Is your partnership with the Woodworkers Guild a superb model for us to show to VECTOR members? I was wondering if you could share the list of conditions that makes up your partnership with the Guild.
In December 2019, your warm encouragement brought several members of VECTOR to an open house to better understand VHS. Janet has shared her knowledge about how to approach building a partnership between VHS and VECTOR during a quarterly general meeting.
Notes about Woodworkers Guild partnership:
monthly meetings at VHS open to VHS members
teaches VHS members techniques
allows Guild to use equipment
approved by vote at a quarterly general meeting
Opportunities in VECTOR partnership:
become certified for amateur radio
promote VHS membership to electronics hobbyists in VECTOR
share technical workshops for learning
participate in VECTOR technical projects
VECTOR helps improve VHS radio program or equipment
Hi Jesse
We spoke at the UBC workshop a while back.
I think a partnership would be great for both VHS and VECTOR. The physical space of VHS is currently not open to non-members. However this is a great time for us to hash out a framework that will work for both organizations so that when there is a further loosening of restrictions, we can help VECTOR host workshop at our space.
A note on the woodworker’s guild arrangement: not all our equipment are open to non-members, however, tools such as soldering irons are already available to non-member during open house in the before times.
VHS has had an amateur radio club, but hasn’t been active lately. It would be really nice if there is renewed interest here.
Given the precedence of woodworking guild, I can’t see much opposition to a partnership with VECTOR, once we have the details hammered out, we can pass the proposal either by calling an EGM or just have it pass at the next QGM.
@ve7det I dug up this list of questions that we posed to the Woodworkers Guild, to see if holding their meetings at VHS would be a good fit (they ended up being a very good fit, as far as I know). Maybe you could consider and answer these questions too?
Q1: All VHS visitors must sign a VHS waiver, so with VECTOR is that a problem?
Q2: VECTOR would not have exclusive space access (as our members have 24 hour access ) although meeting/workshops take priority at VHS. Is that an issue?
Q3. How many people are usually at a VECTOR meeting/workshop and how long are meetings?
Q4. Would you require access to the electronics benches or any other equipment?
Q5. Would you need storage? Would you need any permanent space?
Q6: What fees do you have associated with VECTOR meetings/workshops? Would VHS members who attend be required to pay the full amount?
Q7: Would you need wifi, kitchenette access, projector use, etc?
These questions will help everyone understand expectations. But honestly everything is pretty flexible and it sounds like there is general support for this idea.
Our next monthly member meeting is on 2020-07-08. I’ll raise this there and at the July board meeting on 2020-07-22.
Unless you suggest otherwise, I’ll interpret that VHS needs to only share the details of the Woodworkers-VHS agreement between members. So, I’ll focus on the questions above.
I don’t think there is or was any official agreement. The questions above were in the members-only section of this forum, but I don’t think they are in any way sensitive, so I’ve reposted them here. These are not strict “conditions” - they are just some questions so we can understand your needs and expectations.
Another approach would be to just pick an event and do it. You only really need one existing keyholder member to be the “bottom liner” for the event. They will be responsible to opening up and then locking up the building afterwards, etc. If you wanted to organize a ham radio demo evening some time, I would be willing to be the bottom liner. We could probably convince @Rob_MacKenzie to come too. To observe physical distancing we can all sit 5m apart and only talk through our radios.
We have a small cadre of members interested in a free-form talk-and-show around our current grab-and-go kit prototypes. What kind of time box and timing would you suggest we aim for?
The grab-and-go-kits are station kits to allow quick setup in the 3 key ways VECTOR currently uses in our operating framework.
The link below becomes more important for our long-term planning. As organizations, I believe we need to address the risk of acquired liability.
Generally speaking, we require all visitors to sign a waiver indemnifying VHS against liability for injuries etc… Presumably a director of a partner organization could sign on behalf of the organization?
VECTOR is a non-profit organization and a charity. We are just now learning about “acquired liability” and what that’s supposed to mean.
I imagine VHS and VECTOR will be able to find a way to partner and address that risk. Currently, the VECTOR board and membership still needs to dialogue about whether activities VHS and VECTOR would do together can create “acquired liability”.
Seems like using some of your larger tools might do it. Yet, going to a member’s home workshop might do it, too.
Referring back to the free-form talk-and-show night, I believe we will get further ahead once members of VHS and members of VECTOR can spend time together imagining what both communities want to do together.
Would a demonstration and dialogue night be free from acquired liability? Perhaps.
Would the members of each community be able to come up with a way to prevent acquired liability? Lot’s of creativity and knowledge on both sides.
Late to the party here but I think the only kind of “partnership” that VHS would be offering is an informal one such as the one we have with PWWG. i.e. There is no legal partnership document to be signed by the VHS BOD with Vector.
A search of the Better_Together_2015.pdf shows no mention of Liability or Aquired Liability.
Any VHS liability issues are taken care of by all visitors signing a VHS Liablitiy waiver.
VECTOR may have its own members sign a liability waiver as required however this does not mean that there is any actual or shared liability.
Given that this topic has been raised I have to ask what forms of liability does VECTOR forsee and what are the risks that VHS would be named a liability suit?
We have been unsure of how formal to make the partnership between VHS and VECTOR. We were concerned about taking on liability for injuries (VECTOR or VHS) and damage to VHS tools.
In the intervening weeks, we have consulted with people we know in insurance and learned that when groups like ours stay as separate entities we won’t acquire liability.
The small cadre of volunteers who came forward are still interested in holding that initial radio night to bring one or two of our newer grab and go kit prototypes to VHS to talk about. Though, the folks involved are all in the over-50 group.
Slow response again. I surveyed members without getting any responses.
A1. VECTOR supports using appropriate waivers.
A2. VECTOR members would support working with and around others.
A3. At work activities, between 2 and 10 people attend. At larger meetings, we can have between 15 and 50 people attend. (Our partnerships with Vancouver Recreation, Vancouver Emergency Management and VFRS allow us to use City meeting rooms. )
A4. We are looking for a workshop to do some wiring, electronics, front panels, wood or aluminum mounting panels, and glue work.
A5. We may need to store in-progress projects. We currently see this as temporary space needs.
A6. We charge annual membership dues and fees for our Basic Radio Certification course. Only members who go through an application process need to pay dues.
A7. Unnecessary, yet nice to have: wifi, kitchenette, projector.
