After a year filled with challenges, we look forward with hope as the calendar brings us a fresh start.
By Chris Smith
Chief Executive Officer
csmith@fmca.com
January 2021
Hi, all, and Happy New Year! I do not know about you, but I am excited to say good-bye to 2020. It was a year in which FMCA staff worked from home for six months. A year in which for the first time in FMCA history, the association did not host a single international convention. And a year when many FMCA members were not able to enjoy traveling in their RVs along with friends and family, the foundation on which FMCA is built. Here’s hoping that 2021 starts to bring some normalcy back into all our lives.
In January, I get to enjoy a big milestone. I am joining the 40-year-old club on the 7th. With everything else going on in the world, I had not put much thought into it until I began writing this article about the new year. I subscribe to the philosophy that age is nothing but a number. Here are some quotes I found to help me understand others’ experience with this milestone:
“Middle age is when your age starts to show around your middle.” Bob Hope
“Middle age is when a guy keeps turning off lights for economical rather than romantic reasons.” Eli Cass
“Life begins at forty — but so do fallen arches, rheumatism, faulty eyesight, and the tendency to tell a story to the same person, three or four times.” Helen Rowland
Now I am starting to question whether I should be so indifferent about turning 40! That said, I have been blessed with an amazing first 40 years and can only hope the next 40 are equally amazing.
One way for FMCA to return to normalcy is to host an international convention in 2021. We currently are accepting registrations and making plans for our winter convention, “Another Day In Perrydise,” which will be held at the Georgia National Fairgrounds and Agricenter in Perry, Georgia, March 10 through 13, 2021. As of this writing, in late November, we already have 1,000 RVs signed up to attend.
Like most things experienced in these times, the Perry event will look much different from those we are accustomed to. FMCA will do everything it can to assure the safety of our attendees, and that starts with following Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommendations. Examples include wearing masks, social distancing, plenty of handwashing and hand-sanitizer stations, informational signage, and many other precautions. You can register for this event on our website at www.fmca.com/fmca-perry-2021-learn-more; by calling the FMCA national office at (513) 474-3622 or (800) 543-3622; or by filling out the form on page 69 of this issue and mailing it to the national office. We hope to see you there!
This special directory issue of the magazine includes a complete “FMCA Member Benefits Guide” starting on page 122. I encourage all members to read through the guide to make sure you are taking advantage of all the great benefits your association provides. I also suggest that you keep this issue of the magazine handy throughout the year; it’s a great resource, with a listing of FMCA commercial members in the “RV Marketplace,” a “Chapter Directory,” and much more.
As many FMCA members know, your wonderful association magazine, Family RVing — a favorite member benefit — is available both in print and digital formats. The availability of the digital magazine is announced via email around the 20th of each month. It can be viewed at https://familyrvingmag.com. You can read the current month’s issue, as well as previous digital issues dating back to 2013. Other magazine content dating back to 2002 is available on the FamilyRVingmag.com website itself. Look for the Archives section along the right side of the home page. A search box is available to help locate information that might interest you.
Pamela Kay, director of communications, has put together some helpful pointers to help you navigate the digital edition, and I am sharing them here.
You will need to be signed in as an FMCA member to view the digital magazine, and much of the material archived on the FamilyRVingmag.com website itself. The reason for requiring a login is that access to the magazine and content is considered a privilege of membership.
The email that is sent to members each month to announce the availability of a new digital edition includes a link that takes you directly to that month’s issue. Each new issue becomes available about the 20th of the month. On a desktop computer, look for the “Read Our Digital Edition” icon to access the current magazine. Clicking on the “View All Previous Editions” button takes you to the digital edition archives. The digital edition can be viewed on all types of devices, from desktop computers to tablets and smartphones. On a tablet or smartphone, click on the three-line menu, sometimes called a “hamburger menu,” and then click on Digital Editions.
On the desktop version, navigation instructions appear when you first open a digital edition. On tablets and smartphones, the usual means of navigation can be used.
Single-page view works better when it comes to reading the text of articles. Smartphones and tablets likely will render in single-page view automatically. If you are using a desktop computer, look for the wrench icon at the top right once you access the digital magazine. Click on that icon and then click on “Single-Page View.” If you click the box next to “Save My Preferences,” the magazine always will appear in single-page view.
On a desktop computer, the plus and minus symbols in the middle of the top menu bar can be used to zoom in and out on the magazine pages. On your smartphone or tablet, the usual ways of enlarging text can be employed.
Another help for text reading is the Article View option. At the start of features and columns, an Article View button appears next to the Download icon on the menu bar in the desktop version. On tablets or smartphones, it appears elsewhere but is available. The icon flashes yellow momentarily. Clicking on this icon brings up just the text of the article. You then have three size options for the text by clicking on the Aa. That really helps for just reading the text itself.
It also is possible to download a PDF of each issue, and that tends to make for easier reading on a desktop computer especially.
Not everyone wants to read magazines in digital form, but that is the preference for many these days. Unless members request otherwise, the print magazine will be mailed to them each month. The email reminder about the availability of the digital magazine is sent monthly to all members who have an email on file. If you’re not interested in reading the magazine in digital form, simply delete the email announcement and wait for the print magazine to arrive in your mailbox. It follows about a week after the digital announcement goes out.
Regardless of which version of the magazine you read, digital or print, we thank you for doing so and for your membership in FMCA. We appreciate each and every one of you! Cheers to a year of RV adventures and time spent with family and friends. Enjoy the journey!
The mission of FMCA is to bring together RV owners who share similar interests in congenial traveling, recreation, and social activities in order to preserve and perpetuate the traditional ideals and spirit of friendly and wholesome family fellowship as manifested by the founders of FMCA.