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Ron Martz

On Tuesday, July 14, the MRE board of directors and officers decided in a 6-3-1 vote to cancel the 2009 conference because of concerns about attendance in light of the economic woes that have hit the news industry especially hard.

As you might expect, the debate over the issue was at times intense and spirited and some doubt was raised about whether the organization could survive this decision. However, it was the feeling of the majority of the board that by taking a step back we will be better able to marshal our resources and refocus our energies to provide better service to our members and to the American public.

We believe that MRE will come back stronger in 2010 with your help and with the advent of several new initiatives that will keep the organization relevant and on the radar screens of policy makers and military officials. I will have more on some of those initiatives in a future report.

In the meantime, in deference to the economic woes facing many of you and your organizations, we have decided to reduce membership rates for new members and renewals by 30 percent through the end of September. That means you can join MRE, or renew your membership, for just $35. Students who join or renew will pay $17.50.

And, as of Oct. 1, for the first time we will be offering group rates on membership. We will be offering a 10 percent discount for organizations with 5-10 members and a 20 percent discount for groups with more than 10 members.

Our much-anticipated Web site redesign being done under the auspices of MRE member Isaac Cubillos is in its final stages and should go online in just a few weeks. This new site will offer far more information and resources than we were able to provide on the old site.

Please feel free to contact me at ronmartzmre@gmail.com with suggestions or concerns regarding MRE or Web site redesign or ideas for our 2010 conference.

I believe that we will emerge from these difficult months as a stronger, more viable, and more relevant organization. With two wars still in progress, what we are doing is particularly important to you and to the American public and I look forward to your continued support.

Regards,

Ron Martz
President, Military Reporters & Editors

To MRE members and friends:

This is the first installment of what I hope to be a monthly report designed to keep MRE members and friends of the organization informed about the initiatives we are pursuing. I also want to let you know through these reports how you can assist us in remaining a strong and relevant organization able to better meet your needs, whether you are a journalist, educator, public affairs officer, student, or citizen interested in military affairs.

We soon will have the web site set up so you can provide immediate feedback through it. In the meantime, please send me your suggestions and/or complaints to ronmartzmre@gmail.com and I will personally address them.

Before I enumerate the initiatives the board of directors and I have set for 2009, let me say a few words about 2008. As many of you know, this was a particularly difficult year for MRE. We lost our president and friend, Jim Crawley, to cancer in April, making it necessary for all of us to step up and step into shoes that have been difficult to fill. Jim handled so much of the day-to-day minutia of the organization that his loss was keenly felt by all of us.

Through the hard work and dedication of our 2008 officers and board of directors we were able to maintain a sense of continuity within the organization and held our annual conference at the National Press Club Nov. 14. We down-sized in deference to the economy and other considerations, making it a one-day conference.

My sincere thanks go out to the 2008 officers and board members who worked on this year’s conference. I must make special mention of a few individuals who went above and beyond the call of duty. First and foremost is Don North, the 2009 VP who handled all the details of getting Kimberly Dozier as our featured speaker and the National Press Club as our venue. Michelle Pendleton came in from Louisiana to help us out at her own expense and Salome Angrand was indispensable as usual, handling all the small details that I either forgot or overlooked.

Links to the new slate of officers and board members can be found on the main page of this web site. We combined the positions of secretary and treasurer to increase our efficiency. That position will be filled by long-time MRE stalwart Otto Kreisher in 2009. We also presently have only seven board members. I have reserved one of the two choices available to me as president and will make the selection of the eighth board member before the next board meeting Jan. 24.

Here are the initiatives MRE will pursue in 2009. We need your advice and your counsel, but most of all we need your assistance in making these work:

Fund raising: This will be the top priority for the organization in 2009. I have appointed a committee headed by Sig Christenson to oversee our efforts in this regard. In order for MRE to be a strong and viable organization we will need to find sources of funds other than membership dues, contest entry fees, and conference fees. We cannot continue to exist on these and the occasional contributions from board member and officers as we have in the past. We need to look to non-profit, non-partisan organizations that offer grants for non-profit organizations such as ours. Even in these tough economic times there is money available and we need to tap into some of those sources. If you have suggestions or are willing to work on this committee contact either me or Sig at saddamscribe@yahoo.com.

Membership: We increased our membership by more than 50 percent prior to our 2008 meeting and hope to continue that trend through the new year. In order to do that we need to provide more and better services to our members. VP Don North will head the committee looking at ways to attract new members at a time when many news organizations are cutting back on coverage of military affairs. Contact Don at DNorth6743@aol.com if you are able to assist or have suggestions on increasing our membership.

Web site redesign: This is one priority that I personally believe will attract more members if we are able to offer more services through the site. New board member Kelly Kennedy will head this committee. We are looking for suggestions on how we can upgrade our site and what services you think would better serve our members. We are looking both for technical expertise in how to do this but also ideas on what could be included on the site, such as a bulletin board for exchange of information, a way to showcase work by members, and updates on issues related to coverage of military affairs. Send your suggestions to me or to Kelly at kellyskennedy@yahoo.com.

2009 conference: The National Press Club turned out to be an excellent venue for our 2008 conference. The staff was courteous and attentive and the conference went off without any hitches. In addition, the cost was reasonable. I will head the committee looking at venues and themes for the 2009 conference but suggestions and recommendations are welcome. We will begin discussing this at our Jan. 24 board meeting and more information will be posted in late January.

Wishing all of you the merriest of holidays,

Ron Martz
President, Military Reporters & Editors