Lincoln East Rotary club welcomed our District Governor Roxy Orr to our club. Roxy said it is nice that we can have some human connection, because some clubs cannot have a human connection, but at least can have a virtual meeting. Roxy presented our awards that our club received during the virtual District Rotary Convention for 2019-2020. Dennis Duckworth, past President accepted these awards on behalf of the club.Roxy said it was nice to see how the Lincoln Clubs work together which helps make a larger impact on the community. She holds monthly President meetings virtually to discuss different problems that might arise. She is hoping that we can have an in-person District convention next year and it is tentative scheduled for May 14th at the Marriott Regency in Omaha. Instead of awards the clubs would be recognized on their progress. The District convention would start late in the afternoon of the 14th with some breakout sessions and on 15th in the morning some more breakout sessions which would end early afternoon so that families could go to the Henry Dooley Zoo and that evening it would be a family gathering for a meal.
Roxy talked about the Strategic Priorities and Objectives that R.I. President Holger Knaack has set for the 2020-21 goals. The first objective is to increase our impact in our community and to continue to fight to end polio around the world. We need to have meaningful programs, and to continue to grow our club membership. There is no wrong age for becoming a member of Rotary. The rule book has basically been thrown out and be inventive and create your own model to improve your club. We need to keep Rotary vital and active in our community and around the world. Some clubs have reconstructed their dues for different kinds of membership. We need to keep our public image going in newspapers, bulletins, etc.
Rotary meetings should meet the needs of our members. Each during a meeting look at our Strategic Priorities for our club for that Rotary year, and make a five-year plan for the club. We need to expand our reach and enhance participant engagement among our members in our activities, club meetings and any outside social events. We need to increase our ability to adapt. We could change duties within the club so someone might serve on a committee for 6 months and switch to another. We can share jobs within the club.
Roxy said that we need to continue to support the R.I. Foundation with our giving. This after three years comes back to the District for our District grants. This year alone they had 48 applications for grant projects and they were able to support all 48 of those projects.