AANR Weekly Report for/12/2, 2005
<br>AANR Weekly Report for/12/2, 2005 ________________________________<br> Erich Schuttauf, Executive Director<br>I trust that you all enjoyed a warm Thanksgiving holiday with your friends and family last week.<br>TANR Meeting in Progress<br>I am filing this week's report "from the road" as I join about 30 representatives from various nudist clubs and businesses for the annual meeting of the Trade Association for Nude Recreation. TANR is meeting at Caliente Resort and there is a full slate of speakers lined up on topics from risk management to marketing. <br>Suzanne Schell of Laguna del Sol currently serves as TANR's President, and AANR serves as its administrative agent, handling office functions. <br>Question of the Week<br>Per the suggestion from a number of you, we'd like to pose a question of the week to clubs and invite answers which we can report in future weeks. This week's question is: <br>On approaching AANR's 75th anniversary, it is fitting to reflect on the past half century. During this time period, which consumer or industry trends have had a profound impact and/or shaped the future of acceptance of nude recreation?<br>Please send your answers to Linda Berry at <a href=/group/AANR-NW-eNews/post?postID=-gyXKALvF_PHU-seeiuPnQT_e6VeymeEtmDGlm031rT9w49uWeVcpoq6jLj-wCHyI7kXOIQFPOTxJg>editor@aanr.com</a>.<br>Advisory<br>Desert Fountain Inn in California has made AANR aware of a situation and has asked us to report it to you. Here's the scenario that Desert Fountain Inn encountered: <br>Bob Clemons requested information for lodging for 10 days for 2 female and 2 male adults. He then states that "I am a very busy missionary so I travel a lot, presently I'm in Australia.I will direct our mission trip sponsor in USA to send you money orders to the tune of $5,000 so upon clearance of the money orders, you will deduct your money and then remit the balance to my other members of the my team in London via western union money transfer." Instead of receiving a money order, Desert Fountain Inn received a $5,000 check from Joel Scott for "payment for accommodation on Bob Clemon's behalf." The check was from a bank in St. Cloud, Minnesota. The check was deposited but was returned to maker unpaid. Bob Clemons was notified. He apologized and said his sponsor would send a cashier's check in replacement. No cashier's check has been received to date. <br>Please contact Desert Fountain Inn if you have any questions, or let AANR know if you encounter any similar situations. <br>New Documents on AANR.com<br>The minutes of the November 2005 Board of Trustees, along with the committee reports, have been posted to the Club Services and Member Benefits area of the Web site. The updated procedure manual, official forms, and bylaws are there as well. <br>Sad News<br>We received word that FANR Director Fred Allen had passed away on November 29. Our thoughts and prayers are with his family during this difficult time.<br>TIA (Travel Industry of America) Releases Forecast for Travel Spending and Volume<br>The following information from the Travel Industry of America came to us by way of our contacts at AANR's public relations firm, YPB&R. It 05 be useful to our clubs as they revise business plans for 2006:<br>Healthy Performance for 2005; Cause for Concern in 2006<br>TIA Releases Forecast for Travel Spending and Volume<br>Washington, D.C., November 2005 <br>According to the Travel Industry Association of America's (TIA) <a href=http://www.tia.org/>http://www.tia.org/</a> Annual Travel Forecast, 2005 will turn out to be a good year for the U.S. travel industry, with leisure travel by U.S. residents rising 4 percent this year and international travel to the U.S. jumping 7 percent.<br>Spending by domestic and international travelers will increase 7.8 percent for full-year 2005 to nearly $646 billion. However, slow growth in fourth quarter 2005–a trend that is expected to continue through the first quarter of 2006–is expected to contribute to a modest growth forecast for full-year 2006.<br>Leisure travel volume is forecasted to increase just 2 percent in 2006, while international travel to the U.S. will rise 5.5 percent. Compared to 2005, the growth in travel spending by domestic and international visitors will increase a more modest 4.4 percent in 2006 to $674 billion. <br>Domestic business travel is likely to be constrained in the final months of 2005 and the first quarter of 2006. This is due to weak CEO confidence, much slower growth in corporate profits, and rising travel costs. TIA is forecasting a 1 percent increase in business travel volume for 2005 and a 1.6 percent increase for 2006. On a more positive note, a number of experts at TIA's recent Marketing Outlook Forum were rather optimistic about the outlook for meetings and group business travel.<br>"The industry is holding strong but a number of indicators, such as vacillating consumer confidence, waning CEO confidence and an expected sharp rise in energy costs are having an effect on consumer and business attitudes. As a result, we're starting to see signs of a more cautious consumer when it comes to travel," said Dr. Suzanne Cook, senior vice president of research for the Travel Industry Association of America. "I don't expect Americans to stop traveling; I simply think they will be more careful when it comes to making travel decisions." <br>Media can obtain the TIA Annual Travel Forecast by sending an e-mail to <a href=/group/AANR-NW-eNews/post?postID=NTXNaPYBvY2qaY2YfZMOGSJq4IX_i66HCVYi-0ntJdsoahDn7k04O-4g0jE-Is573bdVy7-b>ckeefe@tia.org</a>. Travel Industry Association of America (TIA) is the national, non-profit organization representing all components of the $600 billion travel industry.<br>Linda Berry, Director of Publications<br>The Bulletin<br>Your copy of the December issue should have reached you by now. When you look back over The Year in Review, it's amazing what AANR has accomplished in one short year. Be sure to check The Cyber-Bulletin for Ilsley's arrival at Serendipity Park. <br>Sold!<br>Paradise Lakes has purchased the "featured clubs" ad space that was available on the AANR web site. Check it out at <a href=http://www.aanr.com/top_featured_clubs.html.>http://www.aanr.com/top_featured_clubs.html.</a> Thanks Joe! If your club is interested in a spot, let Martha Young know and she can put you on the waiting list. <br>Board Meeting and Photo Shoot <br>The merchandise photo shoot after the board meeting was great! Thanks are extended to everyone who participated. Our photographers were: Gary Spangler (board meeting and merchandise), Sharon McLeod and Don Berry (merchandise). <br>Carolyn Hawkins, Public Relations Coordinator <br>Council of State Governments<br>Carolyn Hawkins and Steve Vickers are working the AANR booth at the Council of State Governments in Wilmington, Delaware. She will give a full report when she returns next week. <br>Patricia Orner, Government Affairs Coordinator <br>A year ago I started this project of weekly reports with the following:<br>The AANR Fall Board Meeting at Cypress Cove was a huge success and the future of Government Affairs was a hot topic. Alonzo Stevens' committee report highlighted an aggressive plan. Washington lobbyist Don Murphy was a featured speaker. Don explained the need to have lawmakers and politicians get to know their constituents who are AANR members before they make decisions and/or comments about nude recreation and life styles. This will require expansion of the Government Affairs Volunteer Resource Team. In January we will work on developing a data base of volunteers in all states and Canada who can be alerted by the type of service they wish to render at the local, state and/or federal level. We especially need to know who knows who, who plays golf with whom and whose name will get a politicians ear and would be willing to place a call. We need members to be our eyes and our ears and others to help us voice AANR positions.<br>A year later as we look at the end of 2005 and get ready to plunge into 2006 I have really learned why every nudist should support AANR GAT. Before the pre-files really get in full swing – the papers are full of issues that are, will, would, could and 05 have an affect on our culture. The number of Web sites speaking about "nudity" are so many that no one person working full time could ever read them daily. Blood banks want to lower the donation age to 16 – while some states want to prohibit those under 21 from working where there is nudity. Intelligent design is not always defined by the most intelligent and will almost certainly make its way into the state and federal issues in 2006-7. The Library of Congress has launched a campaign to create the World Digital Library "a cooperative undertaking in which each culture can articulate its own cultural identity ." and I hope that there will be a place for the nudist culture in it somewhere.<br>I am thankful that I have an opportunity to be a part – however small – of this most important team. <br><br><br><br><br><br><br> </td>
