It’s All about the Membership
When I joined NUCA of South Florida in the 1980s, it never occurred to me that 30 years later I would become the newly minted Chairman of the national association. But once you get involved with your local chapter and know what you can achieve as a volunteer, you realize how much you can give back to the industry that has given you so much.
Those of us in the industry for 40 years have seen it change, with new technologies we only dreamed of when we first started. But what hasn’t changed is the membership.
NUCA may not have everyone in the industry as a member, but those who do join their local chapter and the National association are the ones keeping this industry strong. As NUCA members, we are incredibly privileged to have the opportunity to give so much back to our communities through our projects and our economic contributions.
It’s you, my fellow NUCA members, who inspire me through your dedication and commitment to this industry. But we need new members to build on our strength and continue our momentum. And that’s why it’s so important we continue our association’s growth and why this will be one of my top goals during my term as Chairman.
Each of us can think of an industry competitor or colleague that we know should be part of NUCA and our local Chapter. We know how much they stand to gain for themselves, their business, their employees, and their community by joining NUCA. And they know it, too, but they need our help taking that final step.
Over the next year, I want my time as Chairman to be known for helping those men and women take that final step. Membership growth is what will make this association and our industry stronger, today and in the years to come.
We may compete for business, but we all face the same industry issues. We know that the larger the chapter, the louder our voice, the greater our ability to effect change locally and nationally, and the more we can give back to our communities. We also know that it’s rewarding to surround ourselves with those who share our common goals and who can offer invaluable experience and guidance for any problems we may face, because they’ve faced the same issues themselves.
Over the next year, I want to modernize how we approach membership and how we recruit our members. We are evaluating our benefits program and adding more services to help your businesses. Our training and education opportunities will increase. We may not be the biggest association out there, but we’ve got the vision, motivation, and people in place to provide a complete package that industry professionals would be foolish not to leverage.
I am enthusiastic about taking Dan Buckley’s many achievements as Chairman and building upon them to make this association we all love even stronger.
And it will take a strong industry to rise and meet this nation’s infrastructure challenges. It will take a strong industry to leverage every method and technology at our disposal to fix, replace, or create the projects our great nation desperately needs.
But we can’t do it alone. A stronger industry demands a stronger association. Increasing membership means we can achieve much more, together. If each of us just brought one more industry member to a local chapter meeting, or let them know over a business lunch that they should be part of our association, we could double our membership in just one year. Think of what a NUCA chapter could do with twice as many members. Think of what our national association could do with twice as many members.
One new member each. That’s all I’m asking for now. I think we can do it – because we must do it.
Thank you very much for this honor,
Fred Chesney
NUCA Chairman of the Board / Centerline Utilities Inc.
Tags: Chairman's Message, March/April 2020 Print Issue