Eastern Shore of Virginia Anglers Club Survey - Spring 2019 The Anglers Club is trying to plan for the future of the organization and we intend to have a meeting in coming months to talk about this. We ll be celebrating our 60 th anniversary soon, and to help plan for the future, we ve prepared this membership survey. We ll make the survey available at the annual banquet, and via email, but would appreciate you filling it out tonight and putting it in our survey collection box. This survey is anonymous, so don t hold back. Your input is important. Thank you. As a reminder, here is the Mission Statement of the club written in the Bylaws: The objectives of the Eastern Shore of Virginia Anglers Club are to promote legislation, customs, and practices that protect, propagate, and conserve saltwater and freshwater fish and related aquatic resources; to advance the interests of recreational anglers on the Eastern Shore of Virginia; to undertake activities that entertain and enlighten members; to encourage and promote youth angling; and to promote good fellowship and sportsmanship among recreational anglers. 1. Outings The club holds monthly outings from late March through early November. These are held on a Saturday or Sunday. It costs the club nothing to hold them. Outing winners receive an award at the annual banquet. In recent years, attendance has been poor and decreasing for most of these outings. 1A. Do you participate in the outings? Yes No 1B. If your answer to the above question is No, would you participate if something was different, and what would that be? 1C. Should the club continue to hold these outings? Yes No 1D. If your answer to question 1C is Yes, what day do you prefer? Saturday Sunday Either Day 1E. What, if anything, would you like to see changed about the outings (dates, targeted species, launch locations, etc.)? 1F. If participation in the outings remains low, should the club continue to provide awards for them? Yes No 2. Meetings General membership meetings are held at the Sage Diner on the second Monday of each month, although there are no meetings in March, July, and August. In the other nine months, with the exception of a December holiday gathering, we try to have a guest speaker, who makes a presentation after the club s business has been
conducted. Attendance at meetings varies, with 12 to 30 people being a normal range. 2A. Please check the box that best characterizes your annual attendance at club meetings. 6-9 meetings 4-6 meetings 1-3 meetings I do not attend any meetings 2B. If you attend few or no meetings, would you attend if something was different, and what would that be? 2C. Should the club hold meetings in July and August? Yes No 2D. What, if anything, would you like to see changed about the meetings (speakers, presentation topics, etc.)? 3. Kids Fishing Days The club holds two free fishing events annually for youths aged 5-15, one in June, the other in September or October. These are popular events, with up to 50 children often attending. They receive a free rod/reel, shirt, and lunch. Many members volunteer to help. The cost to the club is minimal, as we are subsidized by a grant from the VMRC. 3A. Should the club continue to hold kids fishing events? Yes No 3B. What, if anything, would you like to see changed about the events (location, freshwater vs saltwater, etc.)? 4. Banquet The annual banquet used to have as many as 130 people attending. Attendance has decreased in recent years, to between 75-90 people. The event was held at the Eastern Shore Yacht & Country Club for several years, and is currently at the Island House due to the fire at ESYCC. The cost, at $25 per adult, is about as cheap as you can have an event in a local restaurant. The club makes no money on the meal, and only makes money from the auction; the proceeds of that, plus the donation of auction items, offset the cost of awards and trophies. 4A. Should the club continue to hold an annual banquet? Yes No 4B. If Yes, where should the banquet be held in the future? ESYCC Island House Other Location (please specify) 4C. How do you view the $25 cost of the annual banquet? About right Too high Too low
4D. If you think the cost should be different, what price would be right? $ 4E. Should the club continue to solicit donations and provide an auction? Yes No 4F. Are you willing to help with the banquet/auction? Yes No 5. Fish Awards The club awards trophies for the largest fish caught in many species categories, with youth and adult divisions. Awards were formerly based on weight, but now on total length. Entries have been declining in recent years, and only a small number of anglers submit fish for awards. The club pays for certificates and trophies. 5A. Should the club continue to provide fish awards? Yes No 5B. If your answer to the above question is Yes, do you prefer awards based on length or weight? Keep in mind that some species, like big red drum, cannot be possessed, or properly weighed on a boat. Length Weight 5C. What, if anything, would you like to see changed about the awards (number of species, dates for submission, etc.)? 6. Surf Fishing Team When founded in 1961, the Eastern Shore of Virginia Anglers Club was primarily a surf fishing club. We still have a (very successful) surf fishing team. The team selects its own members and receives a subsidy from the club treasury. 6A. Should the club continue to have a surf fishing team? Yes No 6B. If your answer to question 6A is Yes, should that team receive funds from the club? Yes No 6C. If your answer to question 6A is Yes, should that team establish requirements for membership? Yes No 6D. What, if anything, would you like to see changed about the surf fishing team? 7. Dues and Membership Dues are currently $10 for a single and $15 for a family. They have not changed in many years. Membership has slowly declined. 7A. Should the dues be raised? Yes No
7B. If your answer to question 7A is Yes, how much should they be raised per category? $1 $2 $3 $5 7C. Should the club try to increase membership? Yes No 7D. If your answer to question 7C is Yes, how should we do that? 7E. Are you willing to help with a membership drive? Yes No 8. Anglers Club Website 8A. How often do you visit the Anglers Club website per month? Never Seldom 3 or more times 8B. Is the website useful to you? Yes No 8C. Would it be more useful if it were updated more frequently or contained more information? Yes No 8D. What, if anything, would you like to see changed about the website? 8E. Are you willing to help with the website? Yes No 9. Anglers Club Facebook Page 9A. How often do you visit the Anglers Club Facebook page per month? Never Seldom 3 or more times 9B. Is the Facebook page useful to you? Yes No 9C. Would it be more useful if it were updated more frequently or contained more information? Yes No 9D. What, if anything, would you like to see changed about the Facebook page? 9E. Would you/do you post to the Facebook page? Yes No Frequently Infrequently 10. Bay Challenge Fishing Tournament Held in September or October, the Bay Challenge has produced $2,500 in net proceeds, on average, each of the past three years. In the past two years, the entire proceeds have been used to fund scholarships to send youths from Accomack and Northampton Counties to summer environmental education camps at Chincoteague
Bay Field Station. This allocation was decided by the Board of Directors and the Bay Challenge Committee, and with input from the major sponsors of this event. This has been well publicized and supported by local businesses and media. It is open to the general public, although one of the major prizes is for the top fish registered by an adult club member (which is meant to encourage participants to become members). 10A. Should the club continue to hold the Bay Challenge? Yes No 10B. If your answer to question 10A is No, why not? 10C. If your answer to question 10A is YES, what, if anything, would you like to see changed about this event (date, species, format, etc.)? 11. Meeting the Club s Objectives The objectives of the Eastern Shore of Virginia Anglers Club were noted at the beginning of this survey. With that in mind, here are a few final questions. 11A. Is the club fulfilling its objective to promote legislation, customs, and practices that protect, propagate, and conserve saltwater and freshwater fish and related aquatic resources? Yes No No opinion 11B. Is the club fulfilling its objective to advance the interests of recreational anglers on the Eastern Shore of Virginia? Yes No No opinion 11C. If your answer to questions 11A and/or 11B is No, please comment on what the club can do or should be doing. 11D. If you have a comment on any other matter pertaining to the club, please make it below. Thanks for taking the survey. Picnic? Anything Else? 2-15-19