Meeting 7-10-20
Hayley’s "weakly" joke
Q What is a marsupial’s favourite cocktail?
A Pina-Koala!
Book Fair - Desiree
Clean-up of shop, transport and setup of tables happened last Saturday. Yesterday (Tuesday) many of the books were set out with a little bit more to do. Thursday is opening day and extra volunteers would be very welcome given interest being shown by the public. Please be involved as this is our major club fundraiser.
Community Service - Jeannie
‘You Have a Friend’ packing of gift packs
Still happy to receive donated items such as shampoos etc but also time to think about Christmas items.
Especially think about things for single Mum’s with kids.
All items can be left at Maybury Meldrum Anderson offices during business hours or brought to our meetings.
‘Donation Dollars’ are a distinctive form of dollar coin issued by the Australian Mint. They are legal tender, and the intended idea is when you get one in your change to donate it to a charity. Think about doing that if you come across one.
Update on Father’s Day Mugs and Razor gift packs. – Susan
Susan handed these out to the old blokes in the retirement village she works at. They were very well received as some of these people are very lonely indeed and became a bit emotional.
Membership Month -Cherry
October’s theme will be Membership development. Cherry outlined her team’s plan for the month.
She then presented for our viewing a compilation of 3 short videos called ‘Laws of Attraction” which were the acting out scenarios of a potential or new members coming to meetings of an existing Rotary Club and basically what not to do if you want them to stay. Whilst sort of humorous, they made their point very clearly.
Guest Speaker – DGE Jeff Egan
Jeff spoke of some initiatives by District 9640 including this Saturday 10th October Rotary Leadership seminar being attended by several of our members.
He then opened discussion about membership development and why people might join Rotary, how to get them to a meeting, convert and retain them.
Human nature naturally considers at the outset ‘what’s in it for me?’ when looking to be involved in any new group and Rotary is no exception. People are wondering if Rotary is for them and what Rotary and the club has to offer that meets their needs.
First impressions count for a lot:
- How new to the group people are greeted and welcomed
- How they are included in the group discussions and generally treated
- The way we dress and conduct ourselves at meetings as a reflection of our values
- The ambience and presentation of the meeting venue and the quality of the meals
- During the conduct of the meeting we should be careful of unexplained jargon and rituals meaningful to longer term members that make the proceedings a mystery to an outsider.
Rotary is complicated and multifaceted. New members need early education about what Rotary stands for and its many programmes. They need assistance and education on the fundamentals to navigate and participate in the offerings available, and to find their passion. Perhaps we need to have a separate meeting to explain some Rotary fundamentals to newer members and potential members, and at a minimum during a meeting take time to explain the acronyms we use and why we do things the ways we do.
Jeff ended with a quote:
“When members are only financially invested – they want a return on that investment.
When they are emotionally involved – they want to help!
Our goal is to help new members make that transition”
Raffle : Marissa.
The sergeant emptied our pockets, and meeting was closed.
Lionel.
