President's Report, July 2009

On Tuesday, July 14, the MRE board of directors and officers decided in a 6-3-1 vote to cancel the 2009 conference because of concerns about attendance in light of the economic woes that have hit the news industry especially hard.

As you might expect, the debate over the issue was at times intense and spirited and some doubt was raised about whether the organization could survive this decision. However, it was the feeling of the majority of the board that by taking a step back we will be better able to marshal our resources and refocus our energies to provide better service to our members and to the American public.

We believe that MRE will come back stronger in 2010 with your help and with the advent of several new initiatives that will keep the organization relevant and on the radar screens of policy makers and military officials. I will have more on some of those initiatives in a future report.

In the meantime, in deference to the economic woes facing many of you and your organizations, we have decided to reduce membership rates for new members and renewals by 30 percent through the end of September. That means you can join MRE, or renew your membership, for just $35. Students who join or renew will pay $17.50.

And, as of Oct. 1, for the first time we will be offering group rates on membership. We will be offering a 10 percent discount for organizations with 5-10 members and a 20 percent discount for groups with more than 10 members.

Our much-anticipated Web site redesign being done under the auspices of MRE member Isaac Cubillos is in its final stages and should go online in just a few weeks. This new site will offer far more information and resources than we were able to provide on the old site.

Please feel free to contact me at ronmartzmre@gmail.com with suggestions or concerns regarding MRE or Web site redesign or ideas for our 2010 conference.

I believe that we will emerge from these difficult months as a stronger, more viable, and more relevant organization. With two wars still in progress, what we are doing is particularly important to you and to the American public and I look forward to your continued support.

Regards,