For the past few months, I’ve been attending virtual United Federation of Doll Clubs (UFDC) meetings. The journey with them so far has been an interesting one. Since my membership was sponsored, I wanted to share a bit about the organization here on the blog, in case you’re new to it!

Educate, Preserve, Conserve

First, let’s start with a little history. The UFDC was started by Mary E. Lewis in 1949. Her dream was to unite and organize doll collectors from around the world. It’s a 501(c)(3) organization “with the goal of being the foremost in research, education, conservation and appreciation of dolls”.

Museum and Convention

The UFDC prides itself on two important parts of the organization: the museum and the convention. The official UFDC museum is in Kansas City, Missouri and has a variety of dolls on display in permanent and rotating exhibits. The library also houses a library of archival collections of catalogs, research materials, patent papers, patterns and other doll reference material. Many of the dolls on display were donated by members.

Another reason people join is because of the annual convention. The first convention was held in 1950 with a registration charge of $10.00. Attendees received a souvenir plate. Fast forward 70-some years and it is currently nearly convention time for the present day members. After the cancellation of last year’s event, everyone seems really excited, judging by what I’ve heard during the meetings. This year’s 72nd annual convention is in Baltimore, Maryland and takes place July 19-23rd.

Convention events include the usual sorts of things, like panels, crafts, lunch and dinner presentations and, of course, shopping! Much like the Barbie Conventions, it isn’t cheap to attend the UFDC show. The cheapest ticket is $350 for 2021’s event, which is a bit much for me, personally, but so much goes into it and members who do go (there are a lot) tend to love it! Big names in the doll world frequently do programs, so attendees can feel like they’re rubbing elbows with some of the industry’s top designers. One day, I would like to attend, because it seems like a lot of fun!

The Basic Gist

From what I understand, the general membership set up of the UFDC is pretty simple. For me, as a Member at Large, I’m not affiliated with a club. Members at Large pay a yearly due and have access to all the mailings and regional newsletters, as well as a subscription to Doll News and all the other benefits of a club affiliated UFDC member. Collectors who are part of a club that isn’t affiliated with the UFDC are considered Members at Large.

Many (I’m guessing most) members are “local club members”. These members belong to a club that is part of the United Federation of Doll Clubs. This confused me a bit, but a good example is this: You’re part of a local club and pay your usual club dues. In addition, you pay for membership to the UFDC as a local club member through your club and those get sent to the federation under your club’s name and allow you to get all the benefits of being part of this larger collective of doll clubs.

Because I joined mid-pandemic, I can only speak to how much you get out of the Member at Large membership from a Zoom-centric approach. Being able to participate in meetings through video chat has made membership worth it for me.

Membership includes the best doll magazine on the market, Doll News. Doll News is a wealth of knowledge! It’s published quarterly with full color pages. Unlike other doll magazines on the market, this one is thick! It’s not just full of ads or press releases. Doll News is an actual quality doll magazine. It’s a big perk of joining!

Junior Collectors

One of the main reasons I was sponsored was to help them update their Junior Collectors program. Junior Collectors in the UFDC are under 18. They do not need to pay dues like full fledged members. To be honest, I had no idea the UFDC had a Junior Collectors program until it was mentioned to me and, at the moment, it needs a bit of work. With Junior Collectors, there are no real meetings, unless they are planned and organized by a UFDC club.

So, really, the Junior Collectors are dependent on local clubs doing their part to promote the program and plan junior activities. That being said, if you’re in an area where your local UFDC clubs are actively thinking about how to involve Junior Collectors in their meetings and events, this is a great way to connect with other young collectors.

United Federation of Doll Clubs- My Experience So Far

My experience has been really great with the UFDC so far, which is partly because of the move to Zoom that clubs were forced to do over the past year or so. I’ve had the pleasure of being able to zoom into meetings with the Colorado region for the past few months and they’ve been lots of fun. I am one of the younger UFDC members in those meetings, but even with the age gap, we’re all connected through our love of dolls! Everyone in the group is so friendly and welcoming!

Karen, the regional director for that area, has brought in a presenter or two a month to discuss a lot of different types of dolls. I’ve learned my fair share from some of the presenters. I, myself, presented two programs since joining (Kurhn dolls and A Girl for All Time) and while I was beyond nervous, it was fun sharing my knowledge with them!

A sample of the programming put on by clubs can be found here. A nice perk of clubs having to move to zoom is that many open up their meetings to other regions members. If you are a member and haven’t looked at the calendar of events yet, you definitely should! What a great way to bring the original vision of uniting and organizing doll collectors full circle!

What About You?

Are you a member of the United Federation of Doll Clubs? What region are you? What do YOU think of it as a whole? Let us know in the comment area!

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