Hey,



I am wanting to find out why more of us are not attending FONRA events.

Looking to have a frank and open discussion regarding this.



Full disclosure:

I am not a paid employee of the NRA, or The NRA Foundation.

I am a committee member and I volunteer at multiple events.

I consider Mike Webb, the Tennessee NRA Field Rep., a close friend. (He IS a paid employee of the NRA), duh.



The following is what I know and have experienced, and .... best guesses...



Friends of NRA banquets are fundraisers for The NRA Foundation.

http://www.nrafoundation.org/

The NRA Foundation is the non-political, 501(c)(3) tax-exempt "arm" of the National Rifle Association.



That said,



Lets cover some basic banquet issues first:



Ticket prices are set by the local committee. There are some 27(?) committees now throughout Tennessee.

These tickets have ranged from about $25.00 up to $75.00, or so.



These ticket revenue usually helps pay for use of the facility and for the meal.

The ticket can also help "cover" the cost of any door prize, or other expenses.



The ticket price gets you in the door, a meal, and eligible for any door prize.

Also, there can be other drawings or contests that just by being at the event, you can be part of.

You also get the chance to mingle/network/schmooze with other like minded folks.



The meal is usually very good, sometimes prepared on site, sometimes catered.

At the Memphis event for example, Woodland Hills Event Center has their own banquet sized commercial kitchen.

It is the former Woodland Hills Country Club, and now hosts many events, large dinners, proms, etc...



Usually these meals are self-serve cafeteria style, where you can help yourself.



Woodland Hills also has the advantage of having a cash bar in the same room, if you wished to have a beer or cocktail during the event.

The bar is owned and operated by the facility, and is kept financially "separate" from the Foundation event.



The night of the event is also chosen by the local committee.

Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays seem to be the favorite/best nights.



I realize that a weeknight may not work well for some folks, but each committee chooses which night seems to work best for them.



For example, Thursday night has always worked well for Memphis for some reason.



Getting back to the banquet itself:



There are various games to play, to win tickets get into drawings for firearms.

There is the Wall of Guns.

There can be bucket games, where you would buy tickets and "bid" for items by placing your tickets into buckets.

There is a Silent Auction, where you can actually write down your bid for an item (or items), and watch to see if anyone else bids it up.

There is always the Live Auction, where it can get interesting.



At this last Memphis event, we gave away or auctioned off over 70 firearms, 25 for the door prizes alone.

I can think of offhand at least eight "Black Rifles' (Daniel Defense, Colt, Bushmaster, Stag,..), a couple of hard to find KSG 12 gauge shotguns, a matched set of Colt handguns, Glocks, Sigs, five (?) 45-70 rifles, etc....



Here is a partial list (more events to be added) of the scheduled events (so far) for Tennessee for next year. Every state has their own schedule.

http://www.friendsofnra.org/Events.aspx?sid=44



I realize it can be expensive, and/or on a bad night, but please give some thought to attending one of these events near you.

It helps support shooting sports and gun safety.



Half of all the money generated in the state returns to the state, in the form of grants. These usually go to high school shooting teams, Boy Scouts, university shooting teams, Eddie Eagle gun safety programs, etc. More info online.





Does anyone have any concerns or questions? I would like to get more people interested in coming to these events. Also, anyone who has come to one or more events, please check in.



It's a great cause, great folks, and you can win guns (and other stuff)!!!

For me it's a lack of time and money. Simple as that.

We've done this before..............  

Same answer as last time: too much Chinese shit, not enough guns worth owning & the same old shit every year in the NRA packages.

Too many paintings. Live auction goes on FOREVER. Mike won't stay off the GD microphone/PA so one can have a conversation with their friends, i.e. too LOUD.

The guns offered are too often the shit that mfgrs can't sell normally. Examples: Taurus, Glock 22, Rugers in a non-.22 offering, etc.

I've tried to get Mike to face some realities: outside of the rural areas, not many people hunt. They SHOOT, but they don't hunt. Thus the lack of excitement for a bolt action regardless of caliber & brand. The lack of black rifles makes a lot of folks irritated as well. Yes, some committees buy them, I know that. One of THE best years Nashville had was when Jim Garrett (TNRedneck) chaired & he brought in a 1/2 dozen or so black rifles. Now THAT was an auction!

Too often people pay $$ & get nothing in return. Bucket games are a good example. Yes, I know it's a fund raiser. But *I* would be more inclined to pay close to MSRP for a gun instead of buying a book of tickets on something I may or may NOT win.

I used to work these banquets for years & always took 4-5 friends along with me. Now they're just as disillusioned as I am.  

My .o2

I would go, but it seems like the last 3-4 events have coincided with work or other events. I only go to support the cause. I really cant afford to spend more than the ticket and a few games or auctions. Most of the big money guys, bid it up. That is fine with me, because they spend a lot of money to help the program.

I go, when I can, to help with what I can and visit with other like minded folks and friends.

Pros: good folks, good gear and a good cause

Cons: A little long and late for me. Not much for most to do other than watch because the bidding goes way past most of our income level.

I have been going to the one in Clarksville for many years. I do agree with a lot of what Bob Cole said, but I will say that each one I have been to was better than the last. The last event had us too crowded IMO, I don't enjoy bumping elbows when I'm trying to eat. I believe a lot of NRA members think it's for people with deep pockets and the word should be spread it's for all walks. I was encouraged to see many more women than normal at the last event.
Suggestions:
Less Chinese junk.
Work on shooter/hunter ratio of items and adjust accordingly per venue.
Don't keep us there all night.

+1

It would make more sense to me to make the auction an all-silent one. Bid only on the items you want & weave back & forth among several if you need to. But, alas, that probably makes too much sense for it to be used............    

I apologize for not posting.

They ever have any events near Lincoln County?  Fuck spending a couple hours driving to Nashville for one.

I appreciate the input.





When was the last event you went to, Bob?





If y'all would look at the Standard Package, you would see that there is LITTLE IF ANY 'Chinese' junk. It's been that way for the last couple of years.



Most (if not all) is US made. Everything else is added by the local committees. You probably aren't gonna see a bunch of Leupold or Aimpoint scopes donated. It's just the way it is. Most of what else you get is the less expensive stuff.



The selection of guns is getting better. See my above post on the Memphis event.



A couple of years ago, the Camden event had 10 AR stripped lowers.



The issue is being able to have Sport Utility Rifles donated, or purchased at a decent enough price to make it worthwhile.



I have been pushing Mike to get the local committees to have more of them. It's up to the committees, not Mike.



We are seeing more in the packages, so we're getting there.



We, the Black Rifle crowd, aren't the only ones going to the banquets, though.



They HAVE done away with the Picture of the Year, and the statues. Even Mike was glad of that.



Most of the pictures we do have are locally supplied.



In short, the packages are getting better, and more of the firearms that "we" like are becoming more available.





Regarding the live auction, that is where you can generate some revenue. You can make more money on firearms there than you can by trying to force

folks to run through the games two or three times.



Yes, especially at the Memphis event live auction, there are folks with deep pockets. That's why you go to some of the smaller events, also... ;)



Mike wants to get done as early as possible, but it always depends on how long it takes to get everyone fed, and how much we have to auction off.



You can leave as early as you would like, but there is a reason that the door prize is held to the last minute.



But, don't be that guy who drove off right before he was drawn to win the Barrett .50. "Must be present to win". Second ticket drawn won it.





Regarding getting Mike to talk less, good luck. We've been trying to shut him up for years. He is good at what he does, though...

Here's a partial list of planned events in Tennessee for 2015:



http://www.friendsofnra.org/Events.aspx?sid=44&sc=TN



More will be added. Check back.







Where are you located?

Lawrenceburg and Columbia aren't all that far away, far better than Nashville or even Franklin - I might have to check that out.




I'm located at - wait for it - Lincoln county.  

Probably the Nashville banquet about 4 years ago.




All I know is what I see. When I look at the NRA Store catalog or when I visit the store at a NRA Convention, 90%+ of the stuff is "imported". We clamor about jobs being moved overseas & then we turn right around & offer guns made in Brazil or where ever.

As for "junk", I'm referring to things such as picnic basket sets, grill sets, inside weather vanes, knick knacks of various items that aren't really appealing to the majority of the attendees. Despite my bitching, I really don't have a solution to this issue & I'm sure it's not limited to TN, so please don't take this personally or the wrong way.




If I had a $1 every time I heard Mike say, "When I was on the Memphis committee............." I wouldn't have to work a single day for the rest of my life...............  




C'mon. We both know Mike guides these committees & steers them in the direction he thinks/feels they should take. Yes, he gives them wide latitude(s) but since it's HIS butt on the line (per his job), it's in his best interest to keep a firm hand on how they go. I'm not saying anyone else did any different, BTW. It is what it is.


But there may need to be a "rural" package & an "urban" package. And this may indeed be too much of a PITA to do but the fact is, VERY few urban residents hunt anymore. We shoot, we don't hunt. As much as we admire a Browning bolt action rifle in .300WinMag, we have no use for one. OTOH, the Bubba's may be all over it for the elk hunt they have planned to go on.

Wouldn't let me do all of my post in one post............  



Why have them at all? I contend that IF someone wants a picture, then they're either going to go buy it or their kid(s) will get it for them for Christmas. I was in a state-wide meeting once where I asked every one, "Raise your hand if you DON'T have enough "junk" (crap) in you house & wish to add to it." Not a single hand was raised. Not ONE. Yet we continue to roll out more "stuff" (i.e. "junk") for folks to buy.




Too little, too late, I'm afraid. Too many of my friends have told me they're done with the banquets due to a terminal lack of interest.




Then put everything on a SILENT auction for just ONE banquet & see how it goes? Some auctioneers are funny & entertaining, most are simply annoying, IMO.

Total up all the cost associated with a NRA "package" & instead buy NOTHING but guns & scopes. Virtually every dealer I know is willing to sell to the NRA banquet @ cost, possibly a bit below.

Yes or no: the "R" in "NRA" stands for RIFLE, does it not? It doesn't stand for @#$%^&! PICTURES or grill sets. Take the seed $$ & instead of buying a "package", buy GUNS. Buy what's currently selling for that area. Ask dealers in the area, visit a gun show in that area, etc. Shit, it's not rocket science.  

At the last committee I worked on, I BEGGED them to add multiple .22LR items. Pistols, rifles, ammo (this was long before the current "shortage") or whatever. Said committee added ONE, a Ruger Challenger (which I had NO interest in). No S&W, no Browning, no H&K look-alike, NADA. Yes, this was the committee's decision/fault, but I also heard a good deal of feedback from the crowd about the complete lack of rimfire options. I also note a COMPLETE lack of nice 1911s at virtually every banquet I went to or worked. I don't mean a Ruger, Remington or Taurus 1911 either. I mean a SA TRP or possibly a Les Baer or something along those lines.




Hence the desire to move to a SILENT auction.





His predecessors did the same thing, I assure you.  

As a long time volunteer, I appreciate the hard work you folks do in running these banquets. But *I* got frustrated in having idea after idea after idea being brushed aside (We've ALWAYS done it THIS way.") despite support from attendees or committee members about these same ideas.

One of the things I intend to do when I win a Powerball is fund my own banquet & run it EXACTLY the way I want: Sat night only, nothing but guns/ammo/holsters/etc., silent auction only & plenty of rimfires & black rifles. I will also offer FREE tickets to military attendees in order to boost the crowd numbers & have some sort of non-politician but highly entertaining guest speaker. (I'm thinking of one of the pro shooters like Jessica Abate or similar, something for the young ladies as a draw.) Yes, I know all this costs $, but I just won the GD Powerball so I'll have it...........  

I was planning to go this year.  But work got in the way.  I get my 40 in Monday through Thursday.  So end of the day on Thursday is hectic for me.  I'm busting my ass to make sure I get as much done as possible to lighten the load for Monday.  Honestly, as long as its on a Thursday night, I might never be able to make it.

I can certainly understand.



I have friends that would like to go also, but they work M-F, second shift.



Can't really justify taking a vacation day.

BobCole when you win powerball your banquet will be very profitable.

*I* think so.  

I live a good ways out from town. We stay pretty busy and have a 4th grader.

I just looked and it would be $100 for me and my wife to go. Not going to break the bank but for that you are going to have to provide something better than "a chance to win a gun" to get me interested.

Truthfully, I don't really need anymore guns or ammo. Damn sure not going to bid against some deep pocket guy and pay more than something is worth for something I don't need.

I really don't know what it would take to get me to go.

Possibly a really good speaker with something of interest to hear about. And I don't mean some dipshit politician trying to get votes.

Maybe they need to change the entire approach.

I might be more inclined to come to a daytime weekend event that was much less expensive and family friendly.

Hamburgers, hot dogs, BBQ. If I could get in cheaper I might be willing to show up and toss some money in the pot.

These days $100 to walk in the door is just not very appetizing.

That sums it up nicely.

A good speaker is a great idea and the daytime/weekend schedule would be much easier to deal with for me.

Is the ticket price part of the fund raising or is it to cover the facility rent? If the tickets could be cheaper, you could make it up and maybe more with the games and raffles. Lower the price, get more folks in the door. The more people, the better chance they might spend a little more.

Ticket price is both covering cost of the dinner & hall rental & raises about $10 per head, sometimes less.

Personally, *I* don't like to gamble, thus *I* don't like the games & raffles. *I* prefer to buy something IF I decide it's something I want to own. I don't mind paying MSRP or even a bit over if it's both a hard-to-find item & raises money for a good cause.

But I understand how some folks like to gamble & play the games. It's just not for me. That's why I prefer the silent auction, it's much more definitive & dependent upon an individual's desire to pay rather than simply a game of chance.

Some banquets have close to $75 EACH ticket price now just to get in the door & have dinner.

Quick response while I've got a few minutes:





We've had speakers before. At the Memphis event, we've had Wayne LaPierre and Ronnie Barrett as speakers.



You cannot have ANY speaker talking politics or electioneering. Hell, you can't even sign up anybody for the NRA at the event.



It is an NRA FOUNDATION event, not an NRA event. BIG legal difference.



Remember though, any speaker you have will by definition extend the event.





We HAVE had other events. In fact, the Memphis committee is planning on a fund raising machine gun shoot in the spring.



It is to be held at the Memphis Sport Shooting Association facility.