FROM THE BRIDGE

BY DAVID ALLEN JR.

National Administrative Officer

►It was a beautiful spring day when two of my fellow club members got together to prep their boats, a pair of matching Sea Ray cruisers for the coming season. Donnie is a second-generation America’s Boating Club | United States Power Squadrons member; Joe and his wife, Rachel, are newcomers to the group who became instant friends with Donnie and his wife, Krysta.

As they worked that March afternoon, Joe noticed his buddy didn’t look right Right as he said so, Donnie collapsed, unconscious, the victim of a widow-maker heart attack. By the grace of God, Rachel picked that moment to stop by the shop on her way home from work. Her training as a medical professional immediately kicked in, and she had Joe call 911 as she began CPR. Paramedics arrived and had to zap Donnie four times to get a cardiac rhythm. Two more hits with the paddles and a stent were required at the hospital before his condition stabilized. Thanks to Rachel’s immediate, high-quality CPR (she broke three ribs in the process), Donnie suffered no loss of brain function, the usual result of such a serious event if you survive Three weeks later, he was on his boat, Living Waters, at a club function.

This story swirled through my head as I sat in a November training session for our club’s leadership team for 2025 Both Joe and Donnie were there It was refreshing to see 14 leaders, some old-timers, some newbies, get excited as they planned for the coming year. I am reminded that we are an organization of boaters, but most importantly, we are an organization of friends.

We do things together; we have each other’s backs when the universe throws us unexpected challenges Together, we are stronger.

The boating season, at least for those in more northern climates, is winding down. Even here in South Carolina, things are shifting away from a heavy on-the-water schedule to more indoor pursuits. That’s not to say we’re dead in the water; we are merely adjusting our sails to keep on course, to remain in contact with each other.

This is the season for planning for the coming year I cannot emphasize this enough: The key to a successful club is an ongoing calendar of activities. Clubs that are active thrive. Inactive clubs struggle.

To borrow from the movie “Field of Dreams,” “if you build it, they will come.” Having activities that get current and potential members in contact with our greatest asset, each other, is a primary step toward building a successful club Use your muse Find what works for your group in your geographic area and build on it It doesn’t have to be difficult or unduly complicated.

My club’s muse is on-the-water activities. Beyond a couple of planned monthly events during the boating season, there is usually an impromptu raft-up. Someone makes a post on a private, members-only Facebook page as simple as “Hook’s down in Eagle Cove Come on by the grill’s fired up” Sometimes no one else is out; sometimes 20 boats show up But the opportunity to hang out with folks who have a shared interest is there and that can be where lifetime, maybe lifesaving, friendships are made, and where you will find the lifeblood of our clubs.

If a club doesn’t have a strong boating program, there are other ways to accomplish our mission and enjoy each other’s company The Vessel Safety Check program doesn’t require anything other than some basic training and paperwork It will put members with boating knowledge in contact with the boating public and offers a great chance to sell one-on-one to a potential member And at the very least, the public service aspect of our mission is fulfilled by making sure the boats examined are safe.

Most importantly, we are an organization of friends. We do things together; we have each other’s backs when the universe throws us unexpected challenges. Together, we are stronger.

Teaching is another example of how to support our mission. We all know this; it’s one side of the America’s Boating Club | United States Power Squadrons triangle And modern technology has enabled many of our newer educational offerings to be taught online The more we teach, the more we interact and form bonds.

This has to be done at the club level if the club, and ultimately America’s Boating Club | United States Power Squadrons, is to be effective. The national level of the organization cannot do this Only a local club can recruit local members Once recruited, we must keep new members involved by giving them something to do, a way to contribute It gives them a sense of ownership in the club and will help them see the value of their time and money. The job doesn’t have to be involved or complicated, just something that bestows a sense of ownership. I have long said (perhaps because it was my first job) the perfect job for a new member is club bartender. In this role the new member gets to meet everybody; in fact, everybody will come to them.

We need to remember that we are in the lifesaving business The one bit of information a student picks up in a class and applies, the vessel safety exam that points out and maybe helps correct a problem, could save a life, and we will never know it.

But sometimes a life gets saved, and we do know about it, because we are stronger together. This is who we are. ■

About the Author

Vice Commander David Allen has been National Administrative Officer since 2024 He served on the National Law Committee for 18 years and as National Law Officer for four He developed the USPS Endowment Fund before becoming Assistant National Secretary in 2019 and then National Secretary in 2022. In 1985 he joined America’s Boating Club of Lake Murray/26 where he has held every leadership position. An avid University of South Carolina Gamecock, David had a career in public relations before becoming an attorney, retiring as corporate counsel and business law professor He and his wife, Debra, spend their time aboard Surcee, a 43-foot Carver cockpit motor yacht; its tender, Frolicking Detour; or Cocktales, a Sea Ray 260 express cruiser David is also co-owner of a 19-foot Sea Pro center console, Bad Alibi.