ABC Mass. membership drive April 30 and May 1

The theme of last year's ABC MA membership drive was "Membership... A Tradition Unlike any Other." As we approach this year's drive on April 30th and May 1st, that tradition has grown even stronger. Earlier this month, the Massachusetts chapter earned a best practice award from ABC national for last year's membership drive, which netted 26 new members in two days. The drive was an important part of the yearlong efforts by our membership team of Ken Ledwak and Dave Murphy that pushed chapter membership above 400 for the first time since 2007. In 2013, Massachusetts was one of the nation's fastest-growing ABC chapters. It was a truly an outstanding recruitment effort with great results, but we cannot rest on our laurels; we need to build on last year's success. And that means getting our best recruiters, our current members, to participate. It is easier then you can imagine. You don't need to give up a whole day to take part in the drive; just one two-hour shift on either day. We will break up into teams and each will have a captain. Rather than cold calling people you may not know, we ask you to reach out to prospects you know and believe could benefit from ABC membership. Like last year, we will offer prizes to the individuals and teams who recruit the most new members. We will also hold a kick-off party the night before the drive on April 29th. In my December message, I wrote about why membership is so critical for our organization. From being able to walk into meetings with legislators accompanied by someone who is an employer in the Senator's or Representative's district to having the capacity to provide members with legal, lobbying, public relations and programming resources, it all relies on membership. It is the members that provide ABC with the both the financial resources and the number of potential voters that allows ABC to be effective inside the state house, Our membership team, has been recognized for excellence in recruitment by ABC national and membership is on the rise. Please help us build on success by taking part in this year's drive. Thomas Descoleaux is the chairman of ABC Mass. Chapter, Woburn, Mass.