LIFE MEMBERSHIP IN THE APTA

By Charles E. Vasoll

I hate to dwell on this subject. This is the second article regarding this matter in the short life of this web site. I think it is important, however, and needs to be explored for the good health of the Association. I have confirmed that the cost of a Life Membership in the American Platform Tennis Association is going up (and out of sight!).

Next season the Life Membership dues for an individual in the APTA is being planned to be raised from $400.00 to $750.00. Now I understand that the Association has some financial problems but, believe me, Life Membership dues are not a financial life preserver. This increase will simply and completely turn off the small number of such memberships that have been generated in the last several years. The "trust fund" that these payments have created will become static.

Sure, interest rates are low, no question about it. The $400.00 in dues does not earn sufficient interest to pay for the annual dues of an individual. But, it must be remembered that these dollars belong to the APTA forever. This means that upon the death, disability or just plain old age, when an individual is no longer participating, the dues don’t "dry up". The amount paid for the Life Membership continues to provide income for the Association.

I have looked into material I have from the United States Tennis Association (USTA) and the United States Golf Association (USGA) and find no mention of "Life Membership". I inquired of both organizations and found that the USGA never offered this type of membership. The Tennis Association advised me that they still do offer it, at a cost of $400.00.

I would recommend to the APTA Board of Directors that they either keep the dues reasonable or abandon the type of membership entirely. If a reasonable amount of dues for "Life Membership" is not worthwhile, rather than raise the dues to an astronomical figure, which no one will pay, simply do not offer the program any longer.

Personally, I still believe there is a place for Life Membership in the APTA….maybe it must have an age qualification such as 45+…maybe the individual must be a member for five years before being eligible for the Life type…maybe all Life Memberships should be on an Individual basis – "Husband-Wife" seems archaic at this point in time. There are other ways to deal with the subject.

In my opinion, simply raising the dues to an amount that is unrealistic, while it may be an easy answer, it is not the answer.

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