THE ROTARY CLUB OF STOW-MUNROE FALLS BOARD MEETING MINUTES
October 13, 2017
ATTENDANCE: Rich Bedell, Marv Mills, Brad Jagger, Ray Evans, Dave Renninger, and Andy Denton
Because there was not a quorum for the meeting, the planned agenda was not utilized. However, the time was used to discuss various aspects of the club.
Reverse Raffle/Silent Auction
The smooth operation of the event was evident. The work of many people was praised. However, there were some questions as to the empty seats. Some people purchased tickets and did not attend. The Indians playoffs may have been a partial factor. There was also some concern as to the number of Rotarians who did not purchase tickets. The fact that some Rotarians purchased multiple tickets balanced that to some extent but it was felt that all Rotarians should participate. There were also Rotarians who purchased tickets and gave the ticket to someone else because they could not attend. With an event like this, it is important that we advertise it to the community. We did not have advance publicity. The Golf Outing did have publicity and attracted some community members.
Meeting Format
There was considerable discussion as to the change in format of the meetings. Brad reminded us that the working meetings and the third Wednesday evening meetings were results of what the club agreed to do in an effort to make efficient use of our time and to attract new members. Because this schedule was tried, does not mean that we have to keep it.
.Other thoughts related to the discussion of the meetings were:
-We might not need committee meetings every month.
-It is difficult for a visitor to participate in a committee meeting and to have a sense of where to sit.
-We do have valuable projects, but do we have too many?
-There was concern about the lack of energy around Heroes’ Day. Should we skip doing this program for at least one year? It is a lot of work and so if people do not have the energy behind it, it will not succeed.
-People look forward to the regular Wednesday breakfast format and confusion occurs when there is not consistency.
Programs:
-What about the weekly program management? We do not have someone in charge of programs and therefore how do we do this? There was discussion of going back to the former alphabetical order plan where everyone was in charge of a program at some point.
A suggestion was made that before the November election, we try to have a meeting where both sides of Issue Two present their information. What about trading program ideas with other clubs. We have regulars who speak to our club periodically, perhaps other clubs have similar people and would share information about that individual.
Personnel Needs
People from the club need to step up or be encouraged by others to take some specific responsibilities.
- We need a President Elect for the 2018-2019 Rotary year. It is important that this happen soon so that the person can make plans to attend “PETS One” training this winter and then the “Ohio PETS” training in the spring.
- We have a vacancy on the board and need to get someone to fill that slot.
- A program chair would be wonderful for coordination of the weekly programs. That person would not have to get the speakers but instead would make sure the alphabetical list is followed. A pair of members could agree to work on this together.
- Someone to put regular information in the Stow Sentry would be valuable for our club’s future.
Membership:
We have concentrated on attracting younger members to insure the future of the club. However the reality is that younger members, although they might have strong leadership qualities, are involved with establishing their career and family responsibilities. Perhaps we need to try to attract more of the “empty nest” generation. Those are people who still have time, energy and commitment toward being a Rotarian, but may not have the demanding schedule of those who are a little younger.
How can we contact members of our club who have not been attending? We need to learn from them why they have stopped coming.
Andrea Denton, Board Recorder