The last few weeks we have been working on downsizing and decluttering. As a part of that process, I have been posting stuff we want to purge on Facebook Marketplace. Let me tell you, if there ever was a magnet for Karens, Online marketplaces are it! Sheesh, I've never dealt with so many self-important uptight people in my life! (Ma'am, the chair is $10 because it IS used!)
Dave B

I spent 20 years as an adult instructor in the Sea Cadet Corps, I joined to give something back to society, give the young folk a leg up and do something useful in my spare time. I didn't shout at the kids, I made learning interesting and fun and had a good relationship with the cadets in my charge. Now, a huge however, Organisations like the SCC attract Karen's and Kens like flies round cow pats, I'm convinced these people join so they can strutt about in a uniform and shout at people who can't really shout back, some made the kids life a misery to the point where they left. Others would do everything possible to avoid summer camps, courses, supervising the cadets on drill weekends or boat house training. They were, however at the front of the que when there were VIPs involved or Officers from Head quarters, yes, they were always available if there was a chance of some brown nosing with "managment". Doesn't matter what walk of life we are in there will always be a Karen!

Roy,
"Some of the Karens are blokes!" Over here we usually refer to them as "Kens".
Lew

Our hobby has become the realm of the elderly with very few younger people interested and most of those want ready to run speed machines.

LewZ
We count two active model yacht clubs in Antwerp. One is located in a park and counts about 20 members if which max 10 are active every sunday. We have a pond especially made for us in concrete- 1m deep. We count 250 members but divided in 3 divisions trains-lorries - boats
From march to october we have twice a month a regatta one for electric boats and one for steam driven. My main concern us to attract youngsters and that seem to be a worlwide problem except in Germany. If you do have ideas please sent them to me please
Regards
Herman

I believe here in the USA there are a few larger, well organized clubs, but the proportion to western European population they are much fewer.

It is strange for us here in Florida where the weather is virtually year round, it is decent for model boating. No ice! Our "club" is small (5-8 most meets). Clubs are few and far inbetween, maybe 80 miles apart at best. Florida is the third largest state in the USA with about 24 million people.

I appreciate all the advice but unfortunately I don't forsee much growth in membership considering the decline in hobby shops over the years using that as a measuring tool.

Lew

Hi all, as far as Karens go I was senior Tournament Director at a Bridge club and we had a most unpleasant woman on the committee. I even had to give her an official club warning as to her play and disregard for a new member, (never saw him again). To this day I do not know what she contributed to the club but a rather weak Chair-lady allowed her opinions. In the end I left the committee it was not worth the aggro.

I have dealt with members of committees I have been on who have taken too much upon themselves. Resolution in the manner that suited the occasion, sometimes a quiet word and sometimes a confrontation.

There are some who expect to have their views accepted without question, a red flag to me. Another Bridge club confrontation by an absolutely rude member, an Instructor at a Polytechnique. I saw him with the Chairman to rule on his complaint when that was done he literally turned his back on me to talk with the chairman.

The same man was suspected to be cheating at Bridge, and it was brought to my attention for solution. It took me a couple of days to work out, which I did by moving some tables around. I think he then knew why I had done it and left soon after.

Some of the Karens are blokes!
Roy

Hi Hermank I have been organizing our own club exhibition under the title "Models that Move" for about 2 decades. See us on You tube.
It needs lots of club members which represent most of our active members. We could not do it on our own and all the local clubs are invited, all for free I might add.

We too have the missing generation from 10 years old upwards, same old problem social media. We do advertise with the daughter of our chairman in charge, and she does that as her job so very professional.

I suggest at your next exhibition that you have a feedback sheet or do it on smart phones. What was good and what was bad. What they liked etc. We did this some years ago and the result was interesting.
It seems what we would consider a good model was regarded like seeing it in a museum and they did not relate to it as something they could do.

They all liked simple things they could participate in and also members working on a model and demonstrating and talking to visitors.
You have to be interactive. Nearly everything you make can be bought ready to run. Attracting new members has to include operators of purchased models, it is then when they are involved they see the possibilities.

We are expecting 2000 + visitors, mainly from the local area to entertain young ones with free train rides sailing model boats making chuck gliders and operating Meccano models. Lots of bright colours etc. We are rock bottom for entry at £8 for the day, so a family of 4 costs £20 and catering at low prices

We fill a local secondary school which has 5 classrooms, a large gym, the restaurant and main hall plus an annex equal to 2 classrooms and a very wide corridor also the quadrangle of the school and the playing field.

I think we are the only local club with the money to fund this as we have also to hire tables as well as using the ones in the school. I can give you some financial info on a P.M. if you want.

I look at the project as divided into delegated areas, I do not micro manage but try to put on an exhibition that I would like to have attended when I was 12 years old.

Virtually all the old and large commercial exhibitions have gone now, Model railway ones are still popular and if that is so in Belgium they might be happy to have you put on your own alternate hobby. When you look at the popularity of model railways you can see that everything is purchased, these days not much need for electrical knowledge needed.

Our experience is such that 99% of the students of the school we hire are unaware of our exhibition. The young generation coming up are amazingly ignorant of anything apart from their social media presence.

Hope this helps and well done with being willing to take on club work as only 10% of members ever contribute to running a club.
Roy

Lew Z
our club the"royal model yacht club antwerp" exists this year a 120 years. We belong to the 4 th oldest model yacht clubs in Europe. Our past president has been leading the club for 40 years.
But it is voluntary and no one wants to do it.I have taken over the presidency 2 years ago and try to put much more effort into it. We participate with our 3 divisions( trains electric and steamdriven) lorries, and boats( steam and electrical) at a model exhibition last year and we got so much intrest that we were asked to participate again in 2026. To celebrate our 120 th aniversary we organise an exhibition in a castle just outside Antwerp. My main concern is how to attract youngsters? we are not a TIK TOK generation but i always wonder are there no youngsters who are fed up with it and want to be creative with their hands. If people do have ideas about this PLEASE PLEASE LET ME KNOW. Regarding this exhibition we are going to invite students who are learning for a woodworking, plumbing carrier. So i m curious what the reaction will be. I will keep you posted on this

Everyone seems happy. The down side is we don't have any organized activities like regattas, just meets twice a month. Lew

Hi Lew,

Good on you and I bet the new club was a far more pleasant club to belong to.

Ed

EdW, that is true in many places, especially where people take voluntary positions because no one else wants to do it.

Strangely enough, I was a "Commodore" in a previous model boat club. Didn't want it but got elected just the same. A few behind the screen ran the show using me as a figurehead, perhas a scape goat would be a better term. I quit, and started a new club (and the old club fell apart) which had no leadership or rules. I'm just a coordinator and I am happy with that. That happened over 21 years ago.

Lew

It’s not just HMOs that have Karen’s, I have seen them get on committees of model clubs and try to make the club their private domain. This happens when the members are too lethargic to vote them out.

It is true to a point, depends on where you are. I was chair of a HOA in florida and when you buy you sign a contract which is enforceable in law. I wish we had them in the uk sometimes !

Chum,
Let's slow down a minute.
I see no need to pick on FREE BEER! 😊
Just sayin .....
Dave B

Lew is correct,
Buyer beware. That said, we are living in a world where someone else is always trying to control what we do. The williwags look better all the time, at least for the moment...

Perhaps a little clearing up about HOA's (in the US). They are not in every community. I don't have one. My younger son has one that is a basic HOA, as discussed by others.

For those that don't have an HOA, some homes have deed restrictions which are sometimes not enforced because of any financial means to enforce them unless someone "pony's up".

Some have local laws which can restrict certain thing (example: "no commercial vehicles parking overnight"). These can be enforced by a neighbor filing a complaint.

And of course there are home (properties) that have little to no restrictions. An important point here is like everything else, know what you are getting when you buy. HOA's should not be a surprise.

Lew

I think the three things that bring out the worst in humans are:
-free food
- free beer
- HOAs
Not certain I have the order correct!
That said, the membership of some HOAs have whiners & watchers. Whine when someone else does something they don’t like & watches to be certain no one breaks a rule. They make things difficult & unpleasant for a good Board member of an HOA. They quit in frustration; a Karen wants & gets Board membership. They essentially have the position forever since no one else wants the lousy job & decline to stand for election.

HOA’s summed up sadly and hysterically by John Oliver …
And yes they do exist…

yes hoa's do exist, yes it seems all 😊karen's want to run them but here it texas we tell the to back off. what i do in my back yard is not your business and neither is the color of my house or when it should be painted. of course they try to get in your bussness but after a few law suits they run out of steam and change their tune quickly.

This is very interesting. I saw the film A man called Otto, Tom Hanks, excellent and it puts the background to the plot.

I was unaware until I listened to what I reckon are A.I. stories and wondered what HOA meant.
Roy

Nickthesteam, I could say many things about leadership many countries but I feel that would not be approiate in this forum. Your apology would have been enough. Now back to model boats!

Lew

Dave’s POA is an example of what HOA’s are intended to be; protect property values, promote community relations, but don’t become a PIA!

Lew, I'm sorry if you see it that way but my post wasn't meant to be political, I don't "do" politics. I have seen them, Bondi and Levet on news programs here in the UK and they both remind me of spoiled brat head cheerleader types you see in low budget college movies. We have plenty of them over here as well...

Nickthesteam,

"...that dreadful Bondi woman." That is a political statement that should not be on this forum!

Lew

Nickstream,
Yes, they do exist, and some really do overreach reasonable authority.
Where I live we have a POA (Property Owners Association), and I am actually on the Board.
Our POA is pretty low key, we maintain the Boat Landings, we have a common area for residents which has a playset for the kiddies, a picnic pavilion, and a dual purpose Tennis/Pickleball court.
OH, and we sponsor events such as a neighborhood "Summer Fun Days", a "Christmas in July" party, and a neighborhood "Progressive Dinner" followed by a party at one neighbors house every December.
However, I have some cousins living in a popular Phoenix AZ suburb with what I consider an overbearing HOA. They tell you what color rock you can have for a yard. What color to paint your house and how often. You cannot have your garage door open if you are not in the garage. They dictate what plants you can have in your yard and where they are to be placed. The list goes on and on. I couldn't live there.
And, yes, many of the overly righteous HOA are run by "Karens" who fit the stereotype to a tee.
It's a strange time we live in ....
Dave B

Nickthesteam,
Yup.
I didnot mean to kick the hornet's nest... well maybe, "kinda sorta" as we say Downeast....😀

Tora! Do you mean that dreadful Bondi woman? Levit is just as bad...

Oh Hell, What have I kicked loose this time🤔

😎
BTW Chum; You may call me Doug😉

Chumm,
Sorry, but I have to say this... your description sounds like our Attorney general....🙄🙄🙄

RN. Don’t get me started. HOA’ s come in all sizes & colors. Some recognize that their function is primarily to protect property value of the members homes & do little to otherwise meddle with what the owners do. Other HOA’s are run by the Karen’s of the world. My definition of a Karen is someone who possesses scant knowledge, continuously demonstrates their ignorance, & when given a bit of power granted by the HOA’s By Laws decides that bit of power grants them the right to be the neighborhood law enforcement agency & arbiter of taste in all matters. They conclude that all in the HOA must comply with their judgment no matter how flawed their judgment may be.
Net, net there are good HOA’s as well as terrible ones.

What happened to Opportunity?🤔😮
DJT?

😎

"So Karen's actually exist?😀😀😀 "
Way, way, too many of them are out there.
USA is the land of entitlement.☹️☹️☹️

Definitely !!!! Without a doubt😂

So Karen's actually exist?😀😀😀

Yes they exist and some are really that bad. Not being able to use your driveway, cars must be in the garage. Curtains not being drawn during the day. House colors determined by HOA etc. Sure many are not that draconian but the examples you speak of do and have happened. And you pay for the privilege having a enraged Karen enforcer telling your wheely bins are not correctly aligned!
I had a house with a HOA but the price was reasonable $180/yr and was for maintaining the roads nothing else. So it pays to read the contract before buying a residence with a HOA!