Steering Plan - Doc Fritchey Trout Unlimited

Our Trout Unlimited Mission

To bring together diverse interests to care for and recover rivers and streams so our children can experience the joy of wild and native trout and salmon.

Our Doc Fritchey Guiding Principle

The conservation, protection, and restoration of the coldwater fishery resources of Dauphin and Lebanon counties.

WE ARE:

A local organization with Dauphin and Lebanon counties as its footprint, one of 49 Trout Unlimited chapters in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
An organization that has continued to place its emphasis on the fostering and restoring of wild trout populations wherever that is feasible
An organization dedicated to the education of anglers, of all ages, in the areas of stream conservation and sportsmanlike fishing practices
A group of trout anglers, a majority of whom are fly fishers who believe primarily in catch-and-release angling

GOAL #1

Within our footprint, engage our youth to acquaint them with our organization. Instill in them a vision of conservation practices, and provide a core value system for volunteer service, teamwork, and environmental concerns.

Appoint a Youth Development Committee Chairperson
- Develop a relationship with high schools
  - Attend informational days at high schools to give presentations and demonstrations
  - Recruit for Rivers Conservation and Fly Fishing Youth Camp
  - Promote DFTU’s Frank Viozzi Scholarship
- Develop working relationships with local youth groups (Scouts, Stream Girls, etc.)
  - Have a Fly-Fishing Merit badge counselor
  - Include them in workdays (tree planting, stream clean-ups, etc.)
  - Coordinate a fly-fishing instruction day program
- Sponsor a youth “learn to fly fish” day program (similar to Ladies Day)
- Assist with Fishing Mentor weekend
- Assist with local sportsman’s organizations’ children/family programs (such as PSA)
- Attempt to create a college subgroup within our chapter
- Attempt to create a junior board of directors

GOAL #2

Increase the diversity of membership in our chapter, and in chapter leadership and program involvement.

Appoint a Diversity Chairperson for “Inclusion”
- Ladies Day instruction
- Casting for Recovery
- Sponsor a Stream Girls event
- Strengthen our tie with Healing Waters and sponsor a Veteran’s Program
- Family Fun Day at Italian Lake
- Invite specific groups to social events, such as fly-tying at a brewery
- Invite outside groups to participate in our conservation stream projects
- Feature speakers from our TU chapter for events hosted by diversity groups

GOAL #3

Increase volunteer participation of members in our general membership meetings, chapter projects, and committee work.

Appoint a Membership Chairperson
- Develop a protocol for new members:
  - Will receive an invitation to breakfast
  - Gather information regarding their interests, hobbies, and goals
  - Will receive a TU chapter welcoming packet (garment, hat, T-shirt, etc.)
  - Will receive a separate invitation to volunteer for service on one of our committees
  - Individual introduction at next general membership meeting
- For current members:
  - Maintain an accurate listing of membership
  - Notify members who are lapsing their membership
- Develop a plan for increasing volunteerism
- Develop membership brochures
- Develop Awards presentations (Gerald L. Miller Volunteer of the Year, Passing of Net, etc.)
Develop an annual plan for General Membership meetings
- Plan a year’s worth of general membership meeting topics and then seek to implement a central theme
- Re-establish a central location for our general membership meetings and for our Board of Directors meetings
- Increase attendance at general membership meetings and increase member involvement in our projects
Appoint an Education Director for the chapter
- Must have an Assistant Director for Trout in Classroom
  - Need volunteer assistants, get them the required training
  - Provide a pamphlet regarding the program
  - Consider TIC schools as participants beyond and after TIC
- Work with PA Fish and Boat Commission to get fishing instructors certified
- Fly-tying courses
- Fly-casting courses
- Fly-fishing instruction
Appoint a Social Director to increase social activities that involve all chapter members
- Coordinate social nights at happy hour wineries/breweries/restaurants
- Coordinate Chapter picnic
- Organize chapter-sponsored fishing outings
Develop a chapter organizational chart
- Develop job descriptions for Committee Chairs
- Track time involvement and terms of service for Board Members

GOAL #4

Develop a long range plan and blueprint for improvements to each of our chapter project streams. Develop proposals to rescue, restore, and create new coldwater systems.

Appoint an overall Stream Conservation Chairperson from within our chapter
- Sub chair: Diversion Well
- Sub chair: Grants and Proposals
- Sub chair: Stream Stocking
- Sub chairs: Stream Stewards for each of our home waters
  - Create a training program for stream stewards
- Plan a separate workday for each of our home streams to familiarize chapter members with the streams, and make an annual improvement. Include:
  - Stream improvement projects
  - Stream cleanups
  - Tree planting
  - Adopt-a-Highway cleanups
- List all of our streams in our footprint. Maintain a history of work that has already been completed by our chapter. List the work that needs to be done and prioritize this work.
- Create a wishlist of things that could be done, provided we could receive the necessary funding and resources, including manpower.

GOAL #5

Create an ongoing plan for chapter fundraising. Encourage corporate sponsorship in our chapter and develop deeper relationships with our donors.

Appoint a Fundraising Chairperson
- Develop an annual plan for fundraising and coordinate these fundraising efforts
  - Propose an annual plan at each chapter Annual meeting
- Serve as a liaison for our corporate donors/sponsors
  - Develop a communications system with them. More than a newsletter mailing.
  - Include these donors/sponsors in some of our social activities
  - Invite the donors/sponsors to see some of our project improvements
  - Serve as contact for new donors
- Serve as contact for our online store

GOAL #6

Increase the promotion of our chapter and its accomplishments to the general public.

Appoint a Communications/Social Media Liaison Officer within our chapter to work with:
- The development of our quarterly print newsletter
- Develop a standard promotional single-page poster/flyer that describes, in layman’s terms, who Trout Unlimited is, and who the Doc Fritchey chapter is
- Increase our relationship with TU national, TU state, TU regional chapters
- Develop a closer working relationship with the PA Fish and Boat Commission
- Have more recognition with state and local legislators
- Provide info and news updates to PA Outdoor Writers Association
- Watershed Associations (Quittie, Clark’s, Spring Creek, etc.)
- Other Outdoor sportsmen’s groups (Palmyra Sportsmen, Wildwood, Ned Smith Center, etc.)
- Gain a stronger public identity through local media contacts
- Advertising in various local media
- Develop a speakers bureau listing of public speakers for TU, including TU state-level individuals, as well as chapter members as speakers
Expand our website and social media venues to have a greater public presence
- Create a web-based form for volunteerism
Promote our chapter and its projects through informational events
- High school days
- Legislators Outdoors Day
- Wildwood
- Ned Smith Center
- Palmyra Sportsmen Association
- DeHart Dam
- National Hunting/Fishing Day

Strategy For Implementing This Plan

Review the document with the Board of Directors at February 28 meeting. Take revisions into account and incorporate these into document.
Have Fred Fortney print the Strategic document with the goals, not with all the tasks, and hand out to all attendees at the March 28, 2023 annual meeting
At the annual meeting:
- Take the first 15/20 minutes to elect Board
- Then go into the strategic document introduction and explain that a budget will be planned to support it.
- Have all attendees go to tables
  - To provide input into tasks
  - To sign up for volunteer groups
  - To sign up for leadership positions
- Tables will have non-alcoholic beverages, snacks at each table
- Each table will have a Strategic Planning Committee member there to lead sign-ups and discussion
- Anyone who signs up for a volunteer position receives a ticket for drawing at each table. Have a bucket ready for ticket drawing. Use giveaway gift items. Need 6 tables.
After meeting, send out a survey seeking additional comments from members who either were not present or those who have new suggestions.

Basically, here is what we need:

A Membership Chair – who will develop a committee to:
- Increase Diversity
  - Coordinate Ladies Day
  - Coordinate Veterans Program(s)
- Serve as Youth Coordinator
- Coordinate volunteer groups within the chapter
- Monitor an active membership list
- Recruit new members
A Conservation Chair – who will develop a committee to:
- Work with the grant applications and stream improvement projects
  - Monitor the progress with contractors and administer the grants
- Track all of our projects ever done, prioritize work to be done, and create a wish list of things that need to be done
- Coordinate with other local conservation organizations
- Monitor the ongoing health and concerns for our local streams
  - Develop stream stewards
- Coordinate stocking
- Coordinate Diversion Well project
- Plan work days on our streams, highway cleanup, tree planting, etc.
A Public Relations Chair – who will develop a committee to:
- Work with our chapter’s social media
- Coordinate the chapter newsletter and articles
- Maintain the chapter calendar of events
- Develop chapter posters and flyers
- Provide for event photos and articles for news releases, coordinate with outside writers, such as Pennsylvania Outdoor Writers Assn (POWA)
- Develop relationships with other TU chapters, State TU, and National TU. Inform of conferences, meetings
- Develop a chapter “skilled speakers” bureau (a group that can go out to local organizations to do public speaking)
An Education Chair – who will develop a committee to:
- Plan general membership meeting locations/speakers/programs
- Stay on top of government-proposed legislation
- Disseminate information regarding changes in fishing/conservation regulations
- Coordinate the Trout In The Classroom program
- Plan exhibit days with local organizations, schools
- Plan fly-tying events
- Keep the chapter by-laws
A Development Chair – who will develop a committee to:
- Solicit corporate sponsorship
- Develop an increased involvement with our sponsors and donors
- Work with our chapter “store”
- Plan for chapter fundraising events (auctions, banquets, etc)
- Solicit prizes
- Develop a plan for gift-giving

Each of these five chairs should come from our Board of Directors members and each Board member (who is not one of these chairs) must actively participate in serving on one of the committees under the chair. The Executive Committee should be exempt, except for the VP, who should serve as the coordinator for the group of “Chairs.”

We need to have a definitive description of the duties of a Board of Directors member. This description must be discussed and reviewed at Feb 28 meeting, so that it can be made clear prior to the completion of the slate of nominees for the Annual meeting.