Boilermaker -

Both clocks and teacups have a tie to railroads and are major parts of some railroad museums.

Many railroad museums feature outher forms of transportation as well like old cars, and old airplanes. Even if the museum is a “railroad” museum - railroads operated company vehicles.

At TVRM a few years ago, I talked to a tour guide who said his involvement with the railroad started with his interest in civil war history in the area and that led him to get involved with the railroad museum because of the civil war connection.

Yes, much more colorful.

So you just skipped over the reference to NCTM?

You missed my point. They may be tangentially related, true, but I was referencing other museums with collections and missions that are not intrinsically tied to railroads. I for example have no particular interest in the history of imported porcelain wares or French clock making in the 1700s. Just the same as others may not have a particular interest in railroading. Some people have no interest in history whatsoever. We all have our different tastes and that's okay.

As for your TVRM anecdote, through whatever means that guide developed an interest in the museum's mission and became involved accordingly.

You can lead people of all types to your museum/operation/social club. That doesn't mean they will want to become involved. White males predominantly make up this industry because they are the primary demographic that develops an interest in it. That doesn't mean this industry goes out of its way to avoid the recruitment of other kinds of people. And there's a special place in hell for those that do.

"White males predominantly make up this industry because they are the primary demographic that develops an interest in it."

I'm not sure why you brought this up in response to me as I was talking about diversity of interests but I disagree with this statement and do not believe it is true.

And now I have to worry about people who want to act like they understand nonprofit businesses who refer to funds left over after expenses as "profit." Makes me actually want to see the small marginal all volunteer mismanaged groups fail.......

Good catch Dave. That’s an additional discussion that very much needs to happen!

What's the correct terminology? (Not asking to be difficult, I'm just genuinely curious. I have no experience or training in non profit management.)

I'm a little puzzled why some are saying that trains, or at least railroad museums are a niche interest for a particular group. In my experience, trains are awesome and even non rail fans can appreciate the romanticism of a train. I guess railroad museums could be considered more of a niche thing while trains and railroads themselves might not be. Any good museum or train interested person should try to figure out how to convey the impact and the relevance of railroads. I'm not saying this to ruffle feathers, just as a train lover and someone who is interested in museums.

Crescent-

Perhaps because the final part of my post wasn't directed at you? Perhaps I could have conveyed that more clearly?And kudos for disagreeing, a necessary part of civil discourse. I would like to know if there has been a serious study of how different ethnicities make up rail-related hobbies, and if it would support your claim or mine. There's none that I have ever found.

Good afternoon everyone,

So in this thread two distinct ideologies have emerged, and the disciples of those ideologies are desperately trying to convince the other side that their way is the "right" way....

My question is this: Does the style of a Board's composition really matter?



I recently grappled with this same thought process when I started a new non-profit to take on the restoration of the B&O 3301. In the end, I decided that Railroad Restoration's corporate structure needed to best fit with the team of people that we had at the moment, and further took into consideration those team members we were likely to develop, maintain, and retain over the next 3-5 years.

In addition, Railroad Restorations was not created in the usual manner in which most non-profits come to exist. It was created by for-profit entities that were seeking to find a way to creatively resolve a legal problem for one of those entities. As such, the thought process behind how the organization was formed, and the goals it seeks to accomplish are different, yet still similar to most historical societies, museums, etc.

In short, the decision was made to create a tightly held organization with a very small Board of Trustees and a narrow focus. This structure works just fine given the volunteers we currently have (and are likely to develop), and the goals we are seeking to accomplish. As a newly formed entity with just two or three small, but complicated, projects to work on, it was quickly realized that a big, diverse, and woke BOD would create a situation where the Chiefs would outnumber the Indians by a factor of 6 or 7 to one. Or, to use another analogy, we just did not need that many chefs trying to stir the same pot! Sometimes less is more.

Also, promoting "conflicts" in a small organization in the name of diversity will produce horrible results. Multiple visions in a tiny organization leads to confusion and creates internal camps inside an organization. These factional camps will usually end up tearing an organization apart. Railroad Restorations does not have any "camps" or "factions" at this time. I hope to keep it that way for a good long while.

Personally, I'd rather see a discussion about how to correctly "size" your Board of Directors relevant to the actual size and scope of your organization. However, I suspect that "left" vs. "right" debate will sadly continue.

Just my two-cents on the subject.

[Removed because my defense was considered inappropriate.]

If you were referring to my post with a grossly simplified explanation, would you be more satisfied if I’d said “revenues that exceed expenses (aka profit) must be used only for the organizations stated purpose and are not to be distributed to private individuals or other private entities”? That’s still pretty general without getting into details but a bit more to the point.

For those that want to learn about nonprofit entities, here’s a start: https://www.irs.gov/charities-and-nonprofits

Josh,

I'm sorry the comments of a single individual would offend you to the point of avoiding a nationally acclaimed railroad, that has nothing to do with his personal opinions. I don't speak for Kelly, but maybe the comments directed at him in the past from certain individuals has led him to similarly avoid the area and people he had those experiences with? Sounds pretty spiteful on both sides.

There is nothing wrong with making some money. It's supposed to be a successful business. If you can make money, you can fold that into being better. New building, restore and preserve your collection, or the holy grail, you could start an endowment that could sustain you indefinitely. My point is that makes you sustainable. If your mission is preservation, you have to sustain yourself. Otherwise you're just a detour before the scrap yard.

I wish I could link the conference keynote talk that prompted my first post. He talked quite a bit about how nonprofits are expected to sustain themselves rather than being supported by the community and how that’s very flawed thinking.