Editor's Page

Message from our Prez

Late last year, SHEAR's president, Mary Kelley, sent a letter to the organization's members enjoining them to renew their SHEAR membership and Journal of the Early Republic subscription, encouraging them to become "Friends of SHEAR" at one of the newly established levels of giving, and informing them about the "Friends Challenge," while also providing an update on the state of SHEAR. This important message bears repeating, as well as dissemination to the readership of the JER who are not already SHEAR members; here, in Mary's words, are the main points:

I write to tell you both what has already been accomplished and what we hope to do in the coming year. Being such fine historians, you must be presuming that I will proceed chronologically, and that I will. At our meeting in Philadelphia in July 2005, the members of the Advisory Council decided to embark on a membership program that included the category "Friends of SHEAR." For "Friends of SHEAR," dues were set at a minimum of $150, and individuals were strongly encouraged to contribute more. We also increased dues and established ranked categories of membership, which included $30 for students, $40 for individuals with an income under $45,000, and $70 for others. The budget deficit that resulted from our move to Philadelphia required that we increase our dues to members. Why the deficit, you might ask? In the past, we were able to operate at an astonishingly low cost for one basic reason: A few leaders of our organization served gratis, selflessly committing enormous time and energy for our benefit. Gene Smith and Craig Friend continue to do so to our immense benefit. Not surprisingly, the strain of that commitment eventually became too great, and the Advisory Council decided on a permanent home in Philadelphia with a small professional staff. We have an extremely lean staff for an organization with nearly 800 members. But, our expenses are obviously higher, and we need to increase our revenues to cover those expenses.

In 2006, 56 members enrolled as "Friends of SHEAR." These "Friends" made contributions that ranged from $150 to one individual who wrote a check for $1,000. Approximately thirty contributed the required $150. Another fifteen sent between $150 and $500. Once we deducted the $70, or the cost of a regular subscription with the JER, we netted a total of $6,615. We are deeply grateful for our members' generosity. Nonetheless, the overall numbers have continued to lag. In the last five years, membership has declined from more than 900 to between 700 and 800. We now have 798 members.

In June 2006, we embarked on a campaign to increase the number of our "Friends." In a letter dated June 22, 2006, Alan Taylor inaugurated a "Friends Challenge," which had been made possible by the extraordinary generosity of Richard and Mary Dunn of the American Philosophical Society. The letter, which Alan sent to all previous presidents, reported that Richard and Mary had offered a Challenge of $5,000 to our members to increase their contributions. Prior to the meeting in Montreal, several others—Alan Taylor, Jim Stewart, Dan Richter, and myself—had pledged additional donations that brought the sum to $13,000. Since the letter was sent, other past presidents have together contributed $6,000. None of these pledges will come to SHEAR unless we as members meet the following challenge: Increase the number of our Friends to at least 150, which is nearly triple the current number.

At the meeting in Montreal, the members of the Advisory Council also approved two suggestions, which Alan had mentioned in his appeal. The Council added a series of higher categories for joining SHEAR as a Friend. In the spirit of the Biblical prophecy that "the last shall be first" in the millennium, Alan suggested that we reverse the status hierarchy of the early republic. We did so with alacrity:

1. 1. Nicholas Biddle Friend: $150

2. 2. Thomas Skidmore Friend: $300

3. 3. Sojourner Truth Friend: $500

Second, we agreed to restage a pivotal election, with a wider selection of candidates than in the past. We will...