Dear John Arnold:
     Perhaps the problem is with the title of your proposed talk. State
museum associations, by definition, are created to serve primarily the
museums that are members of them. By doing so, they indirectly serve
the public by providing a forum for the exchange of information that will
help  their member museums improve their standards of operation. The
public is the ultimate beneficiary, but it is the member museums that
receive the most direct benefits. If the title of the presentation was
something like "How New Mexico's Museums Can Better Serve the
Public" this relationship might become clearer. Good luck with your talk!
    Lonn Taylor, National Museum of American History and a former
member of the New Mexico Museums Association.