26-08-2008

Ericksons and Mike

The visit of the District Governor is always an important part of the Rotary year, an event to which everyone looks forward. So it was with a great deal of pleasure that President Mike (right) was able to welcome District Governor Paul Erickson (centre) and wife Suzanne. Parts of DG Paul's challenging speech appear below:

• It has been helpful to hear all that you are doing, even if it makes some of what I say redundant.
• At the District Changeover, Barry Thompson mentioned 5 very important words:
  • Service – I’m asking all clubs to think about service, not just fund-raising.
  • Leadership – I want clubs to think about leadership and succession planning.
  • Fellowship - It’s a major part of this club, as it should be, and shows that Rotary can be fun and interesting while being relevant.
  • Integrity – we need to keep to the guidelines for operations, and to look after child protection and risk management.
  • Diversity – In both ethnicity and gender of members.
• RI President DK Lee has identified areas of focus:
  • Polio – DK Lee wants clubs to try to allocate an additional $1,000 each year over the next 3 years to match the Gates Foundation grant. We have gotten rid of 2 strains of polio, leaving one to be destroyed, and that in only 4 countries.
  • Water, hunger, and health – each club is being asked to provide support in these areas. Please send your ideas to the District web site so other clubs can share them.
  • Literacy – with your literacy project, you are moving in this area, but we want all clubs to support it.
• There are 2 new areas:
  • Membership – crucial for the District as well as each club. We are the 3rd smallest district in Australia. We need to make changes. There are over 100,000 Koreans in Sydney with 5 Korean speaking Lions Clubs but Rotary has only 1 member. It is the same with the Vietnamese community. Why aren’t we meeting their needs? We may have to start making changes. We need to create structures to make it viable for different ethnicities to gather as Rotary members and Rotary clubs. This Club actually has members who are under 50 – many clubs don’t. The Springwood Rotaract Club folded when a few members turned 30 at the same time. When they were asked to join Rotary they said no because of the age of most members, the cost of the meetings, and uninteresting programs such as the monthly barbecue. I am hoping to get one or two new clubs in the District.
  • Public Relations – DK Lee has asked us to be proactive in PR. You have good relationships with the local papers. Try to use relationships with local schools to advertise in their newsletters. A good thing about RI Leadership is that it has been consistent over the last few years as things have carried on from one leader to the next.
• I am a big fan of Shelterbox, ARHRF, and TRF. The Centurion program is excellent; we have one club with a 100% Centurion membership. I would like to see all at the conference next year – it is an important part of Rotary. We have a lot of good speakers, good in quality and quantity.
• The Presidents meetings are important. We are pleased to have Directors to come along to those. It is important for you to know the District faces and for them to know you.
• Consistency is important in supporting Rotary and meeting the goals set down by DK Lee.
• It used to be a 100% attendance was the norm; now it is 50%. Some of the ways Clubs are trying to get and retain members is by marking them present at meetings based on their service to the Club and also paying fees for some members.

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Last changed: 03:22:15 04-10-2008