2016 Directory

14 WYOMING ARCHITECTURE .16 | www.aia-wyoming.org Membership Development Committee Making a Difference as an Architect BY DALE BUCKINGHAM, AIA, CHAIR Members of the Membership Development Committee: Dale Buckingham, AIA, Chair Matthew Newman, AIA Rachel Delventhal, AIA Jacob Ernst, Associate AIA R egardless of the economic conditions, finding better efficiencies and streamlining our operations is always good for business, but now is not the time to pull back from AIA Wyoming. The benefits of our organization are more important now more than ever. Working together to promote healthy growth in our communities and State, we will be able to accomplish so much more than we can as individuals, or even individual firms. Those who are active in AIA Wyoming know first- hand how vital business connections and networking are in our industry. As heard at the Annual Fall Conference from Patrick Panetta, AIA, AIA Western Mountain Region Director, it is time for “engagement” in our communities and our State at a level that gives us juice. While how it works may be a mystery, there is no doubt that when each of us finds those things that we are passionate about and use our skills and talents to make a difference in those areas, we find great fulfillment. The amazing thing, though, is that as we find those areas where we are passionate to give back to our communities, we are also exposed to a multitude of oth- er opportunities that keep projects on our boards and our coffers full. The membership development committee continues to work to motivate Wyoming licensed architects, interns and corporate partners to join and stay with our vital organization. Earlier this year, AIA Wyoming was awarded a three-year accreditation by AIA National for Core Member Services in the areas of member and public communications, continu- ing education, advocacy, membership, finance and governance. We are continually looking to enhance our approach to growing our member- ship such as more social /outreach events in our communities and in our conferences, but for each of us, the most effective means of attract- ing new members is to simply tell why we are members. For me, the relationships, networking, the continuing education, and opportunity to team with other architects in our great state to promote good ar- chitecture and healthy growth are what have kept me a member for 20 years now. So, for those of you who are already AIA Wyoming members, let’s roll up our sleeves and find those areas in our communities and state that we are zealous about and want to make a difference using our experience and expertise as design and construction professionals. For those who haven’t joined AIA Wyoming yet, consider how much more you will be able to accomplish in an encouraging environment designed to help promote dynamic growth in your profession, career and community. b Most people are familiar with the adage that there is “safety in numbers.” With Wyoming’s economy in a bit of a trough, there can be a temptation to pull back and look for ways to cut costs within our firms.