Membership

Membership Application pdf

Benefits of Membership

• The right to attend our Saturday evening members nights at the observatory. Members nights are held on two or more Saturday nights a year as listed in our annual events calendar. On clear members nights, several club members will set up telescopes for observing. This is a good opportunity for members to bring their personal telescopes to the observatory. On cloudy nights, this is a good opportunity to have questions answered and become more familiar with the Modine Benstead Observatory. The club has 3 beginner telescopes available for use at the observatory by the general membership. The observatory also has a library with a wide assortment of Astronomy books that members can check out.

• The society has three Star Parties each year in the Spring, Summer, and Fall.

• The society has an annual picnic and a Christmas party in December.

• The society meets quarterly at the Modine-Benstead Observatory. The annual meeting is held in January. Our remaining meetings are held in Spring, Summer and Fall as published in our annual events calendar. There is also a short meeting at the Christmas party. Members have a right to cast one vote at these meetings as applicable.

• A one-year membership in the Astronomical League. This includes all of the publications that the Astronomical League provides to its members.

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Keyholder Benefits

• Members who have demonstrated an active interest in Astronomy and have volunteered for club events over a one-year period may become eligible for key-holder status. This requires the approval of the Board of Directors. Qualified candidates will have demonstrated the ability to use a telescope, and an interest in promoting Astronomy to the public. Key-holders have access to society property and equipment for personal use or research in accordance with the policies established by the Board of Directors. More information about key-holder requirements is available at the observatory.

How to Join

Membership in the Racine Astronomical Society is open to anyone age 16 and over. For your convenience we offer two easy methods.

If you prefer to join digitally, email your application to treasurer@rasastro.org and submit your dues payment via https://www.paypal.me/racineastro. Note: There’s a small convenience fee added to cover the PayPal credit card transaction fees. Details of the amounts due for each membership level are on the PayPal form to keep things handy.

If you prefer to join by mail, a check or money order for membership dues should be made payable to “Racine Astronomical Society” and mailed with this application to:

Racine Astronomical Society
c/o Leigh Weidner
5616 Highway 36
Burlington, WI 53105

Membership Application pdf

Pro-rated rates are available depending on application date. Please e-mail raswebmaster@wi.rr.com for more information.

Membership Class Dues Requirements

Regular $45 / year Open to anyone age 16 and over.

Student $22.50 / year Open to anyone age 16 and over who is a full-time student.

Senior $22.50 / year Open to anyone age 62 and over.

Patron $90 / year Open to anyone age 16 and over. The portion donated by the Patron member over the regular rate is tax deductible and can be designated by the donor for a specific purpose.

Life $1125 Open to anyone age 16 and over. A one-time dues payment of $1125.00 results in a lifetime membership to the society.

Corporate $1125 Open to corporate entities. A one-time dues payment of $1125.00 results in a 50-year membership in the society.

Associate $11.25 / year Family members age 16 and over living at the same address as a Regular, Student, Senior, Patron, or Life member may join as Associate members. Associate members do not receive the subscriptions to publications provided by the Racine Astronomical Society, they would share these with the other members in the family.

Junior Free Family members under age 16 living at the same address of a Regular, Student, Senior, Patron, or Life member can be a Junior member. Junior members may only participate in society activities accompanied by a parent or guardian.