our CPA auditor to count the votes. Results came out on June 1, giving club member 2 months to vote and complete. 

As I understand it, about 10-11% of the 8500 members cast a vote. 

I don't think you should have to go to the National Meet to cast a vote. So that part I disagree with but I am not suggesting you need to do things the BCA way.  Just an observation.

[HJ-ETEX]

OK, enough back patting. It is time for some alternative views on these issues.
First, voting for the National Club Officers is limited to those who attend the National Convention BECAUSE those members who attend are most likely to be interested in the election and issues and be familiar with those who present themselves as candidates. The OBVIOUS requirement of a member who is elected to a National position is that they attend the Conventions during their tenure and display their accomplishments. I oppose a mail in ballot for National Club officers because of the real possibility that someone who has never been to a National could be elected.  The fallout from this could be two fold. First, there is a very good possibility that once elected, the new officer still won't come to the National. Second, the new officer would be at a real disadvantage in respect to knowledge on how the Club operates. 
Yes, it would be nice if members would commit themselves as candidates for office with enough lead time prior to an election such that a statement could be published. That hardly ever happens and really, Gordie, Jim, the hardest elected offices to fill and with the least glory are the Secretary/Membership and Treasurer. When it comes to nominations for those positions, everyone starts looking at the floor to avoid eye contact. 
Gordie, when I was VP, I found that made me the "Go To Guy" or the person who was called upon to handle the stuff that didn't fit into the job descriptions of the other Officers. Be prepared to judge coloring contests or to round up missing people for meetings. At one time KFOCI VPs tended to disappear after their term was up, but it seems there will be 4 and perhaps 6 ex-VPs at Shipshewana.   
Finally, I don't care for the careless use of the term "charter member." As we all should know from reading the history of the Club, it was formed at a meeting at the Palmer House Hotel in Chicago in 1959. An early Club publication diagrams the location of the attendees, tape recorder and dog in the room at this momentous occasion. These people as well as several others who did not attend but were pivotal in the start of the Club (such as George Domer) were acknowledged as the Charter Members and have membership numbers below 100.  However, these members were also named as the governing body of the Club and as some of these people lost interest and dropped out, it became expedient to name "new" charter members in order to have enough governing members to make decisions. I don't view any of these replacements as equivalent to the original Charter Members. By the early 1980s, none of the original Charter Members were exercising their prerogatives as "Super Members" in the running of the Club.  Ex-president Paul Barker and his wife Marilyn may be the only Charter Members still active.

[HJ-ETEX]

An additional insight. In previous election years, there was a critical lack of candidates. Although there wasn't a formal nominating committee, beginning in 2003 the National Officers were asked to declare to another term or find a willing replacement so there would be at least 1 announced candidate at the start of the General Business Meeting. None of this silence and people avoiding eye contact when nominations were opened.
This doesn't mean things were rigged. When my 2nd term as VP was over, I asked Bill Miller if he would accept a nomination as VP. However, those rowdy Texans nominated Hal Nauman at the General Business Meeting and he won instead.

[Bulletin Editor]

@HJ-ETEX ... while I agree with some of your post, I take particular exception to the comment that "BECAUSE those members who attend are most likely to be interested in the election and issues and be familiar with those who present themselves as candidates."  Unfortunately, there are many like Jack & I who cannot attend every National because of job/timing/distance/$$/whatever. That does NOT mean we have no knowledge of or interest in club issues. We have dedicated years of service to the club. That should count for something & we should have the opportunity to vote by proxy or mail-in.

[HJ-ETEX]

Barbara: I was careful to say "most likely to be" rather than a completely exclusionary term such as "the only people" because I recognize there are exceptions.  I don't know how large a group the exceptions may be, though.
It should be noted that not all members who attend the National even go to the General Business meeting.

[HJ-ETEX]

In another comment in the run-up to the Shipshewana Meet, it should be noted that one of the important functions at the National Meet is to determine where the meet after the next meet (that is, 2 years away) will be. The current Constitution establishes that the National Meet will be circulated between Divisions. Before this rule, only a few groups were willing to take on the responsibility of hosting a meet. So it resulted in the National Meets occurring in just a handful of states primarily East of the Mississippi River. That made it difficult to attend for some members such as those in the West.
If you have any opinions concerning where a KF Convention should be held (or not held - I am hoping no one wants to go to Orlando FL), share your thoughts with your fellow members and especially your Regional Manager and Division Director!

[kaiserfrazerlibrary]

It was my understanding that the provision about rotating National Conventions between the divisions went back to the beginnings of the club as part of being a family organization with the hope being that meets would take place in or close to areas where a weeks worth of family activities could be put together WITHOUT driving a hundred and some miles each way (like the 2013 National going to Red Barns).  Also, this was a time when gas was well under 50 cents a gallon and what you got out of the pump would not vaporize (causing vapor lock) the way the stuff does today (you need that 60 pounds per square inch to force fuel to move...by the way that pressure is around 10 times what your K-F or Willys fuel pump delivers) and good rooms could be had for under $30.00 a night.

It was only after the cost of doing a meet shot up so much (gas, rooms, etc) that it became harder to put something together 2 years down the road.  Besides the cost of travel now vs. back then, check out the jump in room rates for tourist season compared to off season.  Some of the $80.00/night rooms in Buffalo NY area are such that I would not give them $35.00/night yet they get the high $$$.

[chering]

Gordie, Your statement of July 8th is right on. You have my support.

[Dragon]

I will agree with Fid that it would be nice if we could get feedback on the forum from our club officers.  It would really be nice if we had a Chief Judge on here that could answer questions (Particularly for the new members restoring their cars).

[kaiserfrazerlibrary]

If you have questions the Club Historian may also be able to help.  He has the reference information that is a cornerstone of the written standards that are in the works.

However, new members should be looking for the correct K-F Factory Service Manual and correct Parts List for their vehicle(s).  Many times the information in these books can at least help (if not resolve) questions encountered during restoration or maintenance.  My experience has shown that in a number of cases, good mechanics stumble because they don't know what they are looking for (Parts List helps here) or how to rebuild an older fuel pump, etc (shop manual helps here).  It's not that someone is stupid, but stuff works different on cars of the period compared to what they're used to working on.

[Dragon]

The problem is factory manuals don't always work with our Judges at the convention.  I used the manuals auto lite spark plug and got marked wrong and the car beside me used champion, which isn't in the factory manual and was told correct by club judges.