I have received several questions over the past couple of months on membership and why we have so many levels or combinations of such. Let me go back to when the founding board started discussions on membership dues. We probably spent about as much time discussing this topic as anything we did in the early formation of the Foundation. Did we get it exactly right? No – and we may end of changing some of this in the future, but the basis of our foundation membership will remain the same. We didn’t want dues to preclude anyone from getting involved from a financial stand point. However at the same time, we needed to ensure that our primary funding for the goals of the organization came from our dues.
Hence the reasoning of the varying levels. I will attempt to clarify what and why each level exists:
- Foundation Membership – This is our base membership level (lowest cost) for a non-alumni supporter to be able to join. ($40.00 annual due)
- Alumni Membership – Same as foundation except, you guessed it, you are an alum. ($40 annual due)
- Booster Club Membership – This level was formed for any supporter that only wanted to be involved from an athletic booster club perspective – all funds from this membership is restricted for use under the booster club committee. ($40 annual due)
- Advocate Level – This level is a combination of the above, you are a Foundation and Booster Club member and by default if you are an alum, you are automatically enrolled as such. ($100 annual due)
- Championship Level – This level is a “societal giving” level membership which means that you are “pledging” you commitment to the foundation for a period of 3 years at the minimum level. ($500 annual due)
Now for the frequently asked questions:
- What is the difference in the levels? There is no difference in the levels with the exception of the Booster Club. The booster club will not give you as a member a voting right in the election of future board members. All other levels give you as a member the EXACT same rights.
- Then why would I join at any level other than the Foundation or Alumni? Passion and a philanthropic drive to give back to the community is my answer and I believe that has been proven. If you can financially support the foundation at a higher level, we need that support as much as we want and need the base level support. The foundation exists to support our school in many ways (check out the website and FB page for these reasons or contact a board member) we have zero administrative costs and every dollar that comes in goes directly back in some form of support to the school.
- If I join at one level can I then move to another? Absolutely, just contact us by email or phone and we will get your membership changed.
- Can I spread my dues out over the course of the year? For the advocate level we will set up quarterly draws if requested, for championship we will set up monthly draws. Just let us know during your membership application. We will be working on this for electronic applications in the near future.
I hope that this helps to explain our membership levels. If you have ANY questions or comments, please send us an email or comment on this post and we will work to answer them. The email address to the foundation is bbf@bordenbravesfoundation.com