VMBA’s 29 Chapters serve as the backbone of our amazing singletrack and outdoor recreational community. Chapters are on the frontlines, working hard to build, maintain, and support the trails that we all love to ride (or run, walk, skip, bird, etc…). Our central Office and Chapter model is a unique combination of effective advocacy work, education, and community-driven stewardship.
The central Office supports the Chapters, and all of their hard work, through a combination of direct financial support and indirect critical services. We recently asked a few of our Chapters about why the central Office is important to their Chapter.
Waterbury Area Trails Alliance:
The people that work at VMBA HQ have been hugely instrumental to the success and growth of WATA.
The development, promotion, and processing of our memberships has not only brought us in much needed revenue, but has also helped us connect with our community. That revenue allowed us to hire our first ever employee. When we hired that employee, VMBA was right there to help us set up absolutely everything that comes with having an employee.
Nick, Krysy, Joe, Izzy, Jennifer and everyone before them have been ready and available to navigate every issue that has come up and dig into (and sometimes, literally dig into the dirt) every problem we have faced over the years. And of course, they are always up for going for a ride or popping a wheelie in a good ole parade.”
Jamaica Area Mountain Bike Alliance:
The VMBA central office has helped JAMBA since our inception in many crucial ways. We have always received helpful and timely responses to the seemingly never-ending questions that arise as our new VMBA chapter finds its way. They graciously recognize that we may not have experience in all aspects of being a chapter. They are great at connecting us with other folks who have knowledge and skills relevant to our needs. Krysy and Nick are always there for us and are a big part of our success. Being part of VMBA helps us as a Chapter to balance our desire for trails with being responsible stewards of the land. We’re glad we’ve taken advantage of the excellent educational resources available to us, including the online Chapter resource library, trail building clinics, and community conversations webinars.”
Richmond Mountain Trails
VMBA’s support has been essential to Richmond Mountain Trails’ success. Not only has VMBA provided grants and facilitated grants for us through community partners, but they’ve also helped us financially by managing membership, they’ve allowed us to have non-profit status without going through a lengthy application process, and they provide administrative support for paid employees including our trail crew, which has taken a significant burden off of our volunteer board. The VMBA office is also always a phone call away when we have questions about permits and have provided significant support working with landowners. Honestly, we don’t know what we’d do without VMBA!”
We are grateful for the incredible community that supports our work and our Chapters. Our Annual Fund is a major fundraiser that supports the critical services our Chapters rely on. We hope you’ll help us reach our goal of raising $25K by August 31st. Thank you!