Membership Set to Grow

Back in September, I rented the gym space for our regular Saturday time through to December. The cost for this was about $396, which I hoped to mostly recover with our drop-in jar on a weekly basis. Unfortunately our attendance lagged quite a bit, only once surpassing twenty, and many times with fewer than ten, and once only three. As a result donations were often not there, or five or eight dollars a week. This meant that renting the gym for juggling was costing my family about $100 per month. Together with very low attendance, I sadly concluded the juggling club would have to end.

When I mentioned this to Caitlin she suggested a meeting with some regulars to see if a solution could be found to save the club. As a result Caitlin, Roq, Kim and I met two Sundays ago to explore options.

The first year of the club saw three families each rent the gym for a three month period, thus spreading out the cost. For the second year we decided to have a drop in fee, so that people who came to juggle would support the club, and since lots of people came much of the cost of gym rental was covered. Adopting a system to spread out the cost was felt to be a reasonable solution.

The four of us decided we would sell juggling club memberships on an annual basis, so that people who come regularly could pay once and have unlimited access. People could also buy memberships primarily to support the club, and then come whenever they had the time. Memberships would be available for families, individuals, and youth. There will still be a suggested drop-in fee for those who do not want to purchase membership, but who do wish to support the club on the days they are there.

The first membership has been purchased by Chris and Caitlin for their family; their membership card will sport the number 001. We look forward to selling many memberships, and any money left over after paying for the gym will be used to purchase new equipment, and to replace worn equipment such as our tired peacock feathers. Hopefully this arrangement will allow the club to continue long into the future.

This Saturday we will be in the multi-purpose room upstairs in the school, and next Saturday, the 19th, we will be back in the gym. The gym will be closed over the Christmas break, but we will be back in January. I wish to thank Caitlin, Roq, and Kim for their valuable assistance in helping me find a way to keep the club moving forward. This is great!   Thanks everyone.

Paul