Conejo Valley Bonsai Society Welcomes New President, Seeks Volunteer Contributors

The man now running the Conejo Valley Bonsai Society openly calls his personal collection "Murderers' Row." That admission, front and center in Mike Blumenberg's first message as president, sets a deliberate tone for a club entering one of the most demanding stretches of the bonsai calendar with two open leadership positions and an immediate need for volunteers.

Blumenberg stepped into the presidency after thanking Damon DuBois for "leadership as CVBS president over the past two and a half years." Blumenberg had served directly under DuBois as vice president, meaning the Westlake Village club now needs to fill both chairs it just vacated. The VP role is the most pressing opening.

In the club's April 10 newsletter, Blumenberg's ask was concrete: CVBS needs members to "become reporters, writers, columnists, or photographers" for what has grown into an award-winning monthly publication. That newsletter is how CVBS communicates workshop dates, show logistics, and programming updates to a membership that gathers every third Thursday at 7:30 p.m. in the Westlake Village City Hall Community Room at 31200 Oakcrest Drive. Keeping it understaffed as spring ramps up is not a viable option.

Spring is the highest-stakes window of the year. Repotting decisions compress into weeks, candles are extending on conifers, and clubs that run annual exhibitions, CVBS holds its yearly display and demonstration show at Gardens of the World, depend on volunteer labor for setup, staging, and member coordination. Past newsletters have noted that the annual show generates "a lot of small jobs," and that even members who cannot take on larger responsibilities can find meaningful ways to contribute. The gap between smooth programming and a scrambled event is almost always a volunteer gap.

What CVBS offers in return is concrete. Membership includes presentations by bonsai experts, workshops, critiques, member swap meets, and field trips to local nurseries and suppliers. A newsletter photographer covering a club demonstration gets front-row access to technique. A show committee volunteer works beside experienced members on display staging, tree placement, and logistics. These are not administrative errands; they are accelerated learning paths for anyone who wants to compress years of solitary bench work into months of guided practice.

Blumenberg named his own opening section "From 'Murderers' Row' to Bonsai Novice," using his own imperfect trajectory as an explicit bridge to anyone who has hesitated to participate because the craft felt too exacting or the community too expert-heavy. That framing at the top of a leadership transition carries weight: it tells prospective contributors and newer growers what CVBS values before they ever walk into a meeting. A self-described novice who stepped up from VP to president is a more credible recruiter for wavering members than any polished club brochure.

The practical test of this transition will come quickly. With the spring show season already underway and monthly programming continuing at Westlake Village City Hall, Blumenberg's first 90 days will be measured by whether the vice presidency gets filled and whether the newsletter finds the steady contributors it needs to keep serving the club. Both are achievable, but only if members who have been watching from the back row decide to step forward.