The First 20 Years of NCC: More Progress
by Mark Nye
Issue No. 240 - April 1993
[Mark Nye was the fifth President of NCC, serving from August 1988 through July 1991.]
Before becoming NCC Inc., President, the organization had achieved its primary goal of establishing and opening a Museum. My goal as President was to get NCC thinking about the future, and in particular about an expanded or new Museum facility.
During my tenure in office, the existing space in the current museum was re-allocated to give additional display areas. However, in doing so, we virtually eliminated the study area. Even with the expanded display cases, the Museum quickly ran out of space.
In 1989, a fund raising drive was initiated to raise money for two purposes: to buy glass for the Museum and to establish a "nest egg" for future Museum expansion. While th fund drive was not the success I had hoped it would be, funds were and still are being made available to the Acquisitions Committee. In addition, a "nest egg" for a building fund was established, smaller than hoped for, but nonetheless there.
In my opinion, the future of NCC lies in its ability to continue to provide its members with an A-1 newsletter and expand the museum into a first class facility. To accomplish the latter will require a new or expanded facility with greatly increased display areas, an adequate office area, a library and a study area.
An expanded museum will not come without cost. If we are to set such a goal, we must find a way to get more members to participate in future fund drives. As each additional member gives, the more the organization can return to all members.