President Chris Joyce called the meeting to order at 7:20 a.m. in order to leave more time for District Governor Lyle Staab’s presentation. The Thought for the Day was given by Chip Uchtman. “It is a person’s job to be a good Rotarian and he who lives up to the Precepts will be a good neighbor, a kind friend, a loving spouse, a Companionable parent, and an asset to the community in which he Lives” – Paul P. Harris – Message to the Rotary Club of New Orleans, May 1917 (slightly updated by Chip).

 

 

Past President Helen Oloroso announced that the nominating committee has several positions yet to fill, and encouraged members to step up and participate in club leadership. The official annual business meeting will be on Dec. 1, when the Nominating Committee will present the slate for our vote. Helen reminded us that we migrated to QuickBooks Online, making the (unfilled) job of club treasurer much more straightforward, with thanks to Barb Miles, Miguel Hernandez, Bruce Baumberger, and Scott Kaplan.

Nominating Committee chair Linda Gerber thanked Helen, Kate Collinson, Bill Glader, and Bryant Wallace for serving on the nominating committee and putting the slate together. As the slate currently stands:

 

 

President Elect Nominee, Kathy Tate-Bradish

Secretary, Willy Steiner

Club Service Chair, Katherine Peterson

Community Service Chair, Steve Goranson

ELRC Foundation Treasurer, Kristin Brown

Fundraising Chair, Harold Bauer

Grants Chair, Bruce Baumberger

Housing Chair, Ann Weatherhead

International Service Chair, Patrick Mbullo

Membership Chair, Ann Searles

Public Image Chair, Kathy Tate-Bradish 

Rotary Foundation Chair, Helen Oloroso

Sergeant at Arms, Nick Powers

Technology Chair, Bryant Wallace 

Vocational Service Chair, Charlotta Koppanyi

Youth Exchange Officer, Jackie Mack

 

Who would like to serve in these roles?

 

Club Treasurer

Programs Chair

 

Kristin Brown shared the process by which we can upload our photos in the bio section of the Holiday Sale Fundraiser site to personalize our pages and make it easier for our customers to identify us. Click on the little Lego-like person on the top right of your screen (once you are on the  https://evanstonrotaryholiday.org/ site with your personal affiliate link – first letter of your first name and your last name). Go to “bio” on the left, and follow instructions for uploading a photo. When you send out your affiliate link to potential customers your photo will show up. If you need assistance contact Bruce Baumberger or Steve Goranson if you have problems.

 

Bruce announced that the first food delivery day is Friday, for Thanksgiving hams. We will soon need volunteers for distribution day; email requests will come soon. We are encouraged to donate hams for Streetwise, Connections for the Homeless, and Chessmen of the Northshore. Please send solicitations now if you haven’t already. A template from Kristin is in your emails if you need inspiration. We’ll be sent emails with what our customers have ordered and when we need to pick up and deliver.

 

Katherine Peterson thanked Joy Joyce for discussing the stay-at-home advisory with her, which led to the decision to suspend the weekly fellowship walks for the next 30 days at least. There is a bonfire fellowship currently scheduled for Dec. 19 at Emily Oaks Nature Center in Skokie, which could host up to 20 (10 at a time for an hour) socially-distanced Rotarians and significant others. Details forthcoming. “Come” to the weekly Friday Zoom cocktail hours. In December one of them will be structured as a holiday party.

 

Harold Bauer requested two or three volunteers with SUVs to help with flower delivery to the Mather on Saturday, Nov. 28 (or perhaps Friday). Several people volunteered in the chat section. Send an email to Bruce and he will help Harold coordinate.

 

 

 

 

Our Assistant Governor, Evelyn Lee of the Rotary Club of Evanston, introduced DG Lyle. Lyle is a member of the Rotary Club of Long Grove, Kildeer, and Hawthorn Woods, where he has held many positions, including president. Lyle’s first Rotary club was the Rotary Club of  Dublin Fingal in Ireland – over his career he and his wife moved 13 times with two foreign assignments. At the District level, prior to becoming DG, Lyle was an Assistant Governor, participated in or led many international trips, and showed his strong commitment to the Rotary Youth Program with his many leadership positions.

 

DG Lyle started with a short video of RI President Holger Knaack unveiling his theme: Rotary Opens Opportunities. Lyle explained why Holger opened his jacket – he revealed his official tie. All DGs get official ties or scarves, and are to wear them to every one of their official visits. Lyle was wearing his.

 

Having a leadership position during COVID has substantial challenges and also singular opportunities, and Lyle inspired us with the opportunities we have. We need to learn, to do things differently, and to change the organization. He described the many quick decisions that had to be made at a governor’s line meeting at the beginning of the pandemic – they cancelled RYLA, which was going to start picking up kids in five hours, they called four clubs which were going to have big fundraisers that weekend and told them they had to cancel them or remake them into something virtual . . . Rotary International cancelled the Rotary Convention in Honolulu . . .

 

Then they focused on what they could do. The District offered matching grants to clubs to do something for COVID relief. RI stopped all travel for their officers and employees until the end of December.

 

Churchill said that the pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity, while the optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty. Lyle sees this as an opportunity to decide what we want to look like as an organization, and outlined four initiatives that will contribute to the reshaping and improvement of Rotary.

 

1. RI President Nominee Jennifer Jones will be the first woman to be president of Rotary International, starting on July 1, 2022. Jennifer is the best person to be president of RI period, said Lyle, and her great communication skills will help convince some recalcitrant Rotarians and clubs that it is appropriate to have a woman lead Rotary. We can use this opportunity to showcase the modern Rotary.

 

2. Also 30 years in the making, our new Area of Focus is Supporting the Environment. This is not only critically important in its own right, and an issue that we can have great impact on, but it is critically important to those we want to have join us. It will go into effect officially on July 1, 2021.

 

3. There is a renewed focus on opening opportunities with vocational service, which is why Rotary was started. A pilot called The Rotary Network has a collection of tools for Rotarians to network and do business.

 

4. Rotary and Toastmasters have teamed up, and Toastmasters has an excellent leadership development curriculum. Rotarians can go to the Learning Center at rotary.org and apply for and take leadership courses, as well as other opportunities for collaboration.

 

Lyle’s main two emphases are on membership and fundraising. The more money we can raise, the more good we can do, the more obvious we can be, and the more members we can attract. We must find better and more intriguing ways to fundraise.

 

We can attract new members even during a pandemic. Many people are looking to connect during these difficult times, and Zoom meetings can be very attractive. We need to find new models. Clubs that serve the needs of their current members really well may have nothing that attracts others to the club.

 

Innovative possibilities could include Sunday meetings where families attend and the club does service projects. Satellite clubs with more flexibility than the old clubs can be formed. Cause-based clubs don’t need to be geographically based, and could focus on issues as disparate as the environment, veterans, and people who do eldercare.

 

President Holger’s key messages to share with clubs:

 

1. Help expand Rotary’s reach by forming a satellite club and a community-based Rotaract club.

 

2. Select new members carefully and engage them.

 

3. Host at least one strategic planning meeting a year to set and pursue a vision.

 

4. Donate to End Polio Now and host a World Polio Day event in October. It is critical that we finish the job.

 

Lyle has three other asks:

 

1. Adapt – seek new and existing partners and see how we can be of service.

 

2. Invite - invite our partners to see what they need. Invite people and organizations to be part of what we do. Invite our members to be part of what we’re doing, and don’t leave anyone out.

 

3. Matter – we joined to make a difference. “These are the times that Rotary was built for.”

 

Remember Rotary’s Vision statement: “Together, we see a world where people unite and take action to create lasting change — across the globe, in our communities, and in ourselves.”

 

AIM high, and add No. 5 to the 4-Way Test – “Will we have fun?”

 

 

 

DG Lyle Staab, speaker, Rotary Club of Long Grove, Kildeer, and Hawthorn Woods

 

AG Evelyn Lee, Rotary Club of Evanston

 

 

Sue Bova, 1 year