Become an FFI Charter Club
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Become an FFI Charter Club

FFI Charter Club Benefits

 

Joining a larger community of fly fishers is beneficial to preserving the legacy of fly fishing for all fish, all waters, and increasing your own opportunities to enjoy the sport.  Your club can make a bigger impact by becoming a Charter Club of FFI.  A Charter Club is one in which all club members join as individual members of the Fly Fishers International.

Membership Incentive & Industry Partner Program

With FFI's Membership Incentive Program, for every 12 new FFI members your club recruits, your club receives $75 towards the purchase of merchandise in our Industry Partner Program.  Our industry leading partners provide products at discounts for club fundraisers, education events, and member recruitment and encouragement in local projects. 

   

Charter Club Insurance Program

FFI Insurance Program offers a significantly reduced premium on club insurance for FFI Charter Clubs.  The master policy purchased by FFI provides:

  • Directors and Officers Liability ($1M)
  • General Liability ($2M per incident/$4M aggregate)
  • Umbrella coverage ($1M)
  • Hired or non-owned automobile liability coverage ($1M)

Open enrollment forms are sent with the annual report, but clubs can join any time during the year.

   

Learning Center

FFI's Education Committee has published learning modules for 4 major areas: Casting, Conservation, Fly FIshing Skills, and Fly Tying.  Clubs can use the materials to teach and help your members enhance their skills.  These comprehensive presentations will soon be accompanied by instructor teaching manuals.  Try it out at one of your club meetings.

   

Conservation & Education

FFI provides grants for conservation and education projects to councils, clubs, and other organizations that are furthering the mission of the organization.  Habitat restoration and education activites are a top priority for FFI.  In addition, we offer scholarships for graduate students who are focusing on fisheries or conservation type degrees.

FFI also recognizes our members, through the Awards Program, for their work in conservation and education.  Call FFI HQ for more information on gratns and awards.  Applications are due April 1 each year.

   

Additional Benefits

» No Club Fees   » Access to Equipment Loan Program   » Flyfisher magazine
               
» FFI HQ files club federal taxes*   » Club mapped & listed on FFI website   » FFI E-News
               
» Inclusion in FFI's 501c3*   » Access to Speakers Bureau portal   » FFI ClubWire Newsletter
               
» Legal advice from FFI's attorney   » Access to Newsletter Content   » Local club list given to all new FFI members
               
» FFI HQ staff support   » Acces to Club Leader Report portal   » FFI calendar & social media postings of your events

How to become an  FFI Charter Club


How to Establish a Club

Many people want to know how to start a club in an area.  The document below will provide some ideas on how to determine the level of interest by potential members and ideas on how spread the word about a new club in the area.


Guidelines and Ideas for Establishing A New Club


Incentive Program

Any club that wishes to become a Charter Club of FFI can take advantage of a new program that was approved by the Board of Directors in August 2011.  The program provides a discounted rate for FFI membership for the first 2 years.  The discount is only offered to current members of the club who are not currently FFI members.  The discount is not extended to the club's current FFI members or to new members of the club who join after the club reaches Charter club status.  The first year rates for FFI general membership is $20.00 and the second year FFI membership rate is $30.00. (Unless you are a Senior or Veteran and then the normal $25.00 rate would apply to the second year.

Requirements

  1. All club members must also be FFI members and maintain an active status.
  2. Provide your club roster and list of new officers annually to FFI Headquarters.
  3. Provide financial statements to enable FFI to incorporate the information onto their group federal tax return.

Procedures

The materials addressing the creation of a Fly Fishers International Charter Club can be found in the PDF file below. All the documents contained in the file can be provided in a Word format for easy editing.  Please contact the office at 406-222-9369 or send an e-mail to clubs@flyfishersinternational.org to submit a request.  You must have Acrobat Reader to view the file. Click here to download the free Acrobat Reader program.


Download the Charter Club Procedures Here

Please note: All documents can be provided in Word format. Please e-mail a request to clubs@flyfishersinternational.org .



After you have completed the paperwork please mail to:

FFI Headquarters
1201 US Highway 10 West, Suite E
Livingston, MT 59047

OR

Email your completed paperwork to clubs@flyfishersinternational.org.
406-222-9369 (Office) , 406-222-5823 (Fax)

Copies will then be forwarded to FFI Legal Counsel for review and approval by the FFI Board.

 



Testimonial

Suncoast Fly Fishers, Florida, 2012
Please note:  At the time this was written the organization was known at the International Federation of Fly Fishers (IFFF)

What Does the International Federation of Fly Fishers (IFFF) Do for Suncoast Fly Fishers?

Suncoast is a charter member of the International Federation of Fly Fishers (IFFF).  Why are we a charter member?  As a charter member we have responsibilities and advantages.  The responsibilities include every member becoming a member of IFFF and maintaining that membership.  If anyone has not renewed their membership, please do so.  You can check on the status of your membership by e-mailing IFFF at membership@flyfishersinternational.org.  We must also send in an annual report to IFFF on our activities and financial status.

501(c)(3) and Income Tax Filing

Some of the advantages of being a charter member include an umbrella tax-exempt status and IFFF files our report to the IRS based on our annual report. 

Information, Education, Conservation

Each member also receives IFFF's magazine the Flyfisher and Fly Fishers E-News.  Several articles from our newsletter, “On the Fly” have appeared in Fly Fishers E-News.  Each new member also receives a FFI emblem.  Check out the IFFF web site for information on casting certification, and other resources at www.flyfishersinternational.org.  At this web site you can also renew your membership and sign up for Fly Fishers E-News.

Liability Insurance

Through FFI we have liability insurance custom-tailored for fly fishing clubs. Their program provides coverage for commercial general liability, directors’ and officer’s liability, excess liability, incidental property coverage, and coverage at an event.  The cost to obtain coverage thru the IFFF is a fraction of what it would cost to obtain similar stand alone coverage. The premium for a Charter Club changes annually but if very reasonable. Call for details. 406-222-9369.

Casting Instructor Certification Program

IFFF has the only certified fly casting instructors’ program.  This is a very rigorous program to grant certification to those members who meet high standards of casting and teaching ability.  It is an asset to our club to have three certified casting instructors – Pat Damico (certified master casting instructor), Chris O’Byrne and Dayle Mazzarella.  We have two casting clinics each year led by Pat.  We all know how much he has helped us improve our casting abilities.

Member Incentive Program 

For every 12 new members SFF is eligible to receive a $75.00 credit toward a merchandise purchase from one of the IFFF's Industry Partners. This has been a great asset to our club and many of our club rods were acquired through this program.

Annual Meeting, Local Council Expos, and More

These are just a few of the benefits.  IFFF has an annual Fly Fishing Fair with members from all over the world presenting programs and fly tying and casting sessions.  Several of us attended last year and had a great time.  The meeting for 2014 is August 5-9 in Livingston, Montana. Our Florida Council of IFFF also has its annual event the third weekend in October.  

SFF is a charter member of IFFF and we feel very fortunate to be part of an international organization that fosters the art of fly fishing, education and conservation and provides high standards and great resources.

Thomas Gadacz
Past President
Suncoast Fly Fishers


Questions

Email: clubs@flyfishersinternational.org
Telephone: 406-222-9369