Millennials Interested in Service

Below is an article in the Hartford Courant describing the interest of millennials in Community Service. You can do something about this for your club. Read the article and see what things millennials have been interested in. 

Arrange a series of service projects which could interest the millenials in your community. Partner with other groups, perhaps animal help organization or ??. Invite local people(millennials and others) to the service projects by social media, print media and other ways. Do this in conjunction with local groups like animal shelters, food kitchens, etc. Keep following up with those who come to get them involved. Maybe create a satellite club of millennials.

Millenials Interested in Service-Courant Article

Recently, millennial people have earned the nickname of the “do-gooders" generation, according to the Millennial Impact Report, as 70% of millennial workers spent at least an hour volunteering in 2014. They are also accountable for 11% of total giving in the U.S., according to 2018 charitable giving statistics from Nonprofits Source.

Sixty four percent of millennials volunteer locally, the charitable giving statistics say, and the most popular charities across all age groups are environmental and animal nonprofit organizations.

Frisch, 27, has been a volunteer “bat man” for the past two years at the state Department of Energy and Environmental Protection. Unlike the superhero, Frisch doesn’t fight crime. Instead, he traces bats along a preset route from Tolland through Andover to Amston for research. He leaves his home in West Hartford driving at 20 mph for a three-hour trek, while recording bat calls from a computer set up in his car.

Kevin Frisch, 27, of West Hartford, is a volunteer "bat man" with the state Department of Energy and Environmental Protection.

“I volunteer at DEEP because I want to give something back to nature," Frisch said. "I think my favorite part is knowing I’m helping keep tabs on a pretty vital member of the food web. Bats are an amazing source of pest control when it comes to mosquito-borne diseases, and this seemed like a cool way to help collect more information on them.“

Frisch said he thinks volunteering may help shine a light on the value of bats in our ecosystem.

Global Rotary Peace Project-An Idea

Global Rotary Peace Project

Last year the Westport Sunrise Rotary Club and Maker Faire Connecticut had a 3d printed duck project which created a duck and a couple ducklings from 3 D printed components from around the world. The duck was a great hit and over 1000 people from around the world contributed 3D components to the duck.  This year we want to continue that tradition but with a difference. You can use any art form or technology. You will create a multitude of Objects on the theme of Peace.

Desired Outcomes for this Project in addition to increasing Peace Awareness/Understanding

1. Increase the Visibility of Rotary Clubs and Rotary

2. Create connections between Rotary Clubs and their Community world wide

3. Involve Rotary in the Community in a different way with different Visibility.

4. Involve non-Rotarians in a Rotary sponsored project.

This project will create and display objects with meaning and beauty on the subject of Peace. Peace means many things to different people and we are using the word in the broadest sense. But each person should answer the question "What does Peace mean to me" in the creation of their object.

Created Objects-The objects created can be knitted, wood, metal, 3d printed, electronic, porcelain or some other medium. We encourage creativity in the design and creation of the objects. (Use STEAM) In each case the Object will address the question of "What does Peace mean to the creator".

Creators of Objects-The creators of the objects can be Rotarians, students, Interactors, Rotaractors, engineers, plumbers or anyone else. They can be individuals or representatives of one or more Rotary Clubs or other organizations. We are hoping that Rotary Clubs will reach out to their Community to involve others in this activity.

With the Object-Submit with the Object the name and background of the submitter and her/his organization and the story behind the contribution. This will be printed on a tag shown with the Object.

Size of Object-The Objects will fit in a space of 10"long x10" high x5" deep.

The object will have a mechanism to hang it on a Frame, described below. The object can be any shape or form.

Frame-The Frames will be built to hold up to 100 Objects. The Frames will be built on a rolling base and will be 4' long x 4' wide x 6' tall. A frame will be built of 2x4's consisting of a base with 4-8" wheels, 6' uprights and a reinforcing structure at the top. The four sides will be covered by 3/8" thick plywood on which the Objects will be mounted. The weight of this frame will be 182 lbs for both the plywood and the 2x4s. A very rought estimate of the cost of the lumber is $110 plus another $100 for the wheels. The entire Frame will be painted grey.

Displays-The Objects on the Frame are called the Displays. They will be shown at the Maker Faire Connecticut in Westport on April 18 and 19. Then they will go to the Rotary District 7980 District Conference in Mystic on April 24, 25 and 26. It is the intent to show a portion of the Objects at the Rotary International Convention in Hawaii on June 6 to 10 and then have them displayed and available for other events.

How to make this Happen

a. Marketing/PR/Social Media-Make people aware of the project and encourage them to create objects and send them in. Need a person to do this.

b. Create a website to inform people about the project and have them sign up.

Here is the website that was created for the Great Duck Race  Need a person for this.

c. Design and build the frames that will be used to display the submissions. Need someone for this.

d. Receiving the Objects when submitted, storage of objects and transportation. Need someone for this.

e. Curating the submissions-tags with each object on the Frame, create a booklet describing them, put the submissions on the website, etc. Need someone for this.

Passport Club-We are about to start one-What is It?

Passport Club

WHAT IS A PASSPORT CLUB?

A passport club is a Rotary club that gives its members a more flexible club experience by:

            • Encouraging its members to visit other clubs and participate in their club activities regularly

             • Relaxing the attendance policy

             • Offering a variety of meeting formats

HOW DO PASSPORT CLUBS WORK? Passport clubs determine how they want to operate. Here are some common practices of passport clubs:

             • Meeting less frequently

             • Focusing meetings on service or social activities

             • Setting affordable dues

             • Measuring club health by participation rather than attendance

HOW DO THEY MEET?  Meetings can be social gatherings, service activities, virtual meetings, or fundraisers. Other Clubs' meetings are an important part of the Passport club calendar. As long as something is on the club’s calendar twice a month it meets the RI criteria.

Rotary Guide to Passport club

Membership Engagement-Now

We are now halfway through this Rotary year and our District, you, are making progress on membership. You need to focus on membership engagement.So what does this mean, What should you do?

You should identify those members who are less involved with club activities.

Then,

First every member of the club and particularly new members should be contacted about the next two or three club events. Call them, e-mail them and text them. Make every member feel part of the club and encourage them to participate. You cannot.  communicate too much. Have the messages come from multiple people.

 Second, every member should be part of a club committee. If someone in the club is not on a committee, call them up and ask them to help out.

Three, encourage members of the club to get together to do things. Figure out how the club can help this happen i.e. members in small groups doing projects. For example find some community service projects that a small group of people can do and create a small group of members, who are not heavily involved, to do it. 

Four. Do a community assessment to identify the needs of your town. Involve club members, town leaders and other people interested in the community. Advertise it and welcome other people to come. Most importantly invite those club members who are not yet heavily involved in the club.

Community Assessment