What was the most revealing insight that emerged from your interview with John McCarthy, IHRSA’s executive director emeritus? How can the industry align itself with national initiatives, such as Michelle Obama’s Let’s Move! campaign? What do you regard as the industry’s greatest challenge and most promising opportunity?

The kinds of things John talked about in the interview were, on one level, simple and basic, yet critically important. From his standpoint and mine, it’s important to understand that a club is a place of community. In today’s modern era, people are frequently distracted by technology and greatly underestimate the importance of human contact. Over the long term, these kinds of direct connections between people and staff will continue to become more important. John’s point was that clubs have a tremendous role to play in that.

In recessionary times, clubs that embrace the community spirit have lower attrition rates. People are less willing to give up their memberships if they’re provided with a means of exercise, fun, and a sense of belonging to a place that offers everything from childcare, to kids’ programs, to senior group classes. John also talked about how clubs give back to the community and become an integral part of society. I would have to say that the need for community, especially in these times, is greater than ever. It’s important for clubs to try something new—not just cut costs—by perhaps launching a program that’s fun, interactive, and involves the staff and community in a positive way.

On a grander scale, and in light of Michelle Obama’s “Let’s Move!” campaign, the national obesity crisis, and engaging people in the community to get fit, I would stress to current industry leaders the question: How does IHRSA position the industry so that it’s perceived as significant enough to make an impact on this issue? As an industry, we’re creating awareness of the obesity problem, but our influence will not have an impact in terms of dollar volume in comparison to other industries. Part of IHRSA’s plan is to get government agencies to create a framework that encourages local jurisdictions and organizations to partner with health clubs to promote exercise in the community, but nothing will change unless there are personal interactions between fitness leaders and the community populations that need fitness the most.

In the words of Augie Nieto, the founder of Life Fitness: success is not about being wealthy; it’s about being significant. If we look back 30 years from now, and we measure IHRSA’s success, the question is: How successful are we at shaping public policy in America? How significant are we in dealing with the major problem of the time?

IHRSA creates a foundation for health and fitness professionals to unleash their talent. I encourage IHRSA and its board of directors to focus attention on what we do—but, in terms of linking the critical focus on community, we need to realize that we’re tied into the national need. If we use the talent that we have, we can change the landscape of America. I think the idea is worth pursuing and I would like to see it become a campaign that aims to make our industry significant. It’s the greatest concern and most promising opportunity.

I encourage IHRSA to think about something that would represent a major departure: to fund a number of private projects to get into the school systems and inner-city programs. I would contend that, out of that effort, many developing entrepreneurial trends will come forward that will likely have an impact on families and communities. Opportunity lies in initiatives, like the ones Michelle Obama and others are concerned about, and a process that goes way beyond the surface, where we can determine what outcomes we want, and then, be able to measure them. This can only become possible with tremendous leadership, and IHRSA has the potential to be the “go-to” association leading these changes.

Roger Ralph is the founder, president, and co-owner, along with Bob Carpenter, of the Hockessin Athletic Club, a 105,000-square-foot, family-oriented facility in Hockessin, Delaware, which sits on 11.6 acres of property and has more than 11,500 members.