Membership
Membership in the Association shall be open to all persons. Dues must accompany application for membership. Membership will lapse after 14 days of non-payment of dues.
Members under the age of 18 shall not operate the equipment in the Association shop without an adult member of the Association present. That member will assume responsibility for the safety of the youth member.
Members will be required to demonstrate proficiency in the safe operation of tools. Members shall follow safety rules and guidelines for safe use of the equipment as set by the governing members of the Association. Failure to follow stated guidelines may result in removal of membership privileges.
Membership may be revoked for conduct contrary to the stated purpose.
The Board of Directors and/or the membership committee shall be responsible for decisions involving membership termination.
Dues:
- Monthly: $30
- Annually: $300
- Dues may be paid on a monthly, quarterly, semi-annual or annual basis.
- The dues structure may be reviewed periodically. The reviews will allow for the club to adjust dues according to financial needs or to investigate suggestions such as allowing for discounting of dues for various circumstances.
- The board of directors shall propose and the membership shall approve any changes in dues or dues structure.
- Failure to pay dues within two weeks of the billing date shall result in the termination of membership. Should circumstances exist, the board of directors may decide to grant an extension of membership privileges to the individual, provided that the individual has made arrangements in advance to pay appropriate fees.
- Youth memberships shall be $15 per month and shall only be available in conjunction with an adult membership. The sponsoring adult shall serve as a mentor to the individual holding the youth membership.
- Reduced dues for non-working members shall be considered.
- Individuals who intend to terminate their membership should inform the membership committee and/or treasurer of their intent at least two weeks prior to the end of their current membership period.
Members of the Nokomis Woodworkers Association who come to work in the shop shall expect to come to a clean shop with functioning tools and equipment. The following are expectations of members when using the shop:
- Return all tools to their designated storage places at the end of each work session
- Return projects and materials to the storage area; an exception to this guideline would be projects in clamps while glue is drying; when possible those projects should be placed in the back storage room and the clamps returned to their racks as soon as possible.
- Clean the tools and the shop after each use
- Instructors shall reserve blocks of time for classes at least two weeks in advance of the start of the classes. Dates of classes will be announced in member meetings and posted on the shop notification board.
- The shop will be closed to individual member work unless member access is granted by the instructor of the class.
- The shop shall be returned to a normal operational state at the completion of each session.
- The member-instructor will determine if fees for classes are appropriate. Some classes/presentations may not warrant a fee.
- If fees are charged for classes, they will be set by the instructor. For consistency, it is suggested that member-instructors charge class enrollees at a rate of $2.50 to $3.00 per hour of instructor time.
- It is suggested that a “use of shop” fee be included in class registration costs for non-members. The fee will be determined by the instructor. If a “use of shop” fee is charged, a rate of $1.00 to $1.50 per hour of class time is suggested.
- A discount for members who enroll in classes is encouraged but not required. Examples of discounts for members might be a reduction of $5.00 for every 5 hours of instructor time or perhaps a fee that is between ½ and ¾ the rate for non-members. Reducing the registration fee by an amount equal to any “use of shop fee” that may be charged is another option.
- Material costs may be included in registration fees if the instructor so chooses.
Membership in the Nokomis Woodworkers Association requires that a waiver of responsibility be signed and on file with club officials. The waiver states that individual members are responsible for their personal safety.
Meet Our Officers and Management Team
PRESIDENT
Bret Davis
TREASURER
Kirk Whittlesey
SECRETARY/COMMUNICATIONS
Dean Clasen
TEAM MEMBERS
Jim Dodd
Craig Christensen
Our Beginning.
In the summer of 2016, a chance meeting allowed two individuals with similar ideas to get connected and start the process of creating the Nokomis Woodworking Association.
Craig Christensen was supervising a kids’ activity at the Humboldt County Art fair in June when Bret Davis stopped by and started to visit with him. Bret explained that he had empty space in a building and thought this it would be a good place for a community woodworking club. Craig had been a multi-year participant in some adult woodworking classes that Dean Clasen hosted in the Humboldt middle school shop. Over the years, Dean had discussed the possibility of a woodworking co-op with the intent of creating a place for the sharing of woodworking knowledge and for developing a social connection for local woodworkers. With two similar ideas having been presented to Craig, he shared contact information so that Bret and Dean might be able to get together to share their ideas.
Bret and Dean first met in the Fall of 2016 to discuss the similarities in their ideas. Intermittent meetings followed over the next few months and other interested individuals were invited come and share their thoughts. Mark Schultz was among the individuals who showed for a meeting and he soon showed a heightened interest in what was proposed. As others joined the group when they could, Bret, Mark and Dean remained the constants or core members in the planning process. Through the summer of 2017, meetings were held more frequently to create a set of guidelines for the club, examining all of the possible scenarios of operation and exploring the potential hazards of allowing a group of individuals to share space and tools for their projects.
The development of the guidelines progressed and it was determined in the Fall of 2017 that it was time to get the space, located in the old Humboldt Springs building, cleaned up and turned into a woodworking shop. At least three roll-off dumpsters were filled with the trash other items that were left in the building. Some walls were removed, walls and ceilings were repaired and painted and plans were developed for tools placement. Gary Lowe, a local woodworker who was also a friend of Mark’s, had passed and his widow had a large garage full of tools that she needed to do something with. Janelle had contacted Mark to get some feedback on how and where to sell the tools. Initial discussion centered around purchasing a few of the tools but evolved into making an offer for the entire shop. Several early members spent most of a day moving the equipment and cleaning out the garage for Janelle, allowing the woodworking club to get established. A similar experience occurred a few weeks later when Donna White from near Hardy made it known to the club that she wanted to part with her deceased husband’s tools. When Mark and Dean went to check the tools out, Donna said that she would donate the tools as she just wanted them out of the basement. In exchange for her generosity, Mark and Dean cleaned out the basement room for Donna and brought a trailer full of tools and wood back to the shop.
Bret made significant repairs and improvements to the building and work continued through the early part 2018 on setting up the shop. The club, named for the park and small lake nearby, held an open-house and began accepting members on March 4th of 2018.