The Vintage Motor Car Club of America

An update from the Publications VP, Ray Maxfield

- posted March 31, 2026

At times writing a message for The Bulb Horn seems like the hardest part of my job. That could be because staying in my lane, writing about publications, is kind of a lonely road. Even when I have written “The View from My Side of the Road” in the Touring Chronicle, I don’t stay in my lane. Membership drives, tour schedules, financial matters, leadership, or the future of the VMCCA are frequently topics I address.

The Publication Vice President title seems a bit limiting because it is frequently thought to be “printed” materials. The first communication from the VMCCA leadership to the members was a two-page typed letter in March of 1939 called a Bulletin. It was not until March of 1940 that a 16-page Bulb Horn was first published. That is 86 years of printed communication to VMCCA members. With today’s multimedia and digital frenzy that now includes something called “Artificial Intelligence,” printed materials are a smaller portion of an effective communications model. The VMCCA leans into today’s movement to a certain degree. For example, our website, access to an up-to-date membership roster database, online dues payment, a digital Bulb Horn membership option, The Touring Chronicle, and timely announcements through a mass media email system, Facebook, and so on, keep our members up to date.

By the end of April every member should have available to them copies of our newly updated printed brochure. The brochure is the most powerful tool we have to increase our membership. Even with the efficient use of digital electronic technology, handing a printed brochure to a car enthusiast is the most effective. There is a QR code on the application panel of the brochure. A prospective member can join by scanning the code with their cell phone’s camera. The VMCCA did not grow from 12 car enthusiasts to our peak membership some 75–80 years later solely because of printed materials or the use of technology. In my opinion, there is a simple reason we grew.

Unfortunately, we have experienced a decline in membership in recent years. Is it because we stopped doing something essential or relied on technology to make a difference? It is understood that nearly all organizations have experienced declines in membership recently. A question we need to answer is, what will the VMCCA’s members do about it?

The new brochure represents our best chance to increase our membership. The plan is to print up to 5,000 of the new brochures and have them available to the Board of Governors and members at the Annual Membership Meeting in Lincoln, Nebraska. The intent of the brochures is not to have them sit on members' desks or in their car’s glove box. The intent is to have them handed directly to other car enthusiasts with a personal message to “Join us at a meeting or a local tour.” Can you imagine 5,000 brochures handed to car people with a friendly invitation? I would much rather see the need to reorder more brochures than have them sit in anyone’s inventory.

Ray Maxfield
Vice President of Publications