K-W RASC Committees 2008

Committee Heads have email links

Astronomy Day & Star Party Coordinator - Duncan Class
This year our club had an Astronomy Day display at Chapters Bookstores in Waterloo and south Kitchener, complete with member astrophotos, astronomy literature plus a range of telescopes and other equipment . We asked all members to come out to help promote amateur astronomy to the community at large. The response as always, was excellent. Throughout the year we also host several public star parties, usually held at Waterloo Park. We encourage members to bring their own scopes out so we can invite the general public to join us for an evening of observing. Both of these activities help us introduce the wonders of the night sky to our community at large. They also help us attract new members. If you are able to help with either activity, please contact Duncan.

Beginners Group - Tim Spiegelberg, Wayne Joslin
Many members who join our club are often looking for advice on how observe the night sky or how to use that new telescope or set of binoculars. This committee is to help those who are new to amateur astronomy or who want to brush up on their observing skills.

Annual Awards Banquet - Phil Lacasse
Every Year our club holds an Annual Awards Dinner, which is well attended by members and their "significant others". This is a chance to enjoy some fellowship with club members and for the "significant others" to find out what their amateur astronomer actually does out under the stars!

Constitution - Neil Hunt
The club constitution has been updated and revised. It is a dynamic document that has evolved over time to reflect the needs of the current membership. The full document is available for review here. If any member requires clarification or would like to make a suggestion for changes or updates, please contact Neil.

Education & Public Outreach - George Peer and Phil Lacasse
For many years our club has been active in the community, sharing our knowledge of the night sky with local schools, scouts and other organizations. No matter what age, people are always fascinated to learn about astronomical phenomena. This group promotes public education by speaking to various groups about astronomical topics, demonstrating how to use telescopes and other equipment and helping people to better understand the things they see in the sky.

Equipment Management Group - David Garner Mike Burns, and Brady Johnson
In recent years, our club has purchased new astronomical equipment including several telescopes, a CCD camera, digital cameras and whole host of other items. In order to keep track of everything and make sure that it is well maintained and accounted for, this group has been formed to train members on the correct operation of the equipment and to ensure that it all remains available to all qualified members. We are still in the process of receiving several items so procedures for the procurement and use of this equipment will evolve as time goes on.

Finance - Peter Clarke
The Treasurer has always been responsible for the finances of our club. A finance committee has now been established to review the finances on a regular basis and to evaluate expenditures and budgets to ensure that we stay "in the black". Our club has regular income from memberships and fundraising events and it is important that this money is used for the benefit of all club members. Any suggestions for expenditures are evaluated by this group as well as the club executive.

Fundraising - Brian Hollander
In addition to membership fees, we also enjoy some extra income from fundraising activities. These include the sale of RASC calendars during the fall of each year and the sale of t-shirts and sweat shirts when they are available. Also, we hold a 50/50 draw at every regular meeting. If you have any ideas for other activities to help fill the club coffers or would like to help with one of the existing activities, please contact Brian.

Library - Serge Mammoliti, Ron Bronson
We maintain a small library of astronomy books and videos for loan to any member in good standing. Many of the books are donated by club members and over the years we have gathered a significant collection. If you would care to see what is available and would like to borrow a few books, please contact Serge.

Light Pollution Abatement - Paul Schumacher
Over the last 3 decades, we have all watched the Milky Way, Northern Lights and other celestial highlights disappear due to the growing infringement of urban light pollution. We now have to go far outside of town to be able to fully enjoy the night-time sky. This Committee is dedicated to educating society about this situation; to help public officials and local governments reduce/eliminate wasteful expensive and unnecessary stray light pollution and work with community groups to keep public areas safe at night. If you wish to help with this effort, please contact Paul.

Membership - Peter Clarke
New members are the lifeblood of any organization. If you are interested in joining the club but have some questions or concerns, you can contact Peter at any meeting or at the email address above. More information about the club is also available on the About Us page. There are many benefits in joining the RASC - we hope you will join us.

Nominations - David Garner
According to our constitution, we need to hold annual elections for the executive positions. These are President, 1st Vice President, 2nd Vice President, Treasurer and Secretary. Mike is the head of the nominations committee that approaches potential candidates and submits a nominations list to the members for voting. There are generally three members on the nominations committee so if you can help Mike, please contact him at the email address above.

Observing Committee - Peter Clarke, Tim Spiegelberg
For more seasoned observers, this committee has been set up for those intermediate and advanced observers who would like to take part in group observing activities. These might include occultation projects, Messier certificates, Messier marathons, variable star observing, planet observation projects, eclipse viewing, minor planet tracking and many more. This is a wonderful opportunity to gain valuable insight from veteran observers and to share hints and tips that will maximize your viewing experience!

Photography - Alen Koebel
A popular activity among many amateur astronomers is astrophotography. Our recent purchases include many items used for astrophotography, both analog and digital. This committee has been formed so that members who are interested in photographing the night sky can share tips and techniques with each other in this rapidly expanding field.

Publications - Dave Garner
For many years, our club has published a club newsletter known as Pulsar. Published quarterly, it contains current events, articles submitted by members as well as pertinent information from the world of astronomy. The most recent edition has taken the Pulsar to a whole new level. It is now formatted using the latest desktop publishing techniques with full colour graphics. If you would care to submit an article of interest to the local club or you can help with the publication or distribution of the Pulsar, please contact Dave.

Summer Picnic - Duncan Class
Every summer, we like to get together with members and their families for a summer picnic. This is a wonderful opportunity for members to get together to enjoy some fellowship and to show their families our hobby. Often, weather permitting, an observing session is held after the picnic. This year, the picnic will be a particularly opportune time to display and demonstrate our new telescopes and other observing equipment. We encourage as many members as possible to join us as this is the only "official" meeting that we have in the summer months.

Telescope Builders Group - Dave Garner
This group was formed in 2002 to put together several telescopes for local schools. Several club members gathered at Dave's house to assemble telescopes from pre-fabricated components that the group had gathered earlier in the year. It was so much fun that Dave would like to do it again, this time making scopes for club members who are interested. If you would like to get involved, please contact Dave.

WEB Site Maintenance - Brian Hollander
This group of people maintain and update the club's Web site. Currently all Web Site submissions should be sent to Brian. Also if you have any ideas for improvements or would like to help out keeping the Web site up to date, please contact Brian.

Anti-Spam Protection
The '@' symbol in the email addresses has been replaced with a different symbol: the registered trade mark symbol (®). This is to prevent the email addresses of our members from being harvested by WWW Robots. The addresses have been changed in the HTML ('mailto:') as well; if you hit the link, the address will be put into the 'To:' field, but you will still have to take out the ® and replace it with '@'.