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Happy New Year!
By: District 5950 Governor Jim Nelson
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| Jim Nelson |
The Rotary year began on July 1 as always, and it is a great privilege for me to serve as governor of one of the premier Rotary districts in the Rotary world. My first two weeks of club visits have been an energizing experience. It’s incredible to see the good our clubs do locally and around the world, and the fun they have doing it.
RI President Gary Huang urges us all to Light Up Rotary in 2014-2015. Each of us brings our own special light to Rotary, and the light we shine together truly does light up Rotary and the world.
This year you will hear me talk (if you haven’t already) about the strategic core values we share as Rotarians: fellowship, leadership, integrity, diversity and service. These values underlie what we do in Rotary. As we transition to new leadership at all levels of Rotary, it seems appropriate that our first monthly newsletter would feature a discussion of leadership. District Governor-Elect Tim Murphy of the Edina Rotary Club will lead that discussion. See Tim’s article below. Tim is a successful entrepreneur (as founder and president of Murphy Oil Co., with retail outlets in Lakeville and Edina) and a well-known leader in our Rotary district so he knows a thing or two about Rotary and leadership. We will feature all five core values throughout this Rotary year.
If you are like me, you joined Rotary because you were attracted by the networking and fellowship opportunities Rotary offers. You quickly discovered the wider Rotary world of service, and how, in the words of last year’s theme, we change lives. We realize that, through Service above Self, our own lives are changed forever.
Did you know? The motto Service Above Self grew out of a suggestion by the president of Minneapolis Rotary Club #9 in 1911.
Our district leads the way and truly Lights up Rotary with its tradition of local and worldwide service. District and global grant applications are flowing in to the two committees headed by Carol Parrish, Plymouth Rotary Club (district grants) and Todd Bollig, Eden Prairie Noon Rotary Club (global grants). See comments by Carol and Todd in this newsletter. Both committees stand ready to assist you with your grant proposal.
Rotary Theme for August: Membership and Extension.
Why not highlight Membership and Extending your Rotary’s impact
during your August meetings?
Leadership in Rotary
Developing Rotary's Future Leaders
By: District Governor-Elect Tim Murphy (Rotary Club of Edina)
Last year our district hosted a “Young Business Professional Forum” that included over a dozen Gen-Y Rotarians. We “senior” organizers were humbled when a participant said, “Wednesday evenings with family are extremely valuable to me and if it were not for the huge respect I have for the three of you I would never have considered participating.” Then I read the article titled,
“ Gen Y Demands Career Fulfillment over More Pay” by Dan Schawbel.*
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| Tim Murphy |
I would propose that these are the attributes of a good leader. Period. The days of dictator style leadership are long gone. Recently I attended an event hosted by an impressive RI president. He said the following:
Most all of you in this room are smarter than I am in some way and I rarely if ever am
the smartest person in a room. Therefore, my goal as a good leader is to recognize you,
empower you respective to your talents and strengths and then get out of your way.
Build your teams with those who possess the strongest talents,
not friends and associates to simply fill the need.
How many of us have felt that we alone are the cause for our company’s success or survival?
How many good or great co-workers have we smothered and lost by micro-managing or hovering?
The attributes expressed above apply to Rotary at least as much as they apply to our businesses. We are volunteers and demand the same respect. Our stakeholders are our members. The good leadership attributes described here are needed to attract and keep young members.
Top Five Ways to Help Gen-Y Workers Achieve Fulfillment at Work
Set expectations with them.
Have managers mentor them.
Show them the impact they are making.
Give them access to executives.
Enable them to pitch their idea.
*Dan Schawbel is the managing partner of Millennial Branding, a Gen Y research and management consulting firm. He is also the #1 international bestselling author of Me 2.0 and was named to the inc. Magazine 30 Under 30 list in 2010.
http://quickbase.intuit.com/blog/2013/01/23/gen-y-demands-career-fulfillment-over-more-pay/
District Governor Candidates Sought
Seeking applicants to serve as 2017-18 District Governor
By: Past District Governor Diann Kirby (Rotary Club of Bloomington Noon)
Would you like to serve District 5950 in a leadership capacity? Or do you know an outstanding Rotarian who would make a great leader?
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| Diann Kirby |
Eligibility requirements include the following:
Be a member in good standing of a functioning club in the district.
Have served as president of a club for a full term or as president of a charter club from the date of June 30, for a period of six months.
Have completed seven years of membership at the time of taking office.
Demonstrate knowledge of and ability to fulfill the duties outlined in the RI bylaws section 15.090.
The District Governor provides leadership, strategic direction and support to clubs and individual Rotarians. Visit the District website to download application forms. Application deadline is Friday, September 12, 2014. For information, contact Past District Governor Diann Kirby at diannkirby@mac.com or 612-207-6373.
District Matching Grant Committee News
By: Carol Parrish, District Matching Grants Committee Chair (Plymouth Rotary Club)
The District Grants Committee has $145,892 in available funds to help 5950 clubs fund a new project. The project can be for something in your local communities or it could be for a small (under $35K total) international project. By contributing the minimum amount of $500, a club's project can qualify for a $2,000 outright grant plus a $500 match of the club's contribution. This equates to a $3,000 project. Collaboration among clubs is encouraged with a maximum match of $5,000 if five or more clubs collaborate and contribute a total of $5,000 or more. With the addition of the $2,000 outright grant, this could fund a $12,000 project.
District Matching Grant Application forms are on the district web site under downloads. The next deadline to apply is September 1.
Projects must be new to the club and must be completed no later than June 30, 2015.
For information, contact Carol at cjparrish1029@msn.com,
Global Grants Committee News
By: Todd Bollig, Global Grants Committee Chair (Eden Prairie Noon Rotary)
The Global Grants Committee approved three Global Grants so far this Rotary year. They have been submitted to Rotary International and are currently waiting for their approval.
- Willmar Rotary Club: Vocational Training Team to southern Ghana to assist teachers in using computer lab textbooks and other school and teaching supplies. The total budget is $42,568.
- Saint Louis Park Rotary Club: Install a series of water tanks at a university outside Nairobi, Kenya to provide a stable and consistent water supply throughout the year. The total budget is $35,574.
- Eden Prairie Noon Rotary Club along with five other District 5950 clubs: Provide teacher training workshops in experiential and experimental learning. Also includes science equipment and teaching aids with hands on science education to students. The total budget is $35,950.
The Global Grants Committee is here to help you. Mentors are available to assist you with writing a grant. The committee meets the second Wednesday of each month. The committee reviews each grant and makes suggestions to make sure your grant will be approved by Rotary International.
Application forms are available online at www.rotary.org. For information, contact Todd at toddb60@hotmail.com or 612-369-5016. Contact Todd when you start the application and I can fill you in on more of the critical details and timelines.
One Final Thought!
By: District 5950 Governor Jim Nelson
One of my early official club visits was to the Excelsior Rotary Club. I learned there that in the past year, the club had a roundtable discussion about what Rotary meant to them. A comment from a veteran Rotarian struck a chord with the club and became the watchword for the year: “Rotary made me a better person.” This comment resonated with me also. Our motto is “service above self,” but most of us who have been in Rotary for any length of time realize that Rotary
serves US also in making us better people. The Rotary values are contagious.
When we live the values, we light up Rotary. And working with younger members in the manner suggested by Tim Murphy,
we will help them become better leaders and better people, just the kind of people we need to carry the Rotary torch into the future!
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