COTM

The Rotary Club of Road Town is pleased to provide our Club of the Month submission for August which shows that we are LIGHTING UP ROTARY.

Since the start of the New Year, 2014-2015, the new board led by President Shan Mohamed has embarked on a strategic campaign to grow the club through public awareness, embracing change and membership engagement. The result has been the addition of NINE NEW MEMBERS and a very engaged membership as is shown in the attendance.

In July 2013, there was a 57. 39% attendance record while for the same period this year we have seen a 71.76 % attendance. Club records also show an increase for August, from 53 percent in 2013 to 72 % in 2014.  On average, we have 15 guests/potential members at every meeting.

More members have also participated in projects and activities which have not been seen by the club for the past five years.  We recognise that membership and partnership are the ultimate way to achieve Rotary Goals and the Club’s Goals and have been encouraging and promoting both.

Below, we have also included a number of links as evidence to the incredible media coverage we have received since the start of the year.

 

Summary of Accomplishments: This month our club completed the following activities:

 

1. INDUCTED NINE (9) MEMBERS, including ONE (1) RETURNING MEMBER, ONE (1) ROTARACTOR and ONE (1) FROM AN ETHNIC GROUP previously not part of Rotary in the BVI.

 

2. RAISED $75,000 IN SPONSORSHIP through partnership with various corporate organisations and theGovernment of the BVI so that the Club can achieve its projects goals this year in a bigger way.

 

3. SPIRITUAL DIRECTION BY REV. DR. MELVILLE TURNBULL. At our Inaugural Club Meeting. Poor participation in previous church services led to a new idea to ‘bring the church to the club’, which was well received.

 

4. INVITED ROTARIAN NISHA JOSE from the Rotary Club of Pala, the Largest Club in the District 3211, India with 90 members including 10 Lady Rotarians. Club Flags were exchanged at the meeting. Efforts are also underway to establish a partnership via a Friendship exchange.

 

5. THE CLUB HOSTED DISTRICT (7020) ROTARACT REPRESENTATIVE, Elisia Lake (Rotaract Club Sunrise of St.Maarten) at our weekly meeting. She was one of our meeting guest speakers.

 

6. THE CLUB SIGNED A MEMORANDUM OF UNDERSTANDING with two BVI-based Non- Profit Organisations, Follow The Movement and the Hope Foundation on Youth At-Risk under the theme:

‘Change’. These Groups focus is on the youth in the community. This MOU will form the basis of a Global Grant for our club.

 

7. THE CLUB INVITED HIS EXCELLENCY WILLIAM BOYD MCCLEARY CMG CVO, outgoing Governor of the Virgin Islands, as the guest speaker at our club meeting.

 

8. THE PREMIER’S CUP REGATTA, a Rotary sponsored-program involving youth sailors from around the Caribbean. The event is hosted by Kids and The Sea (KATS) and other members of the Rotary family. It is a program to teach BVI youth to swim and sail.

 

9. RESTORATION OF MS. PERSIS BARKER’S HOUSE. The Club along with Hon. Alvera Maduro-Caines, 6^th District Rep, along with officers from the British Royal Navy Vessel, HMS Argyll joined to restore the home of a resident of the BVI who is not in a position to afford any kind of repairs.

 

10. THE KIDDIES FIESTA EVENT, which is the only dedicated children’s event of the annual Emancipation Festival in the BVI, the club provided FREE Rotary Club of Road Town branded back packs with school supplies. For the first time, the club added water slides to the venue – which was a sensational hit.

 

11. ROTARY DAY: The club went into overdrive to recruit members and to introduce/reintroduce Rotary to the community. We informed the community about the club’s goals and Rotary International through speeches, visual aid and brochures. Members interacted with the community, answering questions and providing clarifications were necessary.

 

12. Participated in a ROTARY FLOUPE in the BVI Emancipation Festival which brought second place in the Parade. The Floupe is annually hosted by Rotary Club of Tortola which invited participation by members of the Rotary family.

 

13. ATTENDED AND PRESENTED OUR YOUTH AT RISK PROJECT AT CARIBBEAN PARTNERSHIP CELEBRATION 2014 (CPC) in Puerto Rico.

 

14. INVITED AND HOSTED PAST DISTRICT GOVERNOR (7020) RUPERT W. ROSS, JR., from St. Croix to deliver a special address to members on membership engagement.

 

15. THE CLUB HELD ITS FIRST ORIENTATION FOR PROSPECTIVE MEMBERS AND NEW MEMBERS hosted At President’s Shan’s House. The session was different in that it included videos about Rotary, Rotary Club of Road Town and invited persons to join the club and any other club in the BVI that suits them.

 

16. FOLLOWING ORIENTATION THE CLUB HELD ITS FIRST HOME HOSPITALITY, a social fellowship for Rotarians, family, friends and guests. The Club auctioned an oil painting donated by Rtn. George Lewis (the Waterman) which was part of a project that he introduced to club members at Caribbean Partnership Conference. Proceeds will go towards polio eradication via TRF. Lots of Dancing and fellowship was had by all.

 

17. HIGHLIGHTED FIRST WOMEN TO JOIN ROTARY IN BVI. Margaret Penn, one of the first of three women to be accepted into Rotary in the BVI joined our Club and is still a current member of our club, reflected on the early days of women in Rotary and the great level of gender equality that existed when she joined the club and still currently exists.

 

18. ‘PAST PRESIDENT’S NIGHT’ THEMED MEETING. The meeting was chaired by Charter President, Ronnie W. Skelton and included other Past Presidents, including PDG Vance Lewis. The Past Presidents ended the meeting by giving us a brief summary of the significant events during their year as president.

 

19. RE-ESTABLISHED FACEBOOK which has grown from 121 at the end of June to over 750 at the time of this submission.

 

20. LAUNCHED INSTAGRAM, YOU TUBE AND TWITTER ACCOUNTS in keeping with our social media push to bring Rotary to the community.

 

21. RE-LAUNCHED MONTHLY NEWS LETTER ONLINE so that members can keep abreast with club activities even when they are unable to make it to meetings and projects.

 

22. PRODUCED AND AIRED ADVERTISEMENTS ON RADIO AND TELEVISION TO ATTRACT NEW MEMBERS. The videos and audio featured endorsements from Premier Dr. D. Orlando Smith and Minister of Education and Culture, Hon. Myron Walwyn.

 

23. PUBLISHED ARTICLES IN THE MEDIA which provided an in-depth look at the Rotary Club of Road Town objectives, projects, Rotary International and why someone should join Rotary.

 

24. DESIGNED AND ERECTED AN 8 X8 FOOT BILLBOARD. This billboard was stationed along the main road entering the capital, Road Town and was used to advertise our ‘Rotary Needs You’ membership drive.

 

25. ADOPTED THE SLOGAN, ‘KEEP CALM, WE ARE THE FUN CLUB’ which is the centerpiece of all work shirts now worn by all members.

 

26. CLASSIFICATION SURVEY

 

27. NEW BADGES FOR ALL MEMBERS

 

28. RECOGNIZED MEMBERS WITH 100% ATTENDANCE FOR THE YEAR

 

29. RECOGNIZED SPONSORS OF NEW ROTARIANS

 

30. ASSIGNED MENTORS TO ALL NEW ROTARIANS

 

31. REVIEWED ATTENDANCE RECORD AND ASSIGNED BUDDIES

 

32. CHANGED FORMAT OF CLUB MEETINGS whereby the final meeting of the month will be a ‘fun meeting’. Fun meetings have been welcomed by members and we have played games and fellowshipped for longer than normal.

 

33. RECOGNIZED PARTNERSHIP WITH FILIPINO ASSOCIATION

 

Relevance to Rotary Theme: How did each Activity tie in with this month’s theme?

1. Growing the club is in keeping with the theme of Membership.

 

2. Partnership

 

3. Our Spiritual Partner, Rev. Turnbull used his sermonette to inspire members to remember their calling to serve local and international communities.

 

4. This served to remind members of the global reach of members being part of Rotary. Members interacted with Rtn. Nisha, building long-lasting partnerships.

 

5. This reminded members and visitors, that the youth membership arm of Rotary is still at work and in partnership with Rotaract how much Rotary achieves. It also reminded the club that membership in Rotary extends to our youth arms who will be future Rotarians.

 

6. This is a vibrant partnership that brought together three organisations in the BVI to further help tackle the growing issues facing youth. This event along with the expected impact on the community was reported on by all media in the BVI. The Club’s membership agreed to work with other organisations to show our commitment to the community as a club in general. This also encouraged a new member to the club whose interest is youth.

 

7. The Governor had been a partner of Rotary throughout his tenure and an honorary member of the Rotary Club of Tortola it was an opportunity to show that membership did not end in the club but extended to our sister club and clubs worldwide.

 

8. Members turned out in large numbers and worked together to Partner with KATS (Kids and the Sea) at to cook and serve breakfast, lunch and dinner; and provided security for the tents at their annual Premier’s Cup. During down time, members interacted and played games. This showed how when we as members work together how much we can achieve and the results were amazing.

 

9. Working together as a club shows how much we can accomplish. This was another way to ensure that our members were engaged and we partnership with Government Representative, visiting Navy sailors, community groups and the Rotary Club of Road Town.

 

10. The club partnered with the business community to provide bag packs and school supplies and also partnered the Filipino Association and other community groups to stage this massive event.

 

11. Targeted new members and in some cases built partnerships with persons who expressed a willingness to assist with some projects. Mr. Craig Lake, a long-time partner of the club received a service award for the tremendous work with youth.

 

12. Joint partnership with all rotary clubs in the BVI. This provided opportunity to increase the possibility of membership with high brand visibility and interaction with thousands who lined the parade route.

 

13. Built Rotary comradery with other members from District 4310, Zones 33 & 34 and others. Partnered with other clubs across Districts and Zones via a presentation of our planned global grant project that targets at-risk youth.

 

14. PDG Rupert inspired members to be committed Rotarians and aim to serve at the District level. The club was able to forge a greater partnership with PDG Rupert and by extension, Rotary Clubs on St. Croix.

 

15. Provided membership information for non-members about joining the Road Town Membership and to new members who were already inducted but had not been oriented. Current long standing members were also reminded of some of the things that may have been forgotten about RI or may have changed since they became members. The orientation showed that persons how to partner with Rotary where being a member is not an option for them right now.

 

16. Provided social interaction amongst members. Enabled Rotarians to forge new partnerships and share knowledge of Rotary with non-Rotarians. This also highlighted our blossoming partnership from CPC with George Lewis, also known as the ‘Water Man’, who is raising funds to support a major water project.

 

17. Helped the membership understand the proud history of the club and the membership of the club. Engaged with members of the club by having a member be our guest speaker. Demonstrated to guests that the club strives to ensure gender equality.

 

18. Kept past presidents engaged and the wider membership.

 

19. Helped to keep members engaged and attracted new community partners.

 

20. Helped to keep members engaged and attracted new community partners

 

21. Showcased the membership and their work.

 

22. The intention is to attract new members to Rotary and Rotary Club of Road Town to grow the membership of Rotary.

 

23. Attract new members.

 

24. Attract new members.

 

25. Gave the club and its members their own identity and something in common to share. Members have been proud to wear this logo on their t-shirts at all projects and events. This is engagement of members who have embraced the new logo.

 

26. Keep membership engaged and update membership records.

 

27. Update Membership Details.

 

28. Engagement of members and showing recognition for members’ achievement.

 

29. Recognised members for achievements and growing membership and Rotary

 

30. Teach new members about membership and encourage engagement and active members

 

31. Keep members engaged and encourage members to attend projects and members

 

32. Member Engagement

 

33. Partnership

 

In the community: Describe briefly the impact of your Activity(s) in the community.

 

1. The club now has more hands on deck to better serve the community.

 

2. The Community will benefit more from the partnerships formed and from the increased  donations

 

3. The message by Rev. Turnbull was shared with the wider local and international community via You Tube and can be viewed to motivate anyone who views it.

 

4. Photos of Rtn. Nisha’s visit were shared via Facebook to highlight to the community the global reach of Rotary.

 

5. Photos were shared via Social Media with community.

 

6. The club has answered a call from the community and the Government for help with youth as increasing numbers are engaging in delinquent behaviour. The community got the sense of security that Rotary and its partners are there to provide solutions to the problem of at-risk youth.

 

7. During His Excellency’s tenure he assisted the club and by extension the Rotary family of the BVI in several ways, including helping to fundraise. This positively impacted the community.

 

8. Support from the club enabled the BVI to host another successful regatta. The Swim program ensures youth can safely use the water.

 

9. Ms. Barker is a very happy woman and residents saw club members at a hands-on project.

 

10. Over 2000 children and adults participated in a safe and family oriented space. The free school supplies helped to offset the cost of sending children back to school.

 

11. Over 2000 persons were in attendance and they were educated about the work of the club and Rotary International. Many took home brochures asked questions and details were taken of interested persons to contact them. Some have been contacted.

 

12. Reassurance to the community that the Rotary family of the BVI is part of the BVI community and residents were enlightened about the work of Rotary. Also enabled us to share the theme, ‘Light Up Rotary’.

 

13. Strengthening the At-Risk Youth Project through partnerships with other Rotary clubs.

 

14. Inspired members to become leaders and more engaged when it comes to community projects which will in turn benefit the community.

 

15. This was a deliberate and targeted approach to reach the community, sharing the good work that Rotary has done in the Community and the benefits of becoming a member. Many persons who were not members attended along with members of the press who were invited just for information and fellowship. The Press had been somewhat absent from the activities of Rotary Club of Road Town in the past and we wanted to bring them back in with what the club was now doing.

 

16. Some members of the community along with our financial partners were able to connect socially with club members. A painting from Mr. George Lewis, (internationally known as) The Waterman was raffled and won by a non-Rotarian. Mr. Lewis is raising funds to for projects that may eventually benefit a community outside the District.

 

17. This activity was shared with the community via our social media space.

 

18. The community saw the tremendous work of the Past-Presidents via our social media space.

 

19. A platform to engage and inform the community about what the Rotary Club of Road Town is doing.

 

20. A platform to engage and inform the community.

 

21. A platform to engage and inform the community

 

22. Community will know that Rotary is out there and that persons can become members. The ads also showed that Rotary has been helping the government and the community for a long time, for those who were not aware.

 

23. Awareness in the community of the Club and its activities.

 

24. Community awareness about Rotary.

 

25. Showed the community that there is a different side to Rotary than just all work and also help the community identify the different clubs in the BVI.

 

26. Allows the club to know what sector of the community we need members from and started targeting the same.

 

27. N/A

 

28. N/A

 

29. More members for the club means more support for the community activities and projects.

 

30. More members at more projects means more hands on deck for community service and projects.

 

31. N/A

 

32. Community is invited to join with Rotarians and to fellowship and see us other than in a business setting.

 

33. When the community sees that we are grateful to those who assist the community the community will in turn assist, but it also shows that we are thankful for community.

 

Participation: How many club members participated?

1. All club members participated in several activities that resulted in the boost of membership.

 

2. Fundraising Committee, LIME, Mourant, NAGICO, BVI Government (Major Sponsors) and many other Sponsors the committee consists of about 6 persons.

 

3. Although this was a slow month in our Rotary calendar for attendance we had over 50% of our members (24) in attendance with several guests and many members including those who were absent requested copies of the sermonette.

 

4. Sixty -two 62 persons attended the meeting, including Rotarians and potential members, with 30 members being  present

 

5. Members were very interested in how we could assist the Rotaract Clubs in the BVI to achieve the goals set forth by their DRR. About 29 members were at meeting that day.

 

6. The Club and all members have committed to provide financial resources, in kind support and labour in this project.

 

7. Over 50 percent of the membership turned to show support to the Governor.

 

8. The largest turnout for this project in years of over 30 members. For this, the Project Leader was recognized with an award.

 

9. Numerous members showed up throughout the day to give their support and lend a hand with the other partners. In total about 15 members turned up on the first day and 13 on the second day as this project continued with partners from Nagico, Navy and the Government of the BVI.

 

10. Every club member except for two who were travelling were assigned to a committee and showed up and provided service to making the event a huge success. Additional help came from the Tortola Club and Sunrise Club of Road Town; Rotaract Clubs of Virgin Gorda and Tortola; and the Interact Club of Road Town.

 

11. All club members except for two who were travelling.

 

12. About 7 members turned out although during this period most of our members were away. Those who did not take part in the Floupe were on the sideline supporting.

 

13. Six members attended, representing the largest number from any club across Zones 33 and 34.

 

14. 30 Club Members, and Presidents from the all the Rotary Clubs in the BVI as well as the President and members of the Rotaract Club of Tortola and Interact Club of Road Town.

 

15. More than 20 guests along with about 20 club members, other Rotarians and Rotaractors, including ADG Delma Maduro were present.

 

16. More than 30 members attended and were joined by other members of the BVI Rotary Family, including ADG Delma Maduro; Presidents from the Rotary Club of Tortola, Rotary Club Sunrise of Road Town, Rotaract Club of Tortola.

 

17. Club members and a number of guests/potential Rotarians. (30 members)

 

18. Club Members (34 members)

 

19. All Members

 

20. All Members

 

21. PR Committee together with Club Admin and Membership (12)

 

22. Club Members and Government of the BVI (6 members helped to prepare) all members viewed and approved

 

23. PR, Admin and Membership Committees (12)

 

24. PR, Admin and Membership Committees (12)

 

25. All Members

26. All Members

27. All Members

28. All Members

29. All Members

30. All Members

31. All Members

32. All Members

33. All Members

 

New members: Did you attract new members as a result of the Activity(s)?

Yes. We attracted NINE new members and we have attracted a number of additional potential members at our weekly meetings and events.

 

Membership Retention: Did your action enhance membership retention?

Yes, our members have become more engaged, returning to meetings and taking part in activities and projects more than previous years. However, we lost two members – one due to relocation and one due to new family obligations.

At the end of the month, it was evident that members were energized and motivated by the increased attendance and punctuality at club meetings, projects and board meetings. Many members have been expressing their increased engagement since the beginning of the Rotary year.  Below are a sample links to some of the media coverage and social media activity, which has increased tremendously.

PHOTOS

 

FINAL COMMENTS

At the end of the month, it was evident that members were energized and motivated by the increased attendance and punctuality at club meetings, projects and board meetings. Many members have been expressing their increased engagement since the beginning of the Rotary year.  Below are a sample links to some of the media coverage and social media activity, which has increased tremendously.

Rev. Dr. Melvin Turnbull’s address at inaugural club meeting

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FGBR_oaI7JA

MoU Signing

1. https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=O4j2Hw6V86E

2. http://www.islandsun.com/ngos-team-up-to-save-at-risk-youths/

Kiddies Fiesta

1. http://www.bvibeacon.com/1/index.php/local/1679-july-24-2014/local-news-july-24-2014/5379-kidscool-off-pre-festival-photo-gallery

2. http://www.bviplatinum.com/news.php?articleId=1406482770

Past District Governor Rupert Ross Visits

https://www.facebook.com/rotaryroadtown/photos/pcb.750903471615699/750896218283091/?type=1&theater

Advertisements Featuring Endorsements From BVI Premier and Minister of Education

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=neX1qLRL7Ms

Appealing to the community for Rotary Membership

1. http://www.bviplatinum.com/news.php?articleId=1409492236

2. http://www.virginislandsnewsonline.com/en/news/rotary-needs-you-president-shan-mohamed