1/1/08 – State of the Club

The October – December quarter of 2007 kicked off our 20^th year with style!  We had our second best attendance yet for this quarter with 156 participants.  We blew away what was our average for this quarter (51)!  Club event attendance was 140 and our new Buda Chapter attendance was 16.  We set attendance records for the following events: Austin Chapter Meetings (25), Club Officers Meetings (10), and Promotions (13).  We had 18 events, which tied for our best for this quarter (we had 15 Club events and 3 Buda Chapter events)!  For a break down on events see October – December Quarter of 2007 Facts.  In addition we had 10 men and two women join the Club during this quarter and eight men and two women renewed their memberships.

What a year!  2007 was the best year to date for FCS events attendance with 528 total participants!  Our old record was 503.  We set record attendance for the January – March and April – June quarters!  We also set a record with 58 events in 2007!  Our old record was 56.  We had record numbers of events for the April – June and July – September quarters and tied the record number of events for the January – March quarter.  We had our second highest number of events for the October – December quarter.

Yearly Attendance Grid

Yearly Events Grid

* = Record

As was noted in the 2007 State of the Club Report, we set six attendance records for 2007.  We had our highest Meetings yearly total attendance (141 participants; the old mark was 118), Promotions yearly total attendance (29, this is the first time that we have kept data on Promotions), Bay Fishing Trips yearly total attendance (20 participants; the old mark was 15), Upland Bird Hunts yearly total attendance (12 participants; the old mark was 6), 24 Hour Sporting Clays Shoots yearly attendance (11 participants, the old mark was 10), and we tied our Ministry yearly attendance (3 participants).  We had our second highest Sporting Clays and Skeet Shoots attendance (129; the record is 134), Dinners attendance (31; the record is 48), and Dove Hunts attendance (65; the record is 93).  We had significant declines in our Dove Retreat attendance (10; tied for our worst attendance, probably because we had it late in the season), Duck Hunt attendance (7; tied for our second worst attendance, probably because many of our regular duck hunters could not attend our scheduled 10/11/07 hunt due to financial reasons), Freshwater Fishing Trips (5; I’m not sure why attendance was so low), and Shooting Range Shoot attendance (6; our third worst due to the fact that the Rowley clan missed the 12/29/07 hunt due to being in Abilene).  There was also a slight decline in Hog Hunt attendance (because we canceled a hog hunt due to a lack of hogs at the CzC Ranch and we were not able to get our schedules together for a second hog hunt at the Y.O. Ranch).

We ended the year with our highest number of active members (81; the previous record was 52, an increase of almost 56%) new members (32; the previous record was 24, an increase of 33%), and membership renewals (48; the previous record was 31, an increase of almost 55%)!  We also ended the year with our second highest number of first time guests (38, the record is 40).

During Fiscal Year 2007 our income was a record $1690.96 (the old record, set in Fiscal Year 2006, was $1087.11)

We met some of my 2007 goals, including:

1. Gain 25 new members.  (Met, we ended up with 32)

2. Have 550 participants.  (Not met, we ended up with 521)

3. Implement an Advanced Training Pistol class on a date to be announced.  (Not met)

4. Implement a Non-Chartered Bass Fishing Trip on Lake Amistad, scheduled for 5/4/07 – 5/6/07.  (Derrich Pollock was going to lead this event but was not able to do so due to his death.  It was replaced with a chartered hybrid bass trip to Lake Belton)

5. Implement a Kid’s Fish with the Austin Christian Bass Club on a date to be announced.  (Not met.  Derrich Pollock was going to coordinate this event but was not able to do so due to his death)

6. Implement a Father/Child Sporting Clays and Skeet Shoot and Campout, scheduled for 3/1/07 – 3/2/07.  (Not Met, Great Hills Baptist Church’s Men’s Ministry was not able to fit us into their schedule)

7. Implement a FCS shrimp boil (or similar) for a Men’s Ministry at a local church, which will include a big name speaker.  (We assisted with the Great Hills Baptist Church Shrimp Boil on 12/6/07)

We had eight officer votes and two active member’s vote during the fourth quarter of 2007.

The next quarter promises to be an exciting one for FCS members and guests. We have 14 events planned.  We’ll have Hog Hunts (tentatively) on 2/1/08 – 2/3/08 and 2/29/08 – 3/2/08; Sporting Clays and Skeet Shoots on 1/12/08, 2/16/08, and 3/8/08 – 3/9/08 (National Shooting Complex Shoot); a Guided Duck Hunt on 1/5/08, a Annual Non-Chartered Blast and Cast (Duck Hunt and Bay Fishing Trip) on 1/18/08 – 1/20/08; a Buda Chapter Meeting on 1/29/08, a Austin Chapter Meeting on 2/7/08 that will feature homemade chili, a Trout Fishing Trip on 2/9/08 on the Guadalupe River, a Trip to the Buda Car Races (sponsored by the Buda Chapter), on 2/23/08 (tentative), a Non-Guided Bay Fishing Trip to Rockport (sponsored by the Buda Chapter) on 3/21/08 – 3/23/08, a White Bass Fishing Trip on 3/29/08 at Reimer’s Ranch on the Pedernales River, and a Defensive Pistol Class probably in the spring of 2008.

We have 67 events scheduled for 2008!  Nine of these events are sponsored by our new Buda Chapter!

I am particularly excited about the Buda Chapter Scholarship Hunts.  They have set aside funds to take youth on hunts.  To date they have had two successful deer hunts.

The Buda Chapter has four officers and seven members.  They are gung-ho!

The FCS – Great Hills Baptist Church (GHBC) Bible Life (Sunday School) Class continues to roll along with nine regular members.  The men are studying The Measure of a Man by Gene Getz.  The book focuses on what it takes to be a man of God.  Men will gain encouragement for what they can be in Christ — as fathers, husbands, and mentors to other men.  The Measure of a Man teaches men how to live faithfully, lovingly, and spiritually according to God’s direction.  The book is drawn from Paul’s letters to Timothy and Titus and speaks in practical terms to men from every generation with life applications and words of inspiration.  The ladies are studying “Dick Eastman on Prayer.”  It features three of Dick Eastman’s best-selling books on prayer that have been bound together into one exciting volume.  Ladies will develop a passion and a workable strategy for world-changing prayer by applying the principles found in No Easy Road, The Hour That Changes the World, and Love On Its Knees.  

Approximately on 2/2/08 we will have a combined class that will study one of the following three curriculums:

The Go Fish Study Guide and the Go Fish DVD – By Andy Stanley.  We’ve all heard them. “It was this big.” “You should have seen the one that got away.” People love to tell stories of their fishing adventures. When it comes to faith, however, most people clam up. Why is it we can’t talk about what God has done in our life as naturally as we can spin fishing tales? This companion study guide to the six-part DVD is complete with a leader’s guide and six lessons, including conversation-starting exercises, discussion questions, and application steps.

or

The Experiencing God Workbook – Experiencing God, Knowing and Doing the Will of God will help you learn to hear when God is speaking to you, encourage you to find out where God is working in the world around you so that you can join him, and therefore experience Him working through you in ways only God can. A workbook that can change your life, Experiencing God leads you in an exploration of the seven vital aspects of your relationship with God: knowing, loving, hearing, joining, believing, obeying and experiencing. The workbook includes text, questions, and activities.

or

Rick Warren’s Bible Study Methods: Twelve Ways You Can Unlock God’s Word  – Want to become more like Christ but don’t know where to begin? Rick Warren says the key to transformation is found in Scripture. This easy-to-understand guide offers 12 different Bible study methods to help you explore biblical truths, apply them to your life, and grow as a disciple. Rick Warren’s Bible Study Methods will help you develop a customized, personal approach to exploring and studying the riches of God’s Word. Formerly published as Personal Bible Study Methods.

Please let me know if you have any questions or if you would like to attend the department.

For 2008 I have six goals:

1. Gain 35 new members.

2. End the year with 90 active members.

3. Have 550 participants.

4. Implement 60 events.

5. Implement a Father/Child Clay Target Skeet Shoot (possibly to include a campout).

6. Implement a FCS shrimp boil (or similar) for a Men’s Ministry at a local church (which will include a big name speaker).

Our coffee cups are in and we only have six left!

I hope to see you at an FCS event soon and hope that our Lord blesses you and yours richly throughout this New Year.

Following His trail,

Randy Rowley

FCS President