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This question, I believe, gets to the heart of solving many of the challenges we have as a fraternity. It gets to the heart of quality memberships which gets to the heart of quality Lodges, which gets to the heart of financial stability of our organizations. Perhaps it’s the arrogance of youth or the arrogance of leadership that we let older brothers slip through the cracks when there is so much experience and knowledge that can be tapped into.

On the flip side, there can also be an arrogance of age where we are not of open minds to accept new ways of doing things. I can attest to that being of the geezer age myself, which has prompted some brothers to kick me in the rear until I come to my senses.

In the business world, market research has shown time after time that acquiring a new customer can cost five times more than retaining an existing customer. The success rate of selling to a customer you already have is 60-70%, while the success rate of selling to a new customer is 5-20%.

This can be equated to not-for-profit organizations which count on members' involvement, knowledge, and leadership to ensure successful endeavors. The success of a Lodge goes up 60%-70% when brothers are actively engaged while the success of acquiring new members is 5-20% because they are new and have no points of reference or context on which to make decisions.

We all lead busy lives and a holistic approach to members is one way to lighten the load. I know of older members who are walking/talking history books of the Lodge and local community who would make great education presentations during stated meetings. I know of several brothers who are nearing the century mark who can recite lectures without notes or missing a beat who would gladly participate if given the opportunity.

I learn best from those folks in our midst who have a wealth of knowledge to share and would enthusiastically do so if asked. I learned long ago that God gave us two eyes, two ears, and one mouth. I try to use those accordingly.

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Excellent, thanks.

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