An honorary member of the American Humanist Association, I participated in the 50th annual meeting at the Bismark Hotel in Chicago, in May. As a lonely survivor of the organizers in 1941, I was used symbolically in the celebration. At the Chicago meetings Lloyd and Mary Morain presented the deed to our headquarters building in Amherst, New York, appraised at over $200,000, as a gift to AHA.

For me, the most gratifying event was ceremoniously receiving the charter for Humanists of Utah. Among other things, the charter brings us under the tax exemption umbrella of the A.H.A. so that whatever you donate to Humanists of Utah in fiscal 1991 and after will be federally tax deductible. Our chapter is now an integral part of the national organization, and through it we are related to the International Humanist and Ethical Union (IHEU).

We have done very well on the start-up donations of our members. Those who newly joined A.H.A. have made their start-up donation by a $10.00 rebate on each member we recruit. We have been sending the Utah Humanist to all AHA members in the state and to all Utah subscribers of AHA's magazine, the Humanist. Any who send a start-up donation of $5.00 or more will still be enrolled as chapter members. To all who have not yet made a start-up donation as generous as possible we say "We need your membership and support."

Sometime soon we will have to decide our minimum annual dues. We are not suggesting anything like tithing, but we hope that most will give as generously as their wallet and conscience require.

There is much initial work to do. We need to establish our fiscal year, and also define our goals, or "mission" if we may use that word. We need to establish a program that will make it worthwhile for distant members to make the trip to Salt Lake City for the monthly meetings. A two day annual meeting is a suggested goal. We all can help us grow. The initial goal of 200 members seems reasonable, with the 77 names on our charter application almost reaching the half-way mark. We need to know whether our members want their names mentioned in the Utah Humanist. Names can be a sensitive issue in some cases.

--Ed Wilson