THE UKRAINIAN NATIONAL ASSOCIATION FORUM (09/16/01)

THE UKRAINIAN NATIONAL ASSOCIATION FORUM

UNA's September newsletter: membership and organizing

by Martha Lysko
UNA National Secretary

Fall membership campaign

Looking at the six-month UNA Organizing Report, one wonders why is it so difficult to enroll new members into our organization. The UNA is a well-known, respected organization that has served our community for many years.

From time to time we see membership lists of various Ukrainian organizations, and there are very few UNA members on these lists. In the first place we should contact people in these organizations to join the UNA.

Even our large districts, such as Cleveland, Detroit, Philadelphia, New York and Chicago, have very few new members.

Furthermore, we must try to reach the new Ukrainian immigrants, the so-called "Fourth Wave." They are our future, and they are most in need of life insurance - although they may not realize this.

Insurance premiums are the lowest in our history, medical requirements are minimal and the age of insurability has been extended to 90.

The UNA national secretary has the responsibility to provide good insurance products, prepare rate books, applications and sales brochures, as well as introduce the secretaries to the new materials. Every effort has been made to avail our secretaries of these UNA materials.

All members of the General Assembly, branch secretaries, district chairmen and branch officers should take an active role in our fall membership campaign.

The fall membership campaign calls for 476 new members by December 31. The UNA currently has 238 branches. Each Branch is responsible for enrolling two new members to the end of the year.

The quota of 476 in three months is very achievable. The basis for delegates to the UNA Convention is the number of active members in a given branch.

Fall organizing meetings

Attendance at the fall organizing meeting is required of all members of the General Assembly in their districts, district chairmen, branch secretaries and all branch officers.

On the eve of the UNA Convention in 2002 the UNA's elected representatives have an obligation to review and to discuss a variety of problems and questions facing our organization. Our district fall meetings will present issues that need to be discussed.

We want to encourage branch officers to elect delegates to the 35th Convention who are willing to study these issues and make decisions accordingly. The UNA By-Laws amended at the 1998 Convention need to be updated again. Our membership has been declining over 20 years, yet we still maintain a 25-member General Assembly. It is time to reduce the number of elected officials to reflect the current membership.

With new regulations issued by Canadian insurance departments we have to look at the future of the UNA in Canada. It is imperative to review all options and find a solution to Soyuzivka.

However, the lack of growth of our organization is the most urgent problem, and it must take priority over all other problems. As previously reported, since 1978 the UNA has been losing close to 2,000 members annually. Year to year, the number of new members has been declining and has not keep pace with the losses. We must reverse this process if we are to continue as the largest Ukrainian organization in North America.

A notice to UNA branches

UNA branches that have not sent in branch officer lists must do so in order to actively participate in the pre-convention preparations. All officers in the branches listed below (by branch number and city) are responsible for submission of the branch officers list that was mailed to each branch secretary in January 2001.

Please check that all officers of the branch are active UNA members in good standing. No one with a paid-up policy, suspended policy, or terminated policy can serve as a delegate to the convention or as a branch officer.

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