The Rotary Club of Calgary comprises professional and community leaders brought together in fellowship to make a better future.
Birthdays:
Gord Graham
May 3
Frank Hall
May 6
Peter Harrison
May 6
Walley Temple
May 8
Craig Tervit
May 9
Forry Angus
May 13
Bill Gillott
May 14
Update Club Dues and Meeting Costs
Last Tuesday President Manon announced the increase in charge for live club meetings to $50 starting in May. The Club has been absorbing costs related to live meetings and every ticket purchased was being increasingly subsidized.
As a consequence, the Operations Committee was requested by the Board to review the Club Meeting Costs. This was carried out at the same time as a review of the dues, which is done annually as required by our bylaws.
See the story below for more details! You will be receiving your invoice for CLUB DUES in the month of May. We ask that you process this payment as soon as possible.
The new fee structure is as follows:
Club Dues and Club Meeting Costs Explained
By Manon Mitchell
Several years ago in response to audit feedback our club’s governance structure was split into 2 parts: 1) Club Operations, and 2) Community Service Fund, which covers income and expenses directed to our charitable activity.
District Governor Nominee Kurt Kowalchuk has prepared a short video explaining this dual situation (click here to get the details).
Your Membership Dues are directed toward the Club and Rotary overall operations. From the dues collected current annual payments are made of CAD125 to Rotary District 5360 and USD88 to Rotary International. These payments are made twice a year. The Club’s payment for the District and RI dues is based on the NUMBER OF ROTARIANS listed in our ClubRunner database as of 7 days prior to JULY 1st and JANUARY 1st. If memberships are cancelled after these dates we are still required to pay for those people listed at that time.
You will be receiving your invoice for CLUB DUES in the month of May. We ask that you process this payment as soon as possible. Since we pay amounts on your behalf as noted above, if you do not submit dues on time the club is covering your cost to the district and to RI. Every year board members spend hours trying to reach individuals to pay dues for months after the dues are due. Not only is this an uncomfortable process but it also gets in the way of getting other important Rotary work done. If there is a reason you cannot pay the full amount you can contact Jo-Ann and arrange for payment over a period of time. This has been done in the past and the club wants to accommodate members in this regard,
The Club Operating Budget for next year has been reviewed in detail and, based on a recommendation from the Operations Committee, the Club Board of Directors has approved a 10% increase in club dues for the 2022-2023 year. It should be noted that we have been advised that District dues will be increasing next year and we anticipate an increase from RI as well. This will be the first increase in dues in several years in spite of increasing costs. Your cooperation in paying your dues BEFORE JULY 1st is greatly appreciated.
Small Donations Committee, Bethany Care Foundation
By Diane Macdonald
The Committee received an application for funding from Bethany Care Foundation for assistance with a technology called iN2L. Al McMillan and Diane Macdonald visited the Bethany Riverview site to learn more about the Foundation and the specific request. The Committee decided to fund part of the request and Greg Hovdebo, the Senior Development Officer , wrote the following note and sent the picture to be included in the COG.
“The Club recently made a grant of $3,000 to help bring iN2L to Bethany Care Society’s long term care residents. iN2L, which stands for It’s Never Too Late, is a powerful touch screen technology system built to engage seniors with hundreds of therapeutic and engaging programs that are specifically curated for seniors experiencing physical and cognitive decline. Our gift is helping support Bethany’s content subscription fees for the program. Bethany’s residents are very thankful for this support.
iN2L is helping this resident regain stability as part of his physical therapy plan. Before using iN2L regularly, it was difficult for him to him to let go of his walker while standing. Playing one of the many active games on iN2L, he is now able to confidently reach out with both hands to tap the bubbles bouncing around the screen (with his recreational therapist ready to help if he needs it)!”
When Al and myself were at Bethany, we heard another story which made a lasting impression and showed again the value of the iN2L technology. It told of a resident who had been a dairy farmer all his life. Every afternoon at about the same time, he became very agitated and tried to leave his secure unit at Bethany. The staff, in talking to his family, discovered that at that same time each day when he was farming, he went out to check on his cows. By adding some programming to the iN2L with video of farmland and dairy cattle, they were able to take the gentleman to the screen and let him watch the familiar scenes.
They found that he relaxed to the point that they were able to eliminate medications they had been giving him for the agitation. The funds from our Club will help pay for some of the programming like this that improves the quality of life for residents at Bethany.
What's Next regarding Legacy Projects?
By Manon Mitchell
You read about and heard at last Tuesday’s meeting that we were going take a pause on the decision of the NICU Legacy Project. What’s next? The board will be discussing next steps at its upcoming meeting on Wednesday May 18 and you can expect a communication with more details at that time.
An Amazing Opportunity for our Club
By Manon Mitchell
Our club has been gifted the opportunity of really moving the needle in our community. Calgary Reads is offering us the opportunity to oversee The Big Book Sale in support of early childhood literacy. Please read the article to get a better idea of this potential club initiative. Information sessions will be announced shortly so you may learn more about this great opportunity.
As I announced at our luncheon meeting on April 26th, your Board has approved, in principle, the receipt of a gift from Calgary Reads of their significant fundraising project, “The Big Book Sale.”
By approving the acceptance of this gift in principle, we are not committing the Club to any financial investment, and we will have an opportunity to decline the opportunity, should the members wish, before we undertake obligations related to the sale, which really don’t arise until 2023.
Reminder! The Family Barbecue is just around the Corner
By Dave Macdonald and Doug Webb
Registrations have started! Make sure you don’t delay…we want lots of people there but still need to plan to make the day a huge success! This will be a ton of fun to kick off summer fellowship activities.
Date: May 28th 2022
Time: 5:00 – 9:00 pm
Where: Bucars RV
The purpose of this event is to promote fellowship which has been tough to do with COVID and to expose newer members to the BBQs and how they are operated. We will be approaching members to get involved by learning some of the tasks that need to be performed to hold a successful BBQ.
In the past BBQs have been held as charitable events (mostly fellowship) – Murdoch Manor & King Tower Seniors buildings, Stay-in-School schools, and money generators – corporate events, road races and of course the BIG BBQs at Fort Calgary. It’s time to see if we can re-invigorate the membership and rejuvenate both the charitable and fund raiser BBQs.
So come on out, bring the family and enjoy a Rotary get-together. Cost is $20.00 per adult and $10.00 per child 12 and under. Price includes your meal and 2 drink tickets. Bring a lawn chair.
More details can be found on the Club website!
Fun times at our Rotary Barbeques! Sign up for May 28th and see for yourself…
** Last Chance to Register for May 14, 2022 Annual District Conference**
By Manon Mitchell
Our upcoming Rotary District Convention on May 14 is all about the environment. The convention is a great place to learn and discover alongside other people who share your values. Our own members tell us repeatedly that they thoroughly enjoy the quality and level of speakers we bring to club meetings. Our District 5360 has done the same thing with this great 1 day conference.
We strongly urge you to register and participate in this unique and potentially life changing opportunity for Rotarians and their family.
By the way there is still 1 more vacancy in President Manon’s car. In the spirit of reducing the carbon footprint by Rotarians on that day, she is offering a car-pooling service to the convention. It’s door-to-door service and great conversation in the car for 1 more lucky person. Just call/text/email Manon if you wish to jump into the opportunity.
Proudly Presenting Our Corporate Members
We are thrilled to announce a new Corporate Member organization for our club. Welcome Servus Credit Union!
Representing Servus are Lavender Neff, Ryan Klinck and Ryder Spence. We look forward to getting to know you as we continue along our Rotary journey in Service above Self.
COG Staff - May 3, 2022
Editor:
Andrea Serink & Diane Macdonald
Contributors:
Doug Webb, Dave Macdonald, Manon Mitchell, Barbara Young and Bill Kaufmann.
Rotary Club of Calgary - Chartered April 1914 as Club #949
