Hi John. At the FUN show in January, we did get one new member and I processed a renewal (former member that had lapsed, so technically new by club rules). In addition, we had a decent amount of foot traffic pass us as FUN had activities for kids in the booth next to ours. I snagged as many people as I could to discuss the CCA. Lots of those people had chips and other casino items in drawers at home. Others had actual collections. Most/many were unaware that our specific club existed, even if they were aware that casino items were collectible and had value. So, I feel the awareness generated for our club was great and repeated exposure to our club at other events could have a meaningful impact on our membership numbers.

That said, I spent several thousand dollars of my own money to make the trip. A few generous CCA members sent me money to help offset the costs. It is my belief that the club wouldn't (and shouldn't) fund non-local participation for events like FUN. If local members were to volunteer to setup and attend shows in their area, then I would hope that the club would be willing to pay to ship materials to be displayed and handed out. And pay for return shipping of reusable items like banners, etc.

I will leave your other questions for others to answer.

-- barry