Since I posted this originally, I contacted friends in 5 other congregations and all their attendances were 15-20% higher than last year, too.
I asked if anyone came off the public invitations and the responses were all no. The numbers were made up of extended family, submarines, inactive and DF ones.
It's a shame they're all believing the crap about Russia and Trump meaning the Big A is so near, when the attack on false religion looks much less likely than North Korea, America and Syria all being at war soon.
As you've said, though, the real gauge is how many of the ones who came to the memorial attend the special talk, and even more importantly, the weekly CLAM and Sunday meetings after that. My reckoning is hardly any.
The notion that extended family and submarine people will still be saved by attending the memorial once a year enrages me so much, as it's so easy for them if this is true, compared to the dubs who are either mentally still in or PIMO like me but pretend for family reasons, which is doubly hard. I'd much rather just go to the memorial once a year if I knew Jehovah will love me like they tell all the studies and relatives.