Since the Regional Advocate Committee was formed in late October 2019, the Advocates have:
- Made personal contact with all 68 chapters
- Requested and was granted a three month extension of the Ikebana International dues payment deadline to September 30, 2020.
- Issued two “Seedlings” emails with ideas and suggested sample emails to help chapters conduct their nomination and election process via email and or Zoom meetings
- Anticipated the need for chapters to meet, albeit not in person, and furnished a paid Zoom account for all chapters courtesy of the Iwaya Fund.
- Conducted Zoom meetings with all regions covering topics from dues collection to elections to operating during a pandemic.
- At the request of the chapters, these have become mostly meetings for each region to discuss common problems, ideas and solutions.
- Encouraged and promoted a variety of virtual exhibits by chapters and schools of Ikebana.
- Produced 10 videos (8 ikebana demonstration and 2 cultural) for chapters to use as programming when they could not otherwise meet in person. This initiative was utilized by 56 of the 65 chapters in NCAR.
- Helped 11 chapters with no online presence to establish a chapter Facebook page. Additionally four other chapters established Facebook pages and two others significantly updated their pages.
- Improved chapter email openings and helped chapters gain access to their emails.
- Produced a password protocol document and chart for chapter use.
- Provided two excellent contact/resources for chapters to contact for insurance information.
- Recommended several ways for chapters to improve member engagement.
- Instead of cancelling a meeting – hold a Zoom meeting.
- Introduce new board and committee members via an interesting email twist.
- Encouraged and promoted several virtual exhibits .
- Recommended several ways to partner with other organizations to extend membership opportunities