Save the MVPA!

[ODAddict]

Fellow MV owners, operators and other interested folks,

I am part of a group of active MVPA members who believe that the MVPA will soon fail. Declining membership, a weak financial position, and poor decisions by the Board of Directors have placed the MVPA at an existential crossroad. Because the Board is charged with oversight and management of MVPA affairs, they are responsible for this situation and should be held accountable.

We have created a website www.savethemvpa.org which sets forth our thoughts and ideas. It includes a petition to call for a special meeting of the Membership to remove and replace the Board of Directors. Please visit the site, study the issues, and sign the petition calling for the Special Meeting.

As organizers of Save the MVPA, we reluctantly undertake this action because we consider ourselves friends and colleagues bound by a common interest in historic military vehicles. While reluctant, we proceed with clear resolve bolstered by sincere belief that we act in the best interest of the MVPA, the Affiliate clubs, and the membership. We members deserve better.

If you have questions that are not answered on the website, please email us at info@savethemvpa.org. Our contact information is also on the website.

[T. Highway]

Thanks for sharing.

Bert

[Cal_Gary]

It better not fail-I just re-upped for three more years. I'll have a look-thanks for sharing.
Gary

[Cal_Gary]

I signed the petition and encourage others to assess your position on the MVPA and proceed accordingly.
Thanks,
Gary

[mike_l]

Greetings all,
While the Save The MVPA platforms have some interesting initiatives and ideas as well as point out discrepancies in the current MVPA administration, some of which go way back, I would like to point out that the MVPA has begun the election cycle for the 2026-2030 group of Directors. For those following the MVPA Board, at the end of 2025, making way for the 2026 Board, are at least 5 positions that will need filled. That would pave the way for new leadership if they put their names in the hat. Use the system to fix the system, send your nomination application in by 7 April.

[T. Highway]

Like Mike has stated exactly.

It takes your participation in the MVPA for it to continue to exist.

I can speak first hand on what it takes to keep clubs running on a day to day basis. I have volunteered hundreds and hundreds of hours to our local clubs (gun, radio, repeater, military vehicle, car club, etc), I have been on countless boards, and too many committees to even list. I've showed up days early to help set up, run, and tear down / cleanup. I understand that not everyone is able to do this, or is too intimidated by the task.

With that being said, please make sure that your voice is heard, and if you have the time, reach out and throw your hat in the ring to help the club stay alive and grow. Time is of the essence.

Best Regards,
Bert

[ODAddict]

The idea that we should wait for regular elections to Save the MVPA is misleading. The MVPA does not have that kind of time. It has become clear that a new Board taking office in a year from now will inherit an association that is out of money and out of ideas. Simply put, it will be too late.

It is manifestly unfair and dishonest to lure unsuspecting Director candidates with the siren song of a healthy, functioning organization. It's time for the BOD (of which Mike L. is a member) to reveal the truth about the MVPA financial situation.

This Board has presided over a catastrophic loss of membership and loss of member funds. The cash burn rate is eye-watering. Ignoring and hiding the problems are making things worse.

We at Save the MVPA have identified the underlying problems and have ideas, plans, and initiatives to Save the MVPA. One of them is a new website still in beta testing: https://i333269.invisionservice.com/

The MVPA is worth saving, and at this juncture, www.SavetheMVPA.org is the only viable alternative.

[mike_l]

John,

Didn't say it was healthy but it is functioning. There needs to be changes, not hiding anything here. However, there is a system in place to make changes.

In 2021, I ran for the Board. On MVPA.org, no financials had been posted since 2010 and minutes hadn't been posted since 2018. Our Board began to post minutes. Mind you, there is no requirement to post minutes or financials on the website but it was being done. There was no STMVPA then.

In 2023, there were three candidates that ran for the three open seats. Again, no STMVPA despite little progress in posting info on the website and still declining membership.

Now, in 2025, an election cycle year, there is a huge sense of urgency all of a sudden to replace a Board that is either due to be replaced or mostly resigning at the end of the year. Membership had been declining for 15 years prior, not huge drops but steady decline. Though I think you have some good initiatives, I don't see the urgency here. Do you have data I don't?

[ODAddict]

Mike, In case you missed it, I've taken the liberty of posting John Schroeder's thoughtful response from a different forum:

"The answer as to why we cannot wait for the legacy nomination process is that the MVPA doesn’t have a year or two years for real, meaningful action to take place. Based on the financial documents that are being dribbled to our organizers, the MVPA and the MVPA-HA are losing $80k to $100k a year. Based on the same documents it appears that we probably do not have much more than a year’s worth of cash, investments and reserves (not including the equity of the headquarters building) left to continue to lose money at this rate. From what we have seen the MVPA has already made around $60,000 in convention down payments for Louisville in June and recently committed to $7,500 for website upgrades.

Complicating that is the fact that there are no plans in place to deal with potential bankruptcy. There are no budgets for 2025 for either the MVPA or the MVPA-HA. There is no five-year plan to address membership recruiting, affiliate development, or insurance. There are no documents out there that describe any future vision for these two organizations.

There are still no complete past financial reports. Per the bylaws the Treasurer shall, “submit financial reports to the Board at each Board meeting and periodic financial reports to the Association membership as directed by the Board.” It is commendable that the board started posting these to the website in 2021, but our two treasurers stopped posting anything about the same time the MVPA and MVPA-HA started losing massive amounts of money. Good, bad, or downright ugly, the members are entitled to see where their money is going.

Another complicating factor is the fact that the current board had no intention of making members aware of any of these financial issues before the sMVPA started. The board has an opportunity every day to send an association wide email, every week to send a message in the email blast from headquarters, and every 60 days to print a message in the History in Motion, yet we have heard nothing.

The bottom line is that real change needs to happen, and it needs to happen now. We need change in the next 60 days not the next year or two. The next group of directors elected or appointed will need to meet weekly at a minimum to fix these problems. Not properly informing potential members who run for election is unacceptable. They need to understand the absolute mess they are getting into by throwing their hat in the ring."

[mike_l]

Hi John,

Thanks, I saw it already. Like everyone else who is interested in the STMVPA platforms and claims, I am doing my due diligence to research and come to my own conclusions. Might take me a minute or two.

[just me]

Never been a member. MVPA tore a club I belonged to apart. Dues are insane for a group that appears to do nothing for members other than charge them high prices for anything affiliated with the organization.
In the past 5 years I've quit or disassociated myself from all the clubs I was member of. (MV and other clubs)

[ODAddict]

Your position is understandable and shared by many. The MVPA is a story of mismanagement and missed opportunities. Under the current board, it's also a sordid example of autocracy, ignorant attitudes of top-down authoritarianism, and general detachment from the needs of the hobby and the membership. Who can blame anyone for moving away?

The good news is that we have assembled a gifted and experienced team (www.SavetheMVPA.org) sensitive to the failures and determined that the MVPA can be an effective voice and leader in the MV hobby. There will be an election to replace the Board. Only active MVPA members will be able to vote. We're confident that we can change things for the better. The real work will begin after the election when we will have to gain the trust and confidence of the members while recruiting new people. It's a tall order, but there is tremendous opportunity.