President’s Article March 2016

For all 67 chapters of the BMW CCA, virtually all officers, leaders and events are run by volunteers. Here in Iowa, we have been fortunate to have a steady and willing group of people who volunteer their time and abilities to make our events happen. But as time becomes a more precious commodity for all of us, we need more people to think about helping with one or more events each year.

The Iowa Chapter, unlike many chapters, has had a history of a stable Board of Directors and volunteers. This group has worked hard to provide a wide variety of events to our members, which has made us the envy of many chapters in our region. In large chapters, such as the National Chapter in Washington D.C. or the Golden Gate Chapter in San Francisco, each with more than 5,000 members, it becomes easier to fill positions and have volunteers organize and run their events. But with about 500 members here in Iowa, the group of folks who have time and energy to provide leadership is much smaller, which is why it is exciting that we have been a leader in our region with the number and type of events we are able to provide.

Most recently, our Annual Dinner and Awards Banquet was held at the new BMW of Des Moines. It was a great evening organized by Alison Bell and Rick Talbot. Our guest speaker was James Clay, a person whom I have been working with for the past three years, and could finally fit in his schedule after spending the last month in Daytona. James, owner of the BimmerWorld Racing team and BimmerWorld Parts, driver of one of the 328 four-cylinder turbo cars, gave an outstanding presentation with a great question and answer session getting into the mind of a driver and owner.

Next time you see any of our Club volunteers, please thank them for their time making our Club the successful organization it is today.