Volunteerism Quiz

[Mo]

Local:
Do you hold a division office?? (score five points per year)
Do you referee on a volunteer basis for your division or club? (five points per meet in the past year)
Do you pick up campers or help your club with camps? (five points)
Do you do home stays for your club? (five points)
Do you organize and run meets? (Ten points per meet)
Work for meets? (five points per meet)
Are you active in promoting fencing locally?
Do you coach fencers in your club?



Nationally: (five points each per time)
Have you worked on national bout committees?
Have you reffed Nationally?
Have you contributed to American Fencing Magazine?
Do you have special skills that help the USFA? (photography, video, computer skills)?
Have you ever shown up early for a USFA Competition and help set up boxes and strips?
Have you ever been a volunteer Armorer?
Have you volunteered as part of an organizing committee?



Parenting: (ten points per yes answer)
Do you support a nationally ranked fencer?
Do you leave the country more than 5 times a year?
Do you do photography or video of national meets for your team or coaches?
Do you travel to NAC's?
Are you exhausted due to fencing?
Do you drive your kid(s) to practice 3 or more times a week?
Do you spend more than 10,000 a year per kid to support fencing?
Do you think about fencing more than ten times a day?
Is your kid's fencing gear worth more than your living room furniture?
Do you spend more on Cliff bars and Gatoraide than you do on your yearly wardrobe?
Do your dogs stay in a kennel as much as they stay at home?
Does your yard look like a jungle or desert cause you are never home?
Do you tire of being called a whiner because you have issues with the way certain things are run?
Do you answer questions and offer support to new fencing parents?
Do you keep quiet about special projects you may be working on? (due to no need to lord over people)?

Scores:
Less than 25, you have a way to go
25-50 Getting there
55-100 Free Criticism allowed
100-200 You are a fencing virtuoso, let your opinions flow
over 200 You are worthy of worship

[Goofy]

Oh, lovely. 165, even with zeroes due to not being a parent. I reckon that meshes with the score of 19 in the 'Are You A Compulsive Fencer' thread.....

[oso97]

Originally Posted by Mo

Parenting: (ten points per yes answer)
Do you support a nationally ranked fencer?
Do you leave the country more than 5 times a year?
Do you do photography or video of national meets for your team or coaches?
Do you travel to NAC's?
Are you exhausted due to fencing?
Do you drive your kid(s) to practice 3 or more times a week?
Do you spend more than 10,000 a year per kid to support fencing?
Do you think about fencing more than ten times a day?
Is your kid's fencing gear worth more than your living room furniture?
Do you spend more on Cliff bars and Gatoraide than you do on your yearly wardrobe?
Do your dogs stay in a kennel as much as they stay at home?
Does your yard look like a jungle or desert cause you are never home?
Do you tire of being called a whiner because you have issues with the way certain things are run?
Do you answer questions and offer support to new fencing parents?
Do you keep quiet about special projects you may be working on? (due to no need to lord over people)?

Why do only parents get to count these? Seems as though there is a bit of bias going on here.... Some are clearly parents only - but a number could apply to anyone!

[Beeblebrox]

[quote=Mo][font=Trebuchet MS]Local:
Do you hold a division office?? (score five points per year)

Only five points for a division office? Obviously you have never held one!

[Peach]

Do I get to count all the things I've done or do they all have to be done at once (is that physically possible)? I've done most of them at one time or another.

[jeff]

Not sure how to score it, but I have a division office ("web lacky"), direct and help run meets.

[prototoast]

0 (plus characters).

[fluidfencer]

How come I didn't quite score 100, but it feels like so much more? I would probable add a dozen or so catagories.

*sigh*

[Mo]

Originally Posted by oso97

Why do only parents get to count these? Seems as though there is a bit of bias going on here.... Some are clearly parents only - but a number could apply to anyone!

Apply anything you wish...
I wrote that well after midnight due to some insomnia....
Most of the questions can apply to anyone.
The whole point of the quiz was to point out that everyone in their own way contributes to fencing.
Most of us do as much as we can.
NO one and I do mean NO ONE has the option to decide if disagreement or thinking things can be done better is worth while. We all have different issues.
This is a non scientific survey... parents do have additional stresses just being a parent that kids will never figure out until they become parents.
I was trying to open some eyes....

[Mo]

Originally Posted by fluidfencer

How come I didn't quite score 100, but it feels like so much more? I would probable add a dozen or so catagories.

*sigh*

Fluid,
Add them!! Seriously. What do you do? Put it all in there.
I think most fencing people care about fencing and do what we can to facillitate meets and fencing.
You are on the RYC Committees right?
Add those in. Please though post the additional questions...

[fluidfencer]

Stuff gets so specific to one's own circumstances. I guess the following are a few that are a least a little generic. Let me add that I have some great volunteers that are helping with nearly all of this.

Being on a USFA committee (I can't objectively assign points but time and frustration seem demand more than a few)

Moving or expanding your club (ours from 2,640sf to 6,100sf)

planning to host Sectionals next spring (and starting to solicit sponsors)

Being a club officer (points based on size)

Beginning the process of starting new satellite programs, including one modeled after the Peter Westbrook foundation

Scheduling and presenting demonstrations (kind of falls into promoting club, and we are also doing a direct mail program this summer)

Planning and coordinating a referee clinic and tournament (for the practical portion) with our good friends in Chattanooga (thanks Bart and Jeanie)

Bringing new coaches from other countries

I still owe an article to Craig for Fencing.net (I will get that done in a few days Craig)

Working with a local magazine on an article about fencing


Anyway, that's off the top of my head... this month...

[Esotamoc]

So Mo, the more points you score(i'm sure you scored highly- a true matyr to fencing) the more valid your opinions and criticisms of fencing are? Kinda like christians who do good deeds to score points for entry into heaven. it doesnt work like that. if you havent fenced competively you dont understand sh##t. you cant fence through your children. support them and let them enjoy it!

[Repechage]

That sounds like someone who hasn't been a parent. Such peopel give great advice until they have their own kids.

The whole point of a fencing discussion board is for people to be able to discuss fencing. That includes complaining about it, as well as a lot of other less useful things like giving rep points. I don't get why people think you have to go do something about the things you're complaining about. Sometimes the best thing to do is nothing, or let someone else do it, espeically if people won't listen to you because of who you are, like the parent of a fencer.

[Esotamoc]

Originally Posted by Repechage

That sounds like someone who hasn't been a parent. Such peopel give great advice until they have their own kids.

The whole point of a fencing discussion board is for people to be able to discuss fencing. That includes complaining about it, as well as a lot of other less useful things like giving rep points. I don't get why people think you have to go do something about the things you're complaining about. Sometimes the best thing to do is nothing, or let someone else do it, espeically if people won't listen to you because of who you are, like the parent of a fencer.

parents ofcourse, as anyone involved in fencing, have a right to express their opinions. but they are always biased in the interests of their own child- as they should be. it was amusing that mo figured, in this ficticious points system she created, that because of the hard , obviously selfless, work and sacrifice that she put into the sport(for her children)- necessarily gives her opinions and criticisms moral clout. therefore her opinions must be more valid?

experience and understanding is what validates your opinions.

[fluidfencer]

You can be a so-so fencer and be a decent referee, or be extraordinarily good at running a club.

Probably best to leave religion out of the discussion in this forum (Craig provides others for that)

Originally Posted by Esotamoc

So Mo, the more points you score(i'm sure you scored highly- a true matyr to fencing) the more valid your opinions and criticisms of fencing are? Kinda like christians who do good deeds to score points for entry into heaven. it doesnt work like that. if you havent fenced competively you dont understand sh##t. you cant fence through your children. support them and let them enjoy it!

[Mauler]

Originally Posted by Mo

Do you referee on a volunteer basis for your division or club? (five points per meet in the past year)
Are you active in promoting fencing locally?
Do you coach fencers in your club?
Have you reffed Nationally?
Have you ever shown up early for a USFA Competition and help set up boxes and strips?
Have you volunteered as part of an organizing committee?
Do you do photography or video of national meets for your team or coaches?
Do you travel to NAC's?
Are you exhausted due to fencing?
Do you think about fencing more than ten times a day?
Is your kid's fencing gear worth more than your living room furniture?
Do you spend more on Cliff bars and Gatoraide than you do on your yearly wardrobe?
Do you answer questions and offer support to new fencing parents?

The above apply to me, and I took a liberty of switching "kid's" to [my]. I do have a question about the refereeing part, though. Does it have to be on a volunteer basis? How 'bout for pay? I refereed at least 68 USFA tournaments this season (and that's only USFA events I'm counting), but I got paid for every single one of them. If I can count those, that's a LOT of points right there!

[foildad]

Originally Posted by Esotamoc

So Mo, the more points you score(i'm sure you scored highly- a true matyr to fencing) the more valid your opinions and criticisms of fencing are? Kinda like christians who do good deeds to score points for entry into heaven. it doesnt work like that. if you havent fenced competively you dont understand sh##t. you cant fence through your children. support them and let them enjoy it!

Pretty bitter talk coming from someone living "peacefully, in a global community."

I scored 145, but I could bump that for starting and maintaining a club website, printing team banners and t-shirts, etc.

Does this mean that I am trying to live vicariously through my children?

No. It means I try to be a good father. And anyone who can't appreciate that "don't understand sh##t".

[Mo]

Originally Posted by Esotamoc

So Mo, the more points you score(i'm sure you scored highly- a true matyr to fencing) the more valid your opinions and criticisms of fencing are? Kinda like christians who do good deeds to score points for entry into heaven. it doesnt work like that. if you havent fenced competively you dont understand sh##t. you cant fence through your children. support them and let them enjoy it!

I don't fence through my children. My kids fence for themselves not for my glory. I get queasy inside when other parents congratulate me for my kid's success.
I do however spend more time than I ever thought possible on fencing.
I never even took the quiz I just made it up.
The entire purpose was to show that even if one can't set up a live results during a tournament, there was a hell of a lot more to be a volunteer than that. You can do amazing things for fencing when the only time you pick up a blade is when you are stuffing it back into your kid's bag.
I am not a martyr I am a parent.
I am amazed at how hostile and rude this board has gotten lately. I've gotten insulting PMs from people that are just rude as heck even though they don't know who I am from posting this "quiz." it is not meant to be a serious quiz but more of an eye opener.
Esot go back to your supercilious world and Foil Dad, thanks for your support!

[KD5MDK]

I feel a duty to go and create two or three children right out of college so that in 8 years or so, I can rack up the fencing volunteer points. However, I'm not looking forward to waiting a year between each one, so I'd better pick up some extra girlfriends while I'm at it.

[Mo]

Originally Posted by KD5MDK

I feel a duty to go and create two or three children right out of college so that in 8 years or so, I can rack up the fencing volunteer points. However, I'm not looking forward to waiting a year between each one, so I'd better pick up some extra girlfriends while I'm at it.

Don't worry too much.
You are scoring most prodigiously in the jack a$$ contest. That is your greatest strength, play to it.