Regional Rambings: He Will Be Missed |
An era has ended. Victor Serebriakoff died on January 1, 2000. Victor, although not one of the founders of Mensa, was largely responsible for its growth. Victor is credited with the establishment of American Mensa. He visited the United States several times and hired Margot Seitelman. Victor Serebriakoff will be missed, but he and his fifty years of service to Mensa will long be remembered.
As predicted, National membership passed last year’s membership year end in December. In December 999 members renewed their membership, you could have made it 1,000. Of those who renewed, 770 took multi-year plans. About 47% of new members are also taking these plans. This shows the confidence people have in the organization at present. It also bodes well for the future. Traditionally new members are the most likely to drop out in their second or third year. Last year we had just over 10% of members who did nor renew. This is the lowest figure since 1980 and we can expect even lower this coming year.
If you did not renew in December you will have received a renewal notice in January. Please renew early, is saves us the cost of further mailings. If you renewed by the end of January, your Local Group will receive additional points towards the Group of the Year Award.
It is time to get your teams together for CultureQuest. The event will take place on Sunday, April 16. Deadline for entries is March 20, don’t leave it until the last minute. In case you do not know, CultureQuest is a 90 minute, high powered trivia contest. Teams of up to five Mensans meet at the same time around the country. There is a fee of $40.00 per team which goes toward prize money which must be used for scholarships.
This month we have the Walk of Fame Regional Gathering in Hollywood California, February 18-21. We also have the Leadership Development Workshop in Riverside, February 25-27. The deadline to register at no charge is February 18. Check out the details in the Mensa Bulletin.