We've been reading with interest the various posts about AGLCA the past couple of days. To set the record straight, here is a little history from the founders and former directors. We did our Great Loop Cruise in 1994, wrote the book, Honey, Let's Get a Boat...": A Cruising Adventure of America's Great Loop, published it in 1999 and formed the Association the same year. Our plan was simply to publish and distribute a newsletter 6 times a year. We researched other associations (GLCC, SSCA, Women Aboard, etc.) and settled on the name, trying to create an abbreviation that would not be confused with the Great Lakes Cruising Club (GLCC). (Little did we know that there already existed another AGLCA.) We applied for non-profit status and paid the application fee, but were denied because we could not (at that time) meet a couple of the requirements having to do with a board of directors and regular meetings. We wanted to be able to make decisions concerning the organization ourselves and did not envision a way of making those decisions through a volunteer board living far from each other and changing regularly. We had not planned to host rendezvous, but those came a couple of years later because the membership wanted them. The organization grew rapidly and the membership wanted more (rendezvous, burgees, email list for those currently cruising the Loop, t-shirts, caps, recognition for having completed the Loop; etc.) What began as a marketing tool for the book took on a life of its own. We did not have staff to help us with these tasks so called on volunteers to help with rendezvous, boat shows and the email list. Steve Kromer took over the email list in 2002 or 2003, then he and Janice took over the association in 2007. We were not getting rich running the organization, and we were running ourselves ragged. When the Kromers approached us about adding the association to other enterprises they managed, we accepted. AGLCA is only part of the livelihood of KFR Services. Early on we bought the domain names of greatloop.com, greatloop.org and greatloop.info, and included the latter two with the transfer of the organization, letting the Kromers decide which one to use for the organization. Businesses had approached us about advertising in the newsletters, but we were opposed to that. Realizing that we needed more income than we could raise with membership dues and product sales, we started the sponsorship program in lieu of taking advertising. It costs more to run an organization than to manage an online group and all organizations have dues. As for the criticism that the forum is for members only, that is one of the member benefits. It is more private, personal and limited in content. We were present and giving seminars at the TrawlerFest when Georgs proposed this Great Loop list idea. Initially we were opposed as we had already begun our association email list, but then realized that there was a place for both (one public, one private) and both have continued to this day. An organization such as AGLCA offers much more than sharing information via email lists or forums. There is a sense of camaraderie that is missing via online information sharing. Attend a rendezvous and you will experience this. Pull into a marina and spot the association burgee and instantly there is a link that is missing with an online forum. Wear the t-shirt or cap and a bond is formed with other members. This link/ bond is vital and reassuring when cruising in strange waters as everyone does when cruising the Loop. Life-long friendships are formed. There is a place for all of these entities: AGLCA, Active Captain, T&T's Great Loop List, GLCC, MTOA, etc. It doesn't have to be either/or. Boaters can and should take advantage of all of the resources available to them. Bashing one doesn't lift the others. AGLCA members are in every state in the union as well as many foreign countries. Only SSCA comes close (or exceeds) to reaching as far, but AGLCA members have a common interest -- cruising the Great Loop, past, present or future. Few of the aforementioned "groups" have such a defined interest. We hope this helps clear up some of the mis-information being bantered about. Eva and Ron Stob Founders of America's Great Loop Cruisers' Asso. (_www.greatloop.org_ (http://www.greatloop.org) ) Our w_ebsite: www.greatloop.com_ (http://www.greatloop.com)