== From: Duane Benton on 07/02/2002 06:48 AM ==
=== Subject: Pres's "Welcome to Rotary!" ===

Presidents:

I forward Jonathan's e-mail to his members.

As imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, feel free to adapt to your
club.

(If I had been smart enough to suggest his, I would add a mention of
Polio''''''Plus, and adapt the membership goal to each club, as the official
policy is that each club sets its own membership goal. What Jonathan says
is a "safe harbor.")

Best to all,

with appreciation for all your efforts,

Duane

=== Forwarded by Duane Benton/SUP/Courts/Judicial on 07/02/2002 06:39 AM ===

From: "Jonathan Bergman" <jbergman@townsqr.com> on 07/01/2002 11:43:39 PM
[[BR]]To: club members
[[BR]]cc: "Duane Benton" <Duane_Benton@osca.state.mo.us>
[[BR]]Subject: Welcome to Rotary!

West Plains Rotary Club

July 1st 2002

'''Sow the Seeds of Love!'''

Good morning and welcome to a new Rotary year! I wanted to take the time
to personally invite everyone to our noon
time meeting today at the West Plains Civic Center. Today we will discuss
our 2002/03 Rotary theme; "Sow the Seeds of Love".

During the pets and sets training, I had the opportunity to watch a brief
video from New Rotary International President Bhichai Rattukul as he
explained his Sow the seeds of love concept. In short, he encourages clubs
to become stronger through the following steps:

'''Participate actively in service'''

Service is the core of the Rotarian ethic. Each one of us have the
opportunity to serve our community and world through our Rotary Club. Our
club will become stronger and more effective if all of us take the time
and expend the energy necessary to actively serve on club committees and
projects.

'''Follow the classification system'''

The Classification system serves to create a balance among professionals
in the club from the community. We must continue to review the
classification of professionals in our club to uncover opportunities for
growth. The clubs have the freedom to design new classifications as
necessary to broaden the scope of the club, and at the same time recruit
individuals who would both strengthen and enrich the club membership.

'''Make the induction ceremony special'''

When we bring new members into Rotary, we need to make them feel both
welcome and important. A meaningful induction ceremony is critical to the
task of retaining members. Becoming a Rotarian should be a special day for
each new member - one they should remember throughout their days as a
Rotarian. This feeling of being special and belonging will inspire new
members to be more active, take their membership more seriously, and
ultimately remain committed to those ideals they received with their
Rotary pin.

'''Provide information to new members'''

New members need information. Many Rotarians leave rotary because they
fully do not understand what Rotary does or what its mission is. It is the
responsibility of every Rotarian to share the ideas and history of Rotary
with new members in order to help them understand and to get excited about
being a Rotarian.

'''Maintain a strong commitment to high ethical standards'''

One principle that attracts many people to Rotary and sets it apart from
other organizations is a strong commitment to high ethical standards. It
is critical that we serve as role models in this regard. Our high ethical
standards and the level to which we follow them determine our credibility.
And our credibility has a direct effect on our ability to meet service
goals.

'''Set meaningful club goals'''

Bhichai Rattakul calls for a "bottoms up" approach for clubs in 2002/03.
Our club knows far more about the needs of our community than does Rotary
International. Therefore, his citation program will include very few
specific criteria for clubs to fulfill. Each club will decide on their own
how to best carry out local and international service.

'''Continue Rotary's Global Quest'''

To underscore the great importance of building a strong membership, we
will continue Rotary's Global Quest with the overall goal of one new
member per month and a net gain of five new members per club for the year.

'''Strengthen your club with love'''

As we work together to strengthen our club, let us do so with love. Don't
point fingers in blame for a weak point, but rather build on the resources
and strengths we already possess. Let us think about ways we can increase
the quality of our membership and keep members active and involved. We
need to review our service to the community and its overall impact.
Consider ways to participate in Rotary Foundation programs and to increase
our clubs support of the foundation.


'''Final Note'''

Today would be a great day to invite someone to Rotary. Not only will we
start to discuss our plans for the upcoming year, your guest will discover
how rich our club is in tradition and service to our community. I am truly
excited about our upcoming year. Donna and the club Presidents before her
have set high standards for a well run club. Over the years the West
Plains Noon Time Rotarians have made both physical and social improvements
to our local community, enriched the lives of students from all over the
world through our cultural exchange program, brought peace and
understanding to the world by supporting the Rotary Foundation, and have
created long lasting friendships through our own fellowship.

I am proud to call myself a West Plains Rotarian, and will work extremely
hard to maintain the standards we have come to expect out of the West
Plains Rotary Club.

I thank you again for this opportunity to serve. I look forward to seeing
everyone at lunch time.

Yours in Rotary,

Jonathan