As summer begins to wind down and our hardworking volunteers finally get a much-
needed break, it’s a good time to remember something that can sometimes get lost in
the hustle and bustle of keeping our clubs going: community comes first.
Whether we belong to a landed club, a non-landed club, or simply participate as AANR
members, events and activities are an important part of what we do. We put countless
hours into planning meals, games, dances, gatherings, conventions, and special
weekends. We want people to have fun and make memories.
But the events themselves aren’t what make people fall in love with a club. The people
do.
Think back to when you were new. Chances are, what you remember most isn’t who
organized an activity or what was on the schedule. You remember the person who
invited you to sit with them. The person who introduced themselves at the pool. The
couple who invited you over for a cocktail. The longtime member who noticed you were
new and made sure you didn’t feel like an outsider.
Those small acts of hospitality can mean everything to someone walking into a nudist
club for the first time.
Getting someone through the gate is only the beginning. If we want to retain new
members and help them develop a lasting love for their club and for AANR, we have to
give them something worth coming back for—a sense of belonging.
And that doesn’t require a committee, a budget, or a scheduled event.
Invite someone new to sit beside you. Introduce them to your friends. Ask their name
and remember it the next time you see them. Invite them to your site for a drink or a cup
of coffee. Strike up a conversation in the pool. If you see someone sitting alone, include
them.
We have to show ourselves friendly if we want to have friends.
At The Willamettans, like many clubs, we have experienced times when volunteers
have been stretched thin. I believe building community can help with that, too.
Instead of continually asking, “How do we find more volunteers?” maybe we should also
be asking, “How do we build more friendships?”
When people develop friendships and feel connected to their club, volunteering
becomes much more natural. A task that sounds overwhelming for one person can
become an
enjoyable afternoon when four or five friends say, “We’ll do it together.”
That’s how community builds volunteers—not through obligation, but through
connection.
Sometimes, in all the work of maintaining grounds, filling calendars, running meetings,
organizing events, balancing budgets, and keeping our organizations moving forward,
we
can lose sight of who we are and why people came here in the first place.
We are a community.
We are friendly. We are accepting. We are kind.
And every one of us has the ability to make someone feel like they belong.
As we move into the quieter months, perhaps this is the perfect time to focus less on
what event comes next and a little more on who is standing beside us. Look for the new
face. Introduce yourself. Make room at your table. Invite someone into the conversation.
You never know when one simple act of kindness will turn a first-time visitor into a
member, a member into a friend, and a friend into someone who will help carry our
community forward for years to come.
Events create memories. Friendship creates belonging. And belonging is what builds
strong clubs.
By Jenny Agee