Membership value

[Sonex Foundation]

Hi there Sonex Builders, enthusiasts, and pilots

Recently, I answered an email from a former member who, quite politely and accurately, pointed out some shortcomings in our work. Communication was pointed out as one problem, and as you all can tell, I am working on improving that. I’m trying to balance spamming the forum with communicating what we do, why, and how.

I’m not going to post this persons name or entire email here. I am going to publicly address several key points.

The former member wrote:

“I would like to see things like active participation with the EAA type clubs coalition, advocation for Sonex and experimental aviation, etc. whatever the foundation has been and anticipates doing. Without that information, why join? The Sonex factory’s excellent builders’ support and the “SonexBuilders.net” newsgroup almost negate the need for a Sonex Foundation, what is the Foundation going to do over and above what the factory does?”

I wrote him back, but I wanted to talk about these things here.

Obviously I disagree that there is no need for a type club. If I did not feel that way, I wouldn’t be writing this or doing the work I do on behalf of the foundation. I see this forum, the podcast, and the foundation as effective methods to promote the community, discuss safety and training, and provide valuable information to builders, pilots, or owners of already built aircraft.

The NTSB and FAA have publicly stated they do not always understand experimental aircraft, and they turn to type clubs for information and knowledge.

The question of "why join" is very fair and one we often asks ourselves when we discuss what value we offer members or prospective members. We are never going to be as large or effective as some of the larger type clubs - we do not have the resources or the budget. (Side note - several type clubs charge $75 or more a year and have a much larger community and greatly increased financial resources)

But we must do a better job of providing real value to our members.

I'd ask what value we can offer you that we do not currently provide?

It's been a tough question for all of us involved to answer and I genuinely need your input. I do not have an answer, but this is why I cc'd the entire board of directors on my reply. We need to know what we can do, given our current resources and all-volunteer staff, to provide real value.

We are definitely active in the Type Club Coalition. This month in Sport Aviation is an article that I worked closely with Coyle Schwab and Kyle Ludwick in developing and writing the background content for. I did not write the article, and it expands on the content I assisted in developing.

Last year I did an EAA webinar about type clubs and a forum presentation at Oshkosh on behalf of the TCC based on this same content, and we also provided background materials for the TCC website under resources.

https://www.eaa.org/eaa/aviation-intere ... -resources

We are involved. But again, clearly we need to be better in sharing this information.

We attend the TCC meetings online and in person at Oshkosh - in fact, last year I personally participated in the annual meeting at Oshkosh during the roundtable with EAA, the NTSB, and the FAA. We had our current President and at least one member of the BOD there also.

Jeff Shultz, who is better at articulating his thoughts than I am, recently wrote this about what we do:

Support Members. The SBPF conducts activities that directly support its members, including the tool loan program, the member BBQ each year at AirVenture, and the Mentor Member program.

Educate Members. The Foundation has several resources designed to build the knowledge and capability of members, including periodic "Shop Talk" newsletters, and technical how-to articles that are Sonex-specific.

Represent Members. The Foundation represents the interests of Sonex owners in a recognized, authentic way. As an industry organization the Foundation can speak with authority in a way a single owner or person cannot.


My point is this. We, as an organization, want to provide more value. You, as members, can help us determine what that value is and how to provide it.

This has been a topic of discussion on the Board of Directors for the past 7 years, and one we have yet to satisfactorily answer.

So do me a favor - join us - help us determine how to add real value for members - please add your thoughts here:

viewtopic.php?f=21&t=5544

If you would care to join us as a member, please go here:

http://www.sonexfoundation.com/Become_a_Member.php