I'm going to bring this topic up again. I've been flying for about 35 years and been a EAA member since 1984. I've never joined the local chapter (and I know most of the folks there....good people/especially the president who works hard at leadership) simply because it appears to take a lot of time fund raising to pay the chapter bills. Often inconvenient time. Contrast this to our flying club which owns the local grass strip and everyone is assessed a certain fixed fee depending on their 'level' of membership (i.e. whether they have a hangar on the field, etc. ). We usually do have building and restoration projects on going and coffee sessions so it's not unlike the EAA chapter less the continual fund raising. Not to mention once you're retired everyone thinks you have all kinds of time for this project or that. Just a thought.