We are glad to see that our long winter is coming to an end and that spring is squeaking through with warmer weather and nature showing it’s beautiful colors.
I would like to thank all who presented (or gave input) at our “State of Endicott Rotary” at our March 30th meeting: Betty Casey, Tom Johnson (Dave Powell), Tom Latini, Darlene Leonard, Kim Potter, and Brian Steele…all was well received and informative.
Thank you for those that completed our recent Club survey. We received 47% back from our members. Although we would have liked 100%, all research says that if you receive at least 1/3 (33%) back you’re doing well, and we surpassed that. I’m concluding that those that did not turn one in, are satisfied with the overall operations of our Club. Here are a few general comments gained from the survey. (I gave a more specific summary at our meeting on March 30th.) Results:
Members feel extremely welcomed and Club is very friendly
Meetings are informative and fun
Overall good variety and educational speakers
Club leadership is positive and transparent
Members feel they are valued
Excellent meeting place, and positive about food and staff
Positive exposure throughout our community
Great camaraderie
Good networking opportunities
Good and important community projects
Overall, members feel very positive about our Club
We know that we should not rest on our laurels and must work to strengthen and improve wherever we can. Some comments and suggestions were given in the following areas:
Pursue ways where we can bring in younger members
Ensure that all members are respected with their opinions and ideas
More involvement with district and international endeavors
Keep our meetings moving along, give time to our speakers, and stay withing 20-minute presentations
Continue to encourage attendance and project participation
Sponsorship and support of community events…maintain high visibility within our community
Pursue partnerships with other community organizations
A little more variety with lunches…include more vegetables
Continue to reinforce service above self…think of “the whole vs. self”
It takes all of us, with all our efforts, to continue to make Endicott Rotary the premier service club in the “Greater Endicott” community. Thanks to all of you!
This month we approved the request from Kim Potter for $700 for the two Union Endicott High School students to attend RYLA at SUNY Oneonta in June. The foundation has supported the future young leaders and RYLA for many, many years.
The Foundation board also approved $2,500 towards upgrading the band organ with a MIDI sound system. This will greatly enhance the organ and be able to hold 500 songs of any kind on an SD card. The board originally approved $15,000 to be spent towards the band organ, and to date, $14,000 has been spent. Therefore, the Foundation approved the additional $1,500 toward this upgrade. The upgrade will be installed sometime in April in time for the carousel season.
As always, if you have any questions or concerns, please don't hesitate to ask me.
Cheryl has been a volunteer with Endicott Rotary for many years. She continually has given countless hours at the BC Open, Dick's Sporting Goods Open and Binghamton University Basketball and Baseball Concessions.
Darlene Leonard and Brian Steele recently attended the yearly executive planning meeting for District 7170. Darlene, an Assistant District Governor and Brian, the Public Image Chair, participated in an all-day planning event for the final year of District 7170. The meeting was well attended, informative and lead by incoming District Governor Wendy Deis from the Owego Rotary Club. The district has many events, trainings and collaborative initiatives planned for the 2023/24 Rotary year.
In the 2024/25 Rotary year, we will become CNY Rotary. Here are some frequently asked questions regarding the merger;
Why are our districts coming together?
The short answer is due to declining membership numbers. The long answer is that Rotary wants to have districts be of a certain size in order to justify the costs associated with supporting each district. With our three districts just barely at or below that threshold, our leaders chose a proactive solution rather than having Rotary International decide for us.
Will the President of CNY Rotary visit all the clubs like District Governors do?
Rest assured that everyone will get a chance to meet with the President of CNY Rotary. It will be more common that clubs come together for a visit, but we feel that this is a great opportunity for clubs to make new connections and establish new traditions.
CNY Rotary sounds like a really big district. Is that normal?
Broadly speaking, each of our districts currently have about 40 clubs and about 1,000 members. Becoming CNY Rotary with about 115 clubs and about 3,000 members sounds pretty big. Having a district that takes five hours in the car to connect its furthest corners is a new challenge for us, but none of this is new or unique in Rotary. Many districts cover regions far larger, like the entire state of Alaska. Some requiring boat or airplane travel. Many span multiple countries. There are leaders who must be bilingual in order to communicate with all of their members. And we are not talking about districts on the other side of the world either. You can find districts with these added travel and distance challenges right here in North America. CNY Rotary’s leadership team will be built to serve this larger footprint and in-person gatherings will be adapted to be as accommodating as possible. Thankfully we are all adept at virtual meetings, which will make it even easier to stay connected in between our get-togethers!
How do these changes impact my everyday experience in Rotary?
The average member is not likely to notice anything change in their club experience as we transition to CNY Rotary. Clubs will continue to operate autonomously just as they do today.
Club leaders who receive training, support and resources from the district will have new, expanded teams to work with. There will be many more leadership roles on district committees, providing more members with rewarding opportunities to serve their fellow Rotarians. If you want to serve in new ways, it is great news for you!
CNY Rotary’s events like District Conference will attract a much larger crowd, which helps us attract exciting speakers and presenters to inspire us with bigger and better ways to serve.
As we move closer to the merger Darlene and Brian will update the club on what's happening at the district level and CNY Rotary. As always, if anyone has any questions, please feel free to contact Darlene or Brian.
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