We have now visited 42 Rotary Clubs in our District. And great visits they were! The latest trip started in Dauphin. We went the whole circle through Brandon, Moose Jaw, Assiniboia, Regina, Saskatoon, and Hudson Bay and ended up back in Neepawa with all the exchange students.

 

GolfWe were again hosted by Rotarians for part of our trip this time. Thanks to Mac Strang and Heather Agnew, Lorraine Hansen , John and Elizabeth Towle, DGN Pat Chernesky and Fred Olferd, and PDG June and Hugh Cathcart for their hospitality and fellowship. That does go out to all the clubs as well. We have been treated very well by all clubs and members. We enjoyed a few golf games with Rotarians.

Thanks for the thoughtful gifts and commemorative donations to Polio. Good food and fellowship is hard to beat!

Cheque Saskatoon  Cheque Meewasin 
Cheque Saskxx

Cheque Wpg

I enjoyed receiving cheques for Polio Plus

We are amazed at all the different fundraising and service projects that are put on by the Rotarians of District 5550. Many of the clubs involve different service groups in their communities which is a good thing to see.  Speaking of good people, we forgot to send a big Thanks to Hal Anderson of CJOB in our last newsletter. What a great voice for Rotary!

Awards Assiniboia

Awards Regina Eastview

Awards Saskatoon

Awards Wpg

And handing out awards!

One of the things we talked about to several clubs is the need for new fundraising ideas. You’ve heard the phrase “a change is as good as a rest”. Want to perk up your club? Want to find something new? Check the District website for a list of fundraisers in the District. I bet if you typed “fundraising projects”” in to Google search there would be plenty.

Rotary park Neepawa

Rotary Park Nipawin

Rotary Park Saskatoon

Rotary Park Wakamow

And seeing lots of Rotary Parks

We spoke about membership with all the clubs and received several suggestions.

  • Read the local paper and watch for new hires, promotions, etc and drop a line or call and extend a personal Invitation.  Remember, many corporations want to be involved in the community.
  • Invite potential members to help with a service project or fundraiser. Education about Rotary is a key factor. Sometimes just attending a meeting isn’t a great selling point.
  • Check with former exchange students, Rotary program attendees, GSE members and any alumni.
  • We have to get the word out that Rotary isn’t just “International”- it’s local more so!
  • Sometimes we have to consider that some people don’t want or can’t have the commitment of a meeting, but they are willing to help with projects. We can’t count them as attendees but can say they are a “Friend of Rotary”. Maybe one day they will join!

We are still looking for areas in which to start new clubs. Let us know if you have any thoughts and we can send a team of scouts out.

We are working on rewriting the District Manual of Procedure. The first draft is to be ready by December 5th.  We have asked the committee chairs to rewrite the portion that deals with their areas of concern. When we receive these responses, we can continue.

“Youth for the Future”, District Theme for 2012-2013

Given that our theme is “Youth for the Future” we were pleased to see that all clubs were involved with Rotary Youth programs or local youth events and schools. We hope Saskatoon’s successful Restorative Action Program (RAP) program can be spread to other major cities. Let us know if you are interested and we can put you in touch with the right people.

RYE Neepawa 2012Our Interact and Rotaract are certainly looking for new members, too. We had the fortune of meeting some of the members and helping induct two newbies. They have enthusiasm and innovation. Thanks Danielle for the great conference idea. Hopefully our committee will put it to use.

If your club is interested in starting Rotaract or Interact, Ray Ruth would be happy to help. The club members would be willing, too. What a way to develop our future Rotarians!!

We attended the Youth Exchange Orientation program in Neepawa. We have another wonderful group of Amy Colladoexchange students. The information section went well and we were all entertained by the students on Saturday evening. We had a nice surprise with the guitar playing and singing by Regina Oskaya’s Amy Collado.

Part of an exchange student’s curriculum is to visit the Rotary sponsor club. Please welcome them. Give them an opportunity to speak and include them in your meeting. Help make their stay an unforgettable one. If you have a fundraiser or project going, ask them to help.

Each student will need their own fundraiser. They were all given a challenge to raise funds towards either Shelterbox or Polio. Whatever they choose – help them reach their goal. Last year they bought Shelterboxes.

Fishing RYEIf you have a school working to raise funds for Polio or Shelterbox (or an exchange student) why not offer to match their fundraising efforts? Or a Rotaract or Interact Club?

Another thought for students. Why not give a scholarship to a person taking a trade or to a single parent?

We were able to take an exchange student and Rotarians fishing this week. A good time was had by all.

It’s always exciting to see someone catch their first fish!

Cookbook for Polio Idea Well Received

Fran’s idea of a District cookbook has been well accepted. You can start sending recipes anytime. We will be home October 24 and can start putting things together. Fran has had offers of help as well. Remember, if you have trouble raising the $500.00, let us know. We already have one club with two sponsors.

When the books are sold and we start sending money to the Foundation for Polio, we will be donating by Club name. That way each club will receive Paul Harris points for their Polio donations from the book sales.

We hadn't mentioned it before, but we would like participation from the Rotaract and Interact clubs as well.  The club names will be added on to the other club pages and no advertising fee will be necessary

Finally, fellowship is an important part of Rotary. How many events involve the whole club and the partners? What about the “Friends of Rotary”?

Enjoy yourself and have fun!!