The Buzz - August 24, 2015

The Buzz – August 24, 2015

By Ray Hook

1.         President Tony called the meeting to order at 11:45 am.

2.         No guests today.

 

3.         Health of the Club – we are all well.

 

4.         Announcements

            a.         Al R was looking for a volunteer with a truck to transport a few wheelchairs and bits up to Fort Saskatchewan to join the rest. Dan O offered to drive. Al also needed a bit of a hand this afternoon to move a few pieces over to the Brick

5.         Greeters David S and Grant G levied a few fines (well deserved!) – specifically Jerome and Al R,  and Happy Bucks from Leroy, Jim R, Tony, Sheila, Ray H, Al R, Dave was good.

6.         Business  - Mini Club Assembly, where Pres Tony asked the three Directors present today to give a bit more detail on their activities and interests, based on earlier discussions two weeks ago.

            a.         Jen S (Membership) advised the meeting that a revised and clarified policy on Make-Ups was now available, and will be enclosed below. As well, the long-discussed Corporate Membership proposal has also been re-invigorated and a copy is enclosed below as well. Jen reminded us that all members are our first line of recruiters – not just the committee. So, get out there and recruit! Jen advised that we are getting a table at the upcoming Community Registration Night in early September and that some volunteers will be needed to staff the table – details to follow soon.  Another idea that her committee is pondering (to increase Rotary’s exposure in the community) was whether we might enter the annual Scarecrow decorating event around town this coming Halloween.

 

            b.         Tyler (Youth Services) will be attending a meeting with the Air Cadets soon for an update on their activities and plans for the future. With Jill Manning’s moving to Lethbridge, our Interact Club now needs a sponsor/mentor to replace her. However, with the Interactor’s imminent folding as a result, Tyler suggested one avenue to explore, might be to consider co-sponsoring one combined Interact Club with the Daybreak Club. Because, it looks like all (or most) current interested Interactors are going to be attending CCHS this fall. Tyler is happy to assist as a co-sponsor, but does not have the time to do this full time, so he will explore the possibility of a co-share with the Daybreak club within the next two weeks or so. Lastly, Tyler reported that we has sent two students to the Music Summer Camp again this year, with a report to follow later in the year. For the Youth Exchange Program update,  Tyler invited Donna P to brief us. Donna was happy to report that there was sufficient interest in this program for the Club to begin planning for the 2106/17 Exchange year.  This includes advertising and recruiting efforts in the Community with an aim to identifying suitable candidates for the interview process, by October 2016 and final selection by District in January 2016. Host families are critical, but Donna feels we have enough interested volunteers for another year.  The only other requirement is for a volunteer to act as the Outbound Student Counsellor to “be there” for our exchange student for his/her journey. Donna will send out further info in the coming weeks.

 

 

            c.         Sheila H (Community Services) rose to speak of small funding projects and opportunities for the Club to become a bit more engaged in “hands-on” work in the community. Although there have been no applications received over the summer, we still have some cash remaining from our 90^th  Anniversary allotment for small projects. An ad will be placed in the local papers seeking any last minute ideas. Sheila did mention that she was aware of a possible wheelchair ramp request out there. Failing any suitable requests, she recommended that the Club consider re-allocating the remaining funds back into our Major Project fund.

 

7.         Feedback – President Tony then opened the meeting for feedback – generally, there was appreciation for the updates – giving members a bit of an idea of what we were doing as a club beyond the meetings.  Some good discussion followed on the Corporate Membership idea, especially the fact that this has been kicking around the Club for a long time, but we don’t seem to have advanced with implementation. One suggestion was for the Club to arrange an Informational meeting for a number of invited businesses (who are deemed interested in possibly joining). By appealing to a number of businesses together, it may be more favourable to our chances of drawing them in. We do need a “champion” to take this on for the Club – the idea has been supported for a while, but we really need for someone to take it on and run with it.

 

8.         The weekly 50/50 draw was won by Jen S, who was not lucky enough. The pot is now $232 and growing. Jen led us in the Four Way Test and Tony adjourned the meeting at 1:00 p.m.​

 

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Next Meeting: Monday August 31th at 1145 AM in the Regal II Ballroom of the Best Western Plus Camrose Resort Casino.

 

Guest Speaker: Tony Hladun speaking about the City of Camrose's proposed transit token program.

Greeters/judges: Jerome and Ray