Hi Rick,

First, welcome to the club!

R before a member number stands for Regular member. There were 100 Charter members, each of them assigned a CH membership number, with all regular membership numbers over 100 designated with an R. Life Memberships are given an LM membership number. It's usually the member's original membership number along with their life membership number. An example. If I were to renew as a life member when my current membership expires in September, my new membership number would be LM-3576-38, the 38 extension being the newest life member number. I'm just guessing on 38, there are close to that many now. A life membership costs $300, and is, well, good for life! Should annual dues increase in the future (and they will) such increases will have no affect on those who already have LM's. There are also a few HLM memberships, Honorary Life Member. These are given by the club to individuals who have made significant contributions to the hobby.

Hope this helps!

Bob