A Frustrated AMTA Board Member
Many of you that read this article will know me, and many more will not, so let me give you a quick background on how I got involved with AMTA.
I finished massage school in 1992, but actually started practicing in 1991 as there was no State law back then. I joined AMTA because my teachers told me that all massage therapists should be a member of a professional organization to validate their standing as a massage therapist and not a masseuse. So I joined. I got my insurance, I got to say I was a member of a professional organization, but other than that, I did nothing with my membership except pay my renewal fee each year.
However, in 2007 I was very surprised when I was selected as the Meritorious Award winner for the AMTA-IL Chapter. They flew me to Atlanta for the National Convention so I could receive my award, and I must admit, I was extremely honored to be selected.
After that, I let the board members know that since they gave me such a nice award, I figured the least I could do was a little volunteering for the Chapter. Little did I know, I would be asked to fill a vacant position on the board and become a board member for close to 10 years in a variety of different roles.
Once I got on the board, I quickly found out that the board wants members to get the most value for their money, but most therapists never take advantage of all that the Chapter has to offer.
I now sit on the board because I want EVERY member to benefit from their affiliation with AMTA. I want people to know we are there to help. We are there if and when you need us. We want the members to know that they pay for more than just insurance coverage with their yearly dues.
So here is where the frustration comes in . . . The Illinois Chapter has over 3800 registered members, and yet I do not believe that those 3800 members feel they are getting their monies worth. I know the board would love to know what members want, but without communication we can only guess. We offer a State Conference where a member can get up to 18 CE’s, meals, social functions, a chance to network with other therapists, and an opportunity to check out vendors willing to offer discounts at the conference. All of this for a price $100 – $200 dollars less expensive than many CE providers offering fewer CE’s.
When members need help with local or state government issues, it is AMTA which will jump into action. When you want to do some volunteering, just call AMTA and we will likely have opportunities for you to volunteer.
What we want is to hear from you. What we want is for you to tell us if you are happy with the value you get for your dues, and if you aren’t we would love to have you tell us why. We cannot fix something if we are not aware there is a problem.
If you are afraid of telling us something negative in a public setting, you can send me a message on Facebook, you can email me (my email is at the end of this article) or you can reach any board member by going to our website and hit the “contact us” link.
I am currently on the board, and plan to run again this year. This will likely be my last go-round and I would love end my run knowing I was able to help the members. So please, let us know what you would like from your board. I am not asking that you get involved if that is not “Your Thing.” But you are paying good money to be a member, so get the value out of your membership. Tell us what you want and let’s see if we cannot make things better for you and hopefully other members at the same time.
Hope to hear from you.
Mike Hovi