May is here! I know this because the trees in Michigan are growing leaves, the grass is getting greener, and flowers are finally popping up. It's beautiful again!  This phenomenon-spring--is a natural annual occurrence.  We take it for granted. But to grow a field of corn or to have a beautiful garden with vegetables and flowers, you must make the effort to plant seeds and tend to their needs with water and fertilizer.

I feel MCA-I is incredibly similar to this.  We take for granted that the same group of people will keep this organization going year after year.  We  forget that it takes new volunteers to keep it fresh and infuse new enthusiasm and life into it.  We need them to sustain it--and grow it into something better.

In 2009, we became a volunteer-run organization because the same old thing wasn't working for us. The costs of a management company were  choking the life out of the association. We asked Lois Weiland, a friend of our Madison Chapter,  to become our Executive Director. Past I/O President Mike Brown stepped up to take over as Treasurer. These two veterans gave us stability and experience to navigate out of financial peril. Today we are stronger than we've been in years, but it is only the beginning.

Many leaders from the chapters have stepped up to join in the effort to move forward. Many, many more are needed to do the essential work of creating meaningful, beneficial programs for current and future members.

It is an exciting time to be a part of MCA-I-working with a team that contributes to a cause that we can all be proud of. The past is the past. We can't change history, but we can nurture this new association and help it blossom into a fantastic professional organization.  We want MCA-I to be  recognized internationally as THE group that media professionals want and need to belong to!

So here's my personal request: roll your sleeves up and get your hands dirty...maybe add a little MiracleGro!  Send us an email and let us know which projects you'd like to 'grow'.  We need your help!