Roseland Rotary Meeting April 2, 2015
Posted by Jennifer Price
on Apr 07, 2015
Rotary Newsletter 4.2.15
Fifteen Roseland and 1 South Bend Rotarians gathered at the Waterford on a rainy April 2nd last Thursday. The meeting began with usual fair, although still no song. Our president reported that it will still be several weeks before Bob Eberhart will be able to join us. Miss you Bob!
Jay reported on the auction. Sounds like we’ve gotten a few great items already, but we need more. Remember, the club is asking that everyone obtain at least 2 items for the auction. Again, as you all know, this is the major fund raiser for the club.
Cliff reported in on the May 9th, Stamp out Hunger event. Roseland Rotary has been assigned to the Granger post office eto help unload the cars and mail trucks as donations are received. The club is responsible for 2 shifts, the first from 2-4 pm and the second from 4-6pm. As of the beginning of the meeting, we still needed 3 people for the second shift. All participants must be at least 12 years of age and wear close toed shoes (in other words, no sandals people!) Please make sure to help with this event! Contact Cliff if you can!
In lieu of an outside speaker, our president-elect, Brian Bernth, took the podium to address Roseland Rotary’s membership struggles in both obtaining 
new members and retaining current ones. It was an open forum on improving the club and it was great to see so many people engage in ideas. Concerns regarding the somber feel of the meetings, the difficulty of obtaining speakers whom may attract more guests, the lack of connection between members, and the difficulty of attracting new members were all presented. With regards to speakers, more members need to get involved with finding speakers. Dave expressed the challenge of finding speakers, particularly because he’s often embarrassed by our club’s attendance. I’m sure it’s difficult to bring in speakers that are willing to give their time to such a small group. Hopefully we can convince our speakers that we value their time by appropriately welcoming our speakers, engaging them in conversations, staying attentive during their presentations, asking questions, and expressing gratitude. I would imagine that the more active Roseland Rotary became in the community, in more diverse ways, the more attractive our group will become to new speakers. We may be small, but we have the power to be mighty.
new members and retaining current ones. It was an open forum on improving the club and it was great to see so many people engage in ideas. Concerns regarding the somber feel of the meetings, the difficulty of obtaining speakers whom may attract more guests, the lack of connection between members, and the difficulty of attracting new members were all presented. With regards to speakers, more members need to get involved with finding speakers. Dave expressed the challenge of finding speakers, particularly because he’s often embarrassed by our club’s attendance. I’m sure it’s difficult to bring in speakers that are willing to give their time to such a small group. Hopefully we can convince our speakers that we value their time by appropriately welcoming our speakers, engaging them in conversations, staying attentive during their presentations, asking questions, and expressing gratitude. I would imagine that the more active Roseland Rotary became in the community, in more diverse ways, the more attractive our group will become to new speakers. We may be small, but we have the power to be mighty.Those in attendance offered several suggestions for improving the club. Increasing new membership orientation and possibly mentoring would help new members understand more of the traditions, connections, and responsibilities of Rotary. Rotarians who may have been disenchanted with larger groups such as South Bend could be a better fit for Roseland. Connecting with South Bend Rotary to follow up on their members that have left the 
group could be an idea to renew those individuals interest in Rotary by welcoming them into our smaller group. Several members mentioned that increasing social opportunities would increase the connection between members. Events such as informal gatherings for cocktail hour or such, once a month, would promote involvement as well as provide an opportunity to make up an absence. Several people mentioned reinstituting the 3 minute speeches for members. While some of you have been gathering for years and know each other well, newer members would love to learn more about each other, both personally and professionally. While we are a service club focused on the community, Paul Harris first put Rotary together as a marketing opportunity since attorneys weren’t able to advertise. It is possible to network through service. New Rotarians want social involvement with professional marketing. Increasing our communication through social media may help attract new members as well as keep the group informed. It could be a better way to share members’ celebrations as well as challenge, keeping us more informed and connected to each other. Other suggestions included more field trips for meetings, changing the start time to 12:15pm, calling members who are absent to let them know they were missed, and trying to increase the diversity of the club were presented as well.
group could be an idea to renew those individuals interest in Rotary by welcoming them into our smaller group. Several members mentioned that increasing social opportunities would increase the connection between members. Events such as informal gatherings for cocktail hour or such, once a month, would promote involvement as well as provide an opportunity to make up an absence. Several people mentioned reinstituting the 3 minute speeches for members. While some of you have been gathering for years and know each other well, newer members would love to learn more about each other, both personally and professionally. While we are a service club focused on the community, Paul Harris first put Rotary together as a marketing opportunity since attorneys weren’t able to advertise. It is possible to network through service. New Rotarians want social involvement with professional marketing. Increasing our communication through social media may help attract new members as well as keep the group informed. It could be a better way to share members’ celebrations as well as challenge, keeping us more informed and connected to each other. Other suggestions included more field trips for meetings, changing the start time to 12:15pm, calling members who are absent to let them know they were missed, and trying to increase the diversity of the club were presented as well.So, in a nutshell, Roseland Rotary has much to consider. Good news though, it appears that many are engaged in the suggestion process. Now I encourage all to be equally, if not more so, engaged in the implementation process. Thanks Brian for getting the ball rolling!
Reminder!!!!! The Roseland Rotary will be meeting offsite on April 9th. Our regular meeting will be held at the Harper Cancer Institute offices, 1234 Notre Dame Avenue, 46617. Maps were passed out at the meeting. Lunch will be served as well. This will be a very special opportunity for our club, so please make sure to attend!!! Bring a guest if you can!