As a new centurion, let my first act be to thank Past President Carolyn for what has been a testing year for all of us. She jumped back into harness without a moment’s thought on that sad day last December when we heard of Mike’s death and since then she has thrown herself wholeheartedly into the running of the club. She has led by example and always has an encouraging word for us when things don’t quite go as expected. I know that she will be an excellent attendance officer and heaven help any of you who fail to apologise on time next year! Please join me in thanking her for all her efforts!
Now this is the part where, according to the manual, I make an inspirational address! I’ll see what I can do.
On the face of it Maidstone Riverside is a young club (well, youngish) with a great tradition of raising money and running big events. I succeed some splendid presidents and we can all look back on some great years. However, this address is quite rightly, all about looking forward and I think we need to look at the facts.
Membership: 37
Active Members: 26 (if we’re being generous).
New members may join us this year – we held a very successful Open Evening 2 weeks ago and it could well lead to 3 or 4 new members joining us over the next 12 months. However it is no good filling the bucket with fresh water if you have a large whole in the bottom. Whilst members may not actually be leaving the signs are there that they might and we need to do something about it now whilst we still can.
Much is spoken each year about making Rotary meetings more interesting: better speakers, better food, better time management not to mention more ladies’ nights. I believe that this isn’t tackling the root cause however. As I said on our Open Evening, we’re not a dining club and we shouldn’t allow our opinions on the food served dictate our attendance figures. The reason for our meetings is to discuss the workings of the club and to advance the program laid down for the year. As a group of individuals living in and around the county town, we need to be debating the assistance that we can offer the disadvantaged and the help and advice we can give to the young people with whom we come into contact. Service Above Self is our motto and I am immensely proud of this club and all it has done in the past 14 years to bring these words to life. However, we need to constantly keep moving forward or else we will stagnate. If we look at our two major activities for the year (Rock Concert and County Show ) we are already showing signs of compassion fatigue and fewer members are making themselves available to help or sell tickets. I can’t waive a magic wand but my aim this year is to rejuvenate some of the spirit that made this club the envy of all others in the district in the first few years of our foundation.
I also can’t achieve this alone and I implore each and every one of you to do one thing for me in the coming year – keep an open mind. I watched last year as Mike’s enthusiasm for the job was weakened by his inability to get the club to agree to try something different. We must be prepared to espouse new ideas and I ask that we please obey one cardinal rule: you are only allowed to say “that won’t work” if you can put forward an alternative strategy.
So, what are these new ideas? Well, very little is truly new in this world and I prefer to think of these as reworked ideas.
Unless there is an absolute need for one, I have decided to hold Club Council meetings once every 2 months. This will mean that Business Meetings will only be held every 2 months as well. On the date when a business meeting would have been held, I propose having what is called in other clubs, an aperitif meeting. Rather than a 2 course meal we will have snacks in the bar for £2 or £3 and can discuss anything that we wish to. There will be no speaker and no formal agenda. It remains to be seen whether members disappear as soon as the snacks do or stay on to discuss things in more depth.
I aim to launch a “Tree of Light” this Christmas where bereaved families can place the name of their loved one on a card on a Christmas Tree in a prominent place in the town. A similar scheme has been run successfully for a number of years by Tunbridge Wells club with the assistance of the KM Extra.
One of the main tenets of Rotary is The Four Way Test:
"Of the things we think, say or do:
1. Is it the truth?
2. Is it fair to all concerned?
3. Will it build goodwill and better friendships?
4. Will it be beneficial to all concerned?"
We have new clubs around us with whom we have very little contact. We seem to have forgotten test 3. I can see no benefit to this club of prolonging this disharmony and I intend building bridges. I hope that I can count on the majority of the members to back me on this one.
Finally, we need to be a club that embraces the concept of No RINOs (Rotarians In Name Only). Wearing the badge may or may not be the status symbol that it once was but that’s not why I joined Rotary. Let us judge our achievements not by how many times we turn up on a Tuesday but by our attendance at all the other events to be held over the next 12 months. Let’s get our hands dirty!
I have issued 2 challenges to each committee chairman, namely:
To each run one fellowship event. The only rule is that it must break even. It needn’t be a new idea – perhaps resurrect one that we haven’t done in a while.
To come up with (and run) one new charity event with a clear profit of £2k minimum.
The charities I wish to support this year are as follows:
As you may have guessed by now, my theme for this year is involvement and I will be actively looking for a commitment from all of you to go that extra mile when asked to contribute. Unlike other years, your contribution will be one of time rather than money but I hope that you will all dig deep and make this not only a memorable year but one where we can feel the satisfaction of having personally made a difference.
My only regret is that my father who saw me become a Rotarian 14 years ago, didn’t live long enough to see me become president. Consequently, I would like to dedicate my year of office to him and if I can achieve half of what he did then we will have a very successful year indeed and a lot of enjoyment along the way.