Bid Question #2

[hurrafreak]

Here's the first question that needs to be answered on the bid. After each question I've put my answer, per the meeting, PLEASE put in as many suggestions as possible. This gives us the best opportunity to have the best worded bid in the end. In the paperwork it says to NOT answer any question briefly and to go into as much detail as possible.

When was your club formed?


Jon or Rob may be able to answer this question a little more thoroughly than any of the rest of us and I don't even know where to start on an answer. Below is what they have in the planning paperwork:

This is yet another opportunity to bolster the host club, regardless of their history. “PMASI started meeting as a loose association of interested marine aquarium keepers in 1995. At that time, it was nothing more than a dozen reef keepers that shopped and socialized together at the same local fish store. We wanted to create a club to share our experiences, learn from another, and expand our body of knowledge in marine aquarium keeping techniques. From those small beginnings, we grew rapidly and continue to expand. PMASI became a non-profit corporation in 2000.

 

[rmougey]

MASC's first incarnation was as the Rocky Mountain Reef Club (RMRC) which held it's first meeting on June 3rd, 2001 with 12 attendees. The club was initially sponsored by an LFS whose employees were organizing members. Within two years the club had it's own forum on Reef Central and was regularly holding monthly meetings throughout the Denver. We expanded to other LFS, conducted workshops and DIY sessions and at the same time introduced home based meetings.

By 2005 the club had out grown it's RC forum and setup it's first website. As with all clubs, there were growth spurts, changes in the organizing committee and elections. The growth of the club resulted in regional sub groups across the Front Range, both north and south of Denver. A more formal structure was needed to be able to bring in speakers, host larger swaps and provide better event coordination.

In 2006 the old RMRC club was dissolved and MASC was created from the ashes. MASC had by-laws, defined leadership roles, scheduled elections and a brand new website. Shortly thereafter MASC registered as a non-profit organization. We were growing up.

We held our first large all day event, ReefEd in 2007 with speakers such as Sanjay in attendance. ReefEd continued over the next several years with a variety of presenters from the reefing community across the US. Fragswaps continued to grow, resulting in the creation of regular DBTC events. We also introduced Science Fair competitions for local High School students, sending a couple of youngsters to MACNA.

In 2010 MASC worked with another local club, DARC, in order to coordinate an all day joint event which featured Scott Fellman, DIY workshops, a Frag Swap, and a Science Fair. Coordinated efforts continued among the other clubs along the Front Range in order to facilitate events and as well as an educational outreach.

That should get you started.... you can edit and include more detail for recent events.