For some reason I cannot reply to postings on Rootsweb anymore, but I can post original things. This is what I would have said to my cousin James. Oh, the Germanna Foundation is still a non-profit, don't worry! No one taking home big bucks, or for that matter, any bucks. But when the Foundation puts out money for such items as the new interactive website, which is not a freebie, then those costs have to be paid somehow. The "somehow" is member dues. For some, but not all content on the site, only dues-paying members can access it. Not that different from subscribing to a magazine, or John B's Beyond Germanna, or buying a book, it's just accessible on the internet. Of course, anyone could give some nice donations, in return for a tax write-off, to keep the Germanna Foundation's work alive.... Virginia Nuta