Membership in The Chesapeake Chapter of the U. S. Lighthouse Society
If you are interested in lighthouses, lighthouse keepers, lightships and lightship sailors around the Chesapeake Bay, then our Chapter is for you. The membership year runs for twelve consecutive months from the date your membership is received. The Chapter is a formal nonprofit organization and all Membership Dues and Donations are tax deductible to the extent allowed by law. See more information below.
Benefits of Membership – As a member of the Chesapeake Chapter of the U.S. Lighthouse Society you will:
- support the U.S. Lighthouse Society Mission, Vision and Strategy.
- support the Purposes of the Chesapeake Chapter, USLHS .
- support the Thomas Point Shoal Lighthouse.
- receive via email the quarterly Chapter newsletter and historical document The Channels Marker when published.
- receive 10% off merchandise in our store
The Chapter is supported exclusively by Members dues. Your dues directly fund:
- An annual Preservation Grant to the Thomas Point Shoal Lighthouse,
- An annual Preservation Grant to a Chesapeake Bay LH or LS restoration group,
- Our web site which serves as our digital archive,
- The Lighthouse Historical Display Program,
- The Lighthouse Keeper Grave Marker Program,
- Supplies used by the preservation volunteers at various preservation work days,
- The 40+3 club for members,
- The Scout Patch Program
- Our Education Speaker Program
- Although we have no paid employees and no offices or facilities, we do rent a storage unit to hold most of our materials for our programs and Loft.
And remember, we are a 401(c)3 so your membership is a charitable donation, minus $38 for those at the Keeper, Inspector and Superintendent levels who receive the printed/mailed Newsletter.
Additional donations are always welcome and appreciated because they help to cover expenses and support our programs and grants.
Your involvement in the Chesapeake Chapter is critical to the maintenance and growth of a dedicated local organization committed to protecting, and sharing the Chesapeake Bay’s lighthouse and lightship heritage via our Programs and Web Site. We hope you will share your interest in lighthouses by joining us today and Please consider becoming a Volunteer! Our work to keep the Chapter functioning does not get done by itself.
If you have a membership related question OR a change of address, please send an email to our Membership Committee Chair at: membership@cheslights.org
Membership Levels – Dues
| Type | One-year | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Individual * (1 Adult) |
$15 | ||
| Family * (2 Adults + their children under 18) |
$20 | ||
| Senior (65+) * (1 Adult age 65 or older) |
$10 | ||
| **Keeper Family (2 Adults + their children under 18) | $50 | ||
| **Inspector Family (2 Adults + their children under 18) | $100 | ||
| **Superintendent Family (2 Adults + their children under 18) | $250 | ||
| the Paid Life Membership is no longer available | |||
| ***Keeper’s Mascot (One time Donation for your pet) | $5 |
* Member at these levels receive the newsletter via email only. If during the membership purchase process you are asked if you want the newsletter mailed to you or not, please ignore the question. We are working to remove that question. The Individual and Senior memberships levels are individual memberships for 1 Adult.
**These categories will also each receive a newsletter via 1st class mail in addition to the emailed version, which costs the chapter $38 per year for 2024. These membership levels are also Family type memberships, which includes 2 adults and all children under age 18 in the household.
***The Keeper’s Mascot Club is for a Pet Only and is a one time Donation, not a Membership.
NEW – Lighthouse Keeper Complementary Individual Life Membership. Any Coast Guard sailor who was stationed at a Chesapeake Bay Lighthouse or Lightship in our “core area” is eligible for a free individual Life Membership to the Chapter. The lighthouses in our core area are listed on our LH Heritage web page. You must have been assigned to the light station, not temporary duty for repairs. This free Life Membership will entitle you to our quarterly newsletters via email and the members discount on our Keepers Loft. We may contact you to ask if you are willing to be interviewed to learn about you time, service and experiences at the lighthouse. Any photos of that lighthouse while you were assigned are appreciated. Our goals for this special membership are: -learn who these “Keepers” are, learn any interesting information they can share about the time spent at the lighthouse and -obtain any photos they may have of the lighthouse, themselves, other sailors there during their service or lighthouse related stories. If you believe that you qualify for this and have some form of proof of your assignment, do NOT use this web site to apply. Please email our Membership Chair at membership@cheslights.org or the Programs Chair at programs@cheslights.org
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One-Year Membership
$10.00 – $250.00 Select options This product has multiple variants. The options may be chosen on the product page -
Three-Year Membership
$25.00 – $295.00 Select options This product has multiple variants. The options may be chosen on the product page -
Five-Year Membership
$40.00 – $490.00 Select options This product has multiple variants. The options may be chosen on the product page -
Keeper’s Mascot Membership
$5.00 Read more -
Gift Membership
$10.00 – $750.00 Select options This product has multiple variants. The options may be chosen on the product page
