what are friends for?

I am now living in Little Rock Arkansas and joined the Arkansas Arts Center and for a bit more money became a Friend of Contemporary Craft. My first hurdle was to find out what a friend of craft did. How to befriend a craft or craftmaking person? Being a craftsperson, well, maybe someone would befriend me? Perhaps. To solve this puzzle of my new friendship status, I attended a reception for FOCC at the Governor's Mansion and found out that as a friend there was free wine, goodies to eat, people to meet and crafts to be seen or to be displayed. This evening was for new members such as myself and guests who might want to become new members. I thought there might be some getting to know you activities, stick on name tags with cute colors or indicators of your craft or some sort of special ceremony for those who were new. Being a believer in ritual, I was hoping to join in. Nope, nothing like that. In fact I felt as if I were back in my hometown accompanying my parents to an art event many years ago. Waiters of color filling the food trays, people of no-color eating and drinking and it was all a ritual, but hey, not one that seemed right for these times. Where was I? How did this event work to befriend craft or befriend me or include the guests and newcomers into this organization? Hmmn, this discussion will continue and be updated as the quest for answers to such important questions as "how to be a friend to craft in 2009?" gets processed here and in my head.