We Asked, You Told Us

The June 2020 ConnLUG Activity Survey results are in!

Summer. We made it. The sun is shining, the air is warm, and the smiles have almost returned to our little corner of the world. We’ve been through a lot these last few months, both in our personal health and in the health of our communities. It has been a difficult road so far; however, we managed to survive and even thrive through our love of LEGO, socially distant communication, remote gatherings, and concern for one another.

To support our community, it is important to us to ensure that we understand how our members feel and determine if what we are doing is helping them experience some normalcy. We created the June 2020 ConnLUG Activity Survey to do just that. With an over 80% response rate, we feel that we have captured the feelings of our members and understand what drives them to be part of our LEGO community. The outcome of this survey is a direct representation of our members’ desires for the direction of ConnLUG during the remainder of 2020 and beyond.

Drum Roll Please…

Feedback from our members drives what we do. Certainly, in these unprecedented times, we are governed further by safety requirements, state mandates, and the comfort levels of our members as a whole. Below, we’ve summarized the important aspects of the survey for you.

ConnLUG Hosted Events

What We Will Keep Doing Officially

• Our Regular Monthly Meetings, on the third Saturday of every month.
• Impromptu events like “Build the LUG” and Sorting Parties.
• Our Summer Barbecue and Pool Party. We are moving it to August.
• Our Holiday Party and Dinner
• Saturday MOC & Tell. Once per month & includes challenges too.
• Tuesday Tutorials. Once per month we will release a tutorial video.

What We Will Discontinue Officially

• Thursday Game Streams. Members can still stream if they want to.
• Friday Movie Night. Members can still get together and watch movies.

Changes To Our Schedule

For July 2020, we will have our regular Remote Monthly Meeting in Teams.
In August, we will start a new schedule for the rest of 2020 as depicted here.

We will hold a remote MOC & Tell Build Challenge Meeting on the first Saturday of every month. This will encompass the aspects of our MOC & Tell where anyone can build something and talk about it, as well as the Build Challenge for the theme of that month. Teams is our chosen platform.

We will hold our Regular Monthly Meeting on the third Saturday of every month with a reduced time frame of 1-3 PM since we will be covering the MOC & Tell and Build Challenge portions during the dedicated meeting for those events.

We will publish a Tuesday Tutorial on the Tuesday following our Monthly Meeting. The tutorial topic will be revealed during the Monthly Meeting and will be released as a YouTube video on Tuesday thereafter. This will no longer be a live event, so anyone can watch it at any time.

*Please Note – the numerical day that these events fall on will change from month to month, but will always be the 1st Saturday, the 3rd Saturday, and the Tuesday immediately following the Monthly Meeting.

Upcoming Events

• July 2020 Remote Monthly Meeting in Teams – Saturday, July 18, 2020, 1:00 – 3:00 pm
• Tuesday Tutorial YouTube Video Post – Tuesday, July 21, 2020, 7:00 pm
• MOC & Tell Build Challenge Remote Meeting in Teams – Saturday, Aug. 1, 2020, 1:00 – 2:30 pm
• August 2020 Monthly Meeting BBQ & Pool Party – Saturday, Aug. 15, 2020, 1:00 pm
  • Outdoor Event for your safety
  • Hand sanitizer & cleaning supplies will be provided
  • Please bring a mask to wear while not eating or swimming
  • Please stay home if you have been sick within 2 weeks of the event
  • Food and beverage will be provided
  • (Rain Date: Sunday, Aug. 16)

Public Events

We usually plan on attending numerous public events throughout the year. Some of these we attend individually as observers and some collectively as ConnLUG AFOLs and TFOLs with impressive displays. We try to make the most of our attended events and believe in quality over quantity. As we look at the second half of 2020, it is likely that we will not be able to attend many or possibly all of our usual events. While it saddens us to miss out on opportunities to interact with other LEGO communities and fans, we understand that an absence this year gives us more time to prepare for next year.

Public Events Will We Try To Get To In 2021

• Wadsworth Atheneum FOT&T our most popular event
• AFOL Shopping Days if and when LEGO continues these
• BrickFair VA & BrickFair NJ we will attend 2021 events
• Library Builds for public display
• Community Builds supporting builders in our hometowns
• Bing! ComicCon
• The Amherst Railway Society Railroad Hobby Show

As always, all of our events are optional and voluntary, and we understand that planning for and attending LEGO community events may be a lower priority for many members at this time. Events that we host or plan on attending will be posted to our calendar and members will be notified in advance of all upcoming events.

What About COVID-19?

ConnLUG is about having fun, being creative, and sharing in our LEGO enthusiasm. While we recognize that’s who we are, we also recognize that the safety of our members and guests has, and will always, come first. From the direct feedback, opinions, and testimonials of our members during the June 2020 Activity Survey, we developed a new rule set to govern our in-person gatherings until further notice. We reviewed all responses and opinions about how to handle staying safe during our events, and incorporated the principles that were of highest value to our members.

The Basics

• You must wear a mask
• You must wash your hands
• You must stay 6ft (2m) away from other members
• You must tell us if you’ve had COVID-19 at any point
• You must tell us if you are sick or have been sick in the last 14 days
• IF YOU ARE SICK OR HAVE A FEVER YOU MUST STAY HOME

The New Policy

ConnLUG members are required to review and abide by our new safety precautions and rules.
The full set of rules can be downloaded here:

What Else Should I Know?

ConnLUG follows the guidelines set forth by the State of Connecticut and the Sector Rules for Reopening. Links to both are also available in the ConnLUG Safety and Wellness Policy document.

All in-person gatherings can be joined remotely via live video calls for which remote meeting contact info will be published ahead of each meeting.  The Summer Barbecue and Holiday Dinner will not be included.

ConnLUG will provide hand sanitizer at all in-person gatherings for member and guest use. Cleaning supplies will be available and will be used at each event. Back-up masks will be available and will be provided by ConnLUG at each event if needed. Members and guests are expected to arrive with appropriate personal protective equipment and use it for the duration of all gatherings.

Be kind to each other. Be kind to yourself.
Happy Building, Play Well!