August is known as “Membership Month” in Rotary clubs around the world. Rotary clubs are known for the high-impact service projects they undertake locally and globally. Rotary members have pushed polio to the brink of eradication, delivered clean water to those in need, improved their local communities, provided scholarships to the next generation of peacemakers, and continued to do good in the world. There are many opportunities to serve, and some members discover a true passion for specific projects. There is much diversity in Rotary and we want to help each member plug into a project or committee of their choosing to discover a comfortable path to being engaged in our club. When you feel that your membership is rewarding and that you benefit from leadership development, serving others, inspiring others, and supporting projects with sweat equity or dollars that really do change lives, then you are part of something that you want to share with others. Let’s grown our team of Rotarians and invite others to share our focus on “Service Above Self” and “Be the Inspiration.”
We’ve been making history and bringing our world closer together for over 100 years. The first Rotary club was started in Chicago, Illinois, USA, in 1905 by an attorney named Paul Harris. Harris wanted to bring together a group of professionals with different backgrounds and skills as a way to exchange ideas and form meaningful acquaintances. In August 1910, the 16 Rotary clubs then in the United States formed the National Association of Rotary Clubs, now Rotary International. In 1912, Rotary expanded to a few more countries, and by July 1925, Rotary clubs existed on six continents. Today, there are more than 35,000 clubs, in almost every country in the world. For more information about Rotary’s history, go to rotary.org/history.
What We value
Rotary was founded on principles that remain at the heart of the organization today. These principles reflect our core values — integrity, diversity, service, leadership, and fellowship, or friendship. Our core values emerge as themes in our guiding principles.
Avenues of Service
We channel our commitment to service through five Avenues of Service, which are the foundation of club activity.
• Club Service focuses on making clubs strong. A thriving club is anchored by strong relationships and an active membership development plan.
• Vocational Service calls on all Rotarians to work with integrity and contribute their expertise to the problems and needs of society.
• Community Service encourages every Rotarian to find ways to improve the quality of life of people in their communities and to serve the public interest.
• International Service exemplifies our global reach in promoting peace and understanding. We support this avenue by sponsoring or volunteering on international projects, using local member expertise to build long-term partnerships for sustainable projects, seeking service partners abroad, and more.
• Youth Service recognizes the importance of empowering youth and young professionals through leadership development programs such as Rotaract, Interact, Rotary Youth Leadership Awards, and Rotary Youth Exchange.
August started well for our club with the Wine Tasting and Dinner Event put together by our Rotary E-Club of Houston and Vox Culture. The goal was to raise funds for our Martin Bailey’s Garden at Wisdom High School. If you missed the event and would like to contribute, please click on the PayPal yellow button to donate. The garden will provide nutritious food and education about food and the environment to the students. We need to purchase various types of material to build the garden, so any help is appreciated. Below are some photos of the event, which was held at the Archway Gallery in Houston this past August 5th. We had wonderful guests, including our District Governor Carmen Cuneo, PDG Bill Palko and spouse Debbie, PDG George Yeiter and spouse Beverly, and many more important guests who had their senses delighted with great wines, a delicious 6-course meal, while surrounded by beautiful art and great conversation. Great job to our club’s Past President Wind, Viktor from Vox Culture, and all volunteers who made this an unforgettable and sure to be repeated event!
The Rotary Club of University area, home club of our super inspirational leader District Governor Carmen Cuneo, has a great program to help Firefighters with cancer who come to Houston to seek treatment. Thanks to the program, they can stay in a Houston apartment at almost no cost. This past July 27th there was an open house for the second apartment, where Rotarians from several clubs volunteered to help. Thank you, Brittany Johnson, our Community Service Chair for coordinating volunteers from our club, and to our club’s volunteers PP Wind Nguyen, Fabiola Giannone, and one of our newest members Nicole Bianchi, our Membership Chair, for donating your time and effort to this admirable cause.
Firefighters and First Responders give of themselves constantly. As the saying goes, “They run into a burning building while the rest of us are running out.” And, it is almost impossible to repay this type of bravery.
Recognizing that these brave men and women sometimes need help themselves, the Rotary Fire Fighters Home (RFFH) strives to meet its mission of providing fully furnished, temporary housing to them at little or no cost, for use while they are undergoing treatment at the Texas Medical Center (TMC). Unfortunately, the majority of those in need of such housing are receiving cancer treatment at MD Anderson Cancer Center, and temporary housing near TMC is both hard to find and expensive.
Or iPhone one-tap : US: +16699006833,,146623729# or +16468769923,,146623729# Or Telephone: Dial(for higher quality, dial a number based on your current location): US: +1 669 900 6833 or +1 646 876 9923 Meeting ID: 146 623 729 International numbers available: https://zoom.us/u/d4DtRlXl
September 22 - Books for the World
September 29 - Fundraising Committee Meeting @ 10:00 am and "Service Saturday" at 11:00 am. Lunch will be provided for those who can stay. Please rsvp to Robin Charlesworth, President (970-880-0960).
See the District Calendar for wherever you live to see additional meeting opportunities such as visiting other Rotary clubs, district committee meetings, Rotary fundraisers, etc.
***Reminder, please report at least two meeting credits for the month via the Attendance Form on our website.
President Robin would love to see more members volunteering in our Service Saturdays, and there is work to be done everywhere. The Rotary theme for September will be "Basic Education and Literacy". For service related actions, consider donating books to a school libraary, perhaps one that was flooded during Hurricane Harvey, or collect books for Books for the World to be shipped to countries around the world. We will hold a work party at President Robin Charlesworth's house on September 29th. Let's gather at 10:00 am for a Fundraising Committee meeting about future fundraising for the club, and then begin sorting books. Additionally, we have members who are collecting shoes (tennis) for Venezuelan refugees escaping to Columbia. This can be accomplished by any Rotarians by placing the shoes in a gallon plastic baggie labeled with the sizes and shipped directly to: Restaurant Rodizio, Avenida Libertadores #10-121, Malecon Second Stage, Cucuta, Columbia.
Or bring the shoes to this Service Saturday and will will box them and prepare them for shipping at no cost to Rotary (that is, your own money).
Please rsvp: 970-880-0960 to Robin Charlesworth, President
Be the inspiration!
SEPTEMBER 22, 2018 (one week prior to Service Opportunity at home of President Robin Charlesworth)
Address: Rotary Books for the World Warehouse 203 Eagle Avenue, Pasadena TX 8:30AM to 10:30 AM
The entrance is on Eagle Ave. between Munger St & MainSouth of Hwy 225. You may park on Eagle Ave. or under 225. Be careful crossing the street and do not leave valuables in your car. Questions? Terry Ziegler - bigzlumber@aol.com or 713-825-1176.
As President Robin emphasized in her message, August is Membership Month! Membership is so important that we dedicate this month’s program to it with a great article written by Geoffrey Johnson featured at Rotary.org. Read on and be inspired!
Step right up: In Rotary’s membership game, everyone’s a winner
When it comes to finding new members for his Minnesota Rotary club, Tom Gump doesn’t just walk the walk, he trots the trot: the turkey trot. Gump is a former president of the Rotary Club of Edina/Morningside, which makes boosting membership a priority. In fact, that’s the fourth item on a list of 10 tips to attract and retain members which has been prepared – and practiced – by the club. It’s tip No. 10 that finds Gump clad in a turkey suit. More on that shortly.
The tips work: During Gump’s 2016-17 stint as club president, Edina/Morningside added 31 members. Eleven of them were women; 10 were under 40 years old. With 94 members, the club “went from being classified as a medium-size club to being one of District 5950’s large clubs,” says Gump, who will be the 2020-21 district governor. “There were 13 clubs larger than our club in our district, and now there are only four.”
The tips have proven so effective that Gump has taken the Edina/Morningside show on the road, using a PowerPoint presentation to coach other clubs on specific ways they can expand their membership. “I have been called a good salesman,” says Gump (who, for the record, is a real estate lawyer and a developer). “But to me, recruiting new Rotary members is not really selling. It’s matching up potential members with what he or she wants in a club.”
So if you’re looking to add members to your club, consider taking a page from the Edina/Morningside playbook. Read on for the club’s 10 tips, as well as five suggestions for increasing membership from other Rotarians and Rotary clubs.
Create a list of all the great things about your club
The point is not just growing your club, but boosting Rotary’s capacity to make a difference around the world.
This short video will make you think about our role in the universe. We are indeed small compared to the vast universe, but as Rotarians focused on helping other human beings, we become big and significant. Giving our time and sharing what we have makes us go from a tiny spec of light to a shiny beam that inspires others to do the same. Adriane Miller
Members, please send us articles about your service or community projects and include a photo of you doing Rotary work. We would love to receive feedback from our subscribers on how we are doing, and content you would like to see published. Be the inspiration! Please click on the link under the name Adriane Miller to send me an email.
Ready to join a great Rotary Club? Click on membership application on the left side of the homepage. Please complete all fields on the application and press submit. You will be contacted by Nicole Bianchi, Membership Director, soon.
On the membership application you will be asked if you have attended two Rotary e-Club of Houston meetings on-line. Look for the Weekly Program and either view the video or read the article, then go to the tab for Weekly Meeting beneath the banner of the page and submit the attendance form to receive credit.
To pay your membership dues: By credit card, please click on the PayNow yellow link on the left side of the home page.
The Rotary Club of University area, home club of our super inspirational leader District Governor Carmen Cuneo, has a great program to help Firefighters with cancer who come to Houston to seek treatment. Thanks to the program, they can stay in a Houston apartment at almost no cost. This past July 27th there was an open house for the second apartment, where Rotarians from several clubs volunteered to help. Thank you, Brittany Johnson, our Community Service Chair for coordinating volunteers from our club, and to our club’s volunteers PP Wind Nguyen, Fabiola Giannone, and one of our newest members Nicole Bianchi, our Membership Chair, for donating your time and effort to this admirable cause.
