http://www.inlandkoisociety.org

Dear Friend....

 Greetings from the Inland Koi Society!

 We understand you've been thinking about membership in the Inland Koi Society, and thought you might like to know a bit more about us first. IKS is a very active and outgoing group and we hope that members find not only helpful information about keeping their ponds and fish healthy, but also a host of new friends among us. You should know though, that not all of us have ponds yet: some have joined to learn from others' mistakes before they make their own! But let us tell you a little about what the Inland Koi Society does and how our club works.....

 Membership includes the family and all may attend meetings, yes even the children if you like. We meet monthly on the fourth Sunday normally from 2 to 5 PM for a potluck lunch and a program at a member's home. Weather is generally in our favor for outdoor meetings but when it's not we make other arrangements. A club newsletter, the Inland Koi Connection, comes out mid-month with a map and details about the upcoming meeting and we post a few "KOI" signs in the neighborhood so we can find the right house. Everyone brings a beach or folding chairs so the hosts are not burdened with trying to seat us all. In the first half hour as people arrive and check in, there's time to check out the hosts' pond, talk with them about their filtration system, problems, etc and basically get to know other members.

 Lunch is a buffet style potluck. The club provides paper goods and beverages. We usually have a guest speaker and there's always time for questions and answers. Topics of course focus on our ponds. Before we close the meeting we have a raffle. The club provides some of the prizes, members and sponsors donate others and they usually pond related like fish foods, plants, art work, and gift items. We have some breeder/dealers in our club so occasionally a fish is donated too. Tickets are sold for $1 each or 6 for $5 folks buy what they will. The income covers the cost of the meeting.

 Occasionally we take to the road to visit another club, tour a breeder's facility, or go to a KOI show. We have had six very successful Pond Garden Tours with over 600 people in attendance each time. We have an extensive library of resource books and videos on all aspects of KOI ponds and water gardens for our members use. Additionally we have people who are readily available to help when questions or problems arise.

 New members receive a name badge and a copy of KOI Keeping 101, a basic primer for pond owners. Hopefully they find a lot of new information in it. Name badges are ordered as soon as someone joins and are usually available at the next meeting. Most members subscribe to KOI USA but it takes a couple of months to receive your first issue as it is published bi-monthly. KOI USA is an excellent full colored hobbyists magazine perhaps the best outside of Japan and is published by our parent club, the Associated KOI Clubs of America (AKCA).

 Feel free to visit one of our meetings before you make your decision. You can E-mail any of the board members or check the calendar on this website for the location. Then if you decide to join we hope you'll take an active interest in the group. We all have so much to learn about these friendly KOI and as we share our experiences with others our own enjoyment increases.

  We look forward to hearing from you.

 The IKS Officers and Board Members