The Ever Changing Face of Rotary

I joined the Rotary Club of Towcester a little over 6 years ago. My biggest reason for joining Rotary was that I wanted to give something back to society. I’ve worked hard and I am comfortable but there are so many people out there who are not so fortunate. It was time for me to do my bit.

I chose the Rotary Club of Towcester for many reasons not least of which was a good friend was currently their President and when I visited I was always made to feel welcome.

For six years I worked very hard to be an active member of the team. I sat on several committees and eventually chaired one or two. I also volunteered to be a member of Club Council, the committee that oversees the running of the club. Soon I was a member of the District Foundation team, helping to administer Rotary’s own charity, The Rotary Foundation, and I was in line to be the clubs next President.

Everything, you would think, was going well.

Unfortunately, that wasn’t the case. As I said, I joined Rotary to be an active Rotarian and I was itching to do more. I tried encouraging younger people to join the club but was singularly unsuccessful. I did, however, manage to organise a fundraising cycle ride, Bike2Give, and get a team of younger people to ride 1,000Km in 6 days to raise over £15,000 for Charity.

Bike2Give was a huge commitment that everyone in the team and all of the supporting cast made so quickly and completely. So, why can they find time for a charitable project but not time to be a Rotarian? The question vexed me for several months. I asked around for more help on another project, to raise money to help rebuild a school in the Philippines (Learn2Give) and, again, all are willing to help… but I still couldn't get them to join our Rotary Club!

And then I figured it out… there just isn't an appetite for weekly meetings over dinner and a drink. Time is precious for younger people so we need to adapt our approach.

A few of the more active Rotarians got together and floated the idea of an E-Club. A Rotary club that meets online that is focused on service projects, locally, nationally and internationally. Our E-Club is in the process of being born. We have 19 prospective members, seven of which are current and former Rotarians. We need 20 members, 10 of whom are current or former Rotarians to achieve Charter… but we are close… and the average age of our membership is around 38 years old with the youngest being only 25.

We are going to be a young, vibrant and highly active Rotary club. We will have a short online meeting every week and will aim to get together once a month in the flesh. We welcome anyone that wants to join us. 

Isn’t it about time that you made a difference to someone’s life?

To find out more about our club and how you can get involved click here.