Last Week at Rotary, October 20, 2022

A Rotaract Story

Russ started his talk by emphasizing the need to present Rotary as a family of Clubs. The distinctions between Rotary, Rotaract, and Interact need to give way toward working together. When people are interested in membership we need to find out which of the area clubs would fit them the best. 
 
He gave some vignettes of Rotaract Clubs in our district.
  • Sault St Marie had a very active Rotaract Club before COVID that didn't survive the pandemic.
  • Traverse City wanted to create a Rotaract Club from their community college, but the limited time of students working on an associate's degree was a challenge. So they expanded the club outreach to alumni of the college and then to young professionals.
  • Muskegon had a Baker College Rotaract Club that closed when the college closed in Muskegon during the pandemic.
  • Allendale and Grand Haven Clubs sponsor the GVSU Rotaract Club. They are thriving because they act as a connector between students who want to serve and campus/community organizations who need volunteers.
  • Grand Rapids Rotary has been very successful in incorporating minorities and younger people into its Rotary Club. They are the only club in the district that has a DEI committee. They are also looking into setting up a Grand Rapids area college Rotaract Club that would incorporate all of the area colleges.

Lakeshore United

 
The Lakeshore United Rotaract Club doesn't like to publicize their club as a Rotaract club. Their purpose statement talks about what the club can offer to the community such as helping to overcome obstacles, developing skills, and giving back to the community. They emphasize that family comes first, followed by work, and finally Rotaract activities.
 
Russ suggested some ideas that we could adopt for our club, such as incorporating community members who have an interest in a particular area into our committees and activities without requiring them to be Rotary members.
 
The big picture idea is to find a need in our community and fill it with people dedicated to meeting that need.