Hey Ja-Kuz,
Welcome to BAR. You're gonna like it here. Yes, by all means attend every meeting you can as we alway have good stuff happening. At the very least you can meet some of the active members and pick up some IC Gel at "our price" for your fragging efforts. Sounds like you have a tank just waiting for some coral.
*Learn about and get involved with our Don"t Break The Chain (DBTC) program. It's a chance to learn about responsible coral propagation, acquire and add a nice diversity of interesting coral varieties to your tank and allow you to practice and improve your reef keeping success. You will, of course, be expected to do your best to raise your newly acquired coral to sufficient size to share with others in the program.
We have a few yearly swaps including swaps that are open to other clubs and some that are just BAR members. There are a lot of tanks full of life in our area and the meetings are very close to you, at Chabot College in Hayward. Get a tank thread started so we can see "what you've got" and watch progress. We all have an opinion (like the old saying

and sometimes it can help if we can see what you are doing with good tank thread update pictures and observations. You may also want to add a signature line for your posts that includes your first name. You might also include a quote or any wisdom you wish to impart on the group. LOL Just to make it a little personal. We are a close knit group and I'm sure you're gonna love us. 8) Again, welcome to The Club
*Edited to remove verbiage that "may have" sounded like I was promoting an uncontrolled tank filling frenzy. :O