McHenry Sportsmen's Club

McHenry Sportsman’s Club Newsletter (June 11, 1999)

Dear Club Member:

We want to take the opportunity to thank each and every one of you, both long past members, and our new members for joining our club, and participating in the activities the club offers.

This year, our club is hosting four ATA Registered Shoots. Two of these have already occurred and the remaining two are still to come. The next ATA Registered Shoot is on the Fourth of July.

Our club has no paid officers. The only paid employees are the teenagers we train to help operate our trap machines and keep shooting scores for members and guests. During an ATA Registered Shoot, our club requires ten people to cover these two responsibilities, as well as other people to help organize and run the shoot. Our club has made every attempt to acquire these people, and invest both time and money in their training. It seems this year, we may experience a shortage of trap help, as well as other people to help us run the July Fourth shoot. This situation has triggered discussions as to how to address the entire issue of administering and running our club. Many people have said they would like to help out, but for one reason or another, coordinating these efforts has not materialized into anything that may be relied on to keep our club operating.

Incidentally, the dates assigned to ATA Registered Shoots are usually not under the control of the club hosting the events. This year, our club ended up having ATA Registered Shoot dates on Mother’s Day and the Fourth of July. Our club is normally closed on Mother’s Day.

The purpose of this letter is to inform our club’s membership of what our club needs, and some of the many ways its membership could possibly help out. Each one of us has his or her own unique set of circumstances which may influence our ability to help our club. There is, of course, no obligation. This letter is only meant to inform, and attract interest to members that would like to help out.

There are many areas where you may be able to help our club. This includes helping out at the counter, taking on the role of range officer during a shoot, or assisting with the never ending task of building and grounds maintenance. If we cannot get help in these areas, our club will have no choice except to begin hiring personnel to perform these functions. With one hundred and fifty members, a single afternoon from everyone would more than cover our needs.

What our club is currently experiencing is the “ninety ten rule”. Ninety percent of the work is being done by ten percent of the people. Our club has managed to keep our membership dues and shooting fees below the majority of clubs in the area. This is because our membership has always provided assistance in allowing our club to function without a bloated payroll. At the same time, we have been striving to provide a good shooting experience for both the veteran shooter, as well as the beginner. Many of us have learned how to shoot at this club.

If you can spare a few hours, our club really needs your help.

Our club is a non for profit organization. Believe me, it truly is a not for profit operation. In a nutshell, these are our approximate costs: For every dollar we take in at the counter, at least forty cents is spent on trap help. Thirty five cents is spent on targets, with the remaining twenty five cents being spent on all other expenses combined. The targets are being acquired at the best price available. Our club has done an excellent job of containing our other operating expenses.

Our trap help expense is our main concern. It is high now, and if not contained, these expenses will continue to climb. To help lower the trap help expense, our club is considering the installation of one or two fully automatic trap machines. These machines would yield our club a twelve to eighteen month pay back. After this time, the money saved would be used to keep our shooting fees and membership costs contained. Our club is looking for ideas on how we could raise the necessary funds to perform this type of upgrade. Raffles and “benefit shoots” were brought up, but we need help in running them. If these fund raising activities were held at our club, would you support them? If you have any suggestions, please make them known. We need to address these issues without raising membership dues or shooting fees.

We encourage each and every one of you to come out to our club and enjoy a day of shooting. We know you are interested because you joined the club, that is why it is “our club”. And last but not least, even if you cannot spare some time to help us out, please come out and enjoy our July Fourth ATA Registered Shoot.

Sincerely,
Tom Carneal, Club Treasurer

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