Every now and then Rotary Clubs meet to deal with ‘housekeeping’ matters, and this week’s Club Forum was one such get together. Pres. Frank announced that he will be our 2023/24 President, and this was greeted with warm applause. Frank also announced a number of forthcoming events: 22nd March an evening BBQ at Matilda Bay (instead of the normal meeting); 1st April Bunnings Sausage Sizzle organised by Don Holywell; 17th May a visit to the DFES Bushfire Centre of Excellence followed by a lunch locally; 5th July is Changeover Day for our Club in the form of a lunch at the Windsor Hotel in South Perth; and in November we are planning to hold a Fete in conjunction with St Edmund’s Church. The Ladies Social Committee will continue its good work by organising various outings such as a weekend away and other social events from time to time. Our discussions then turned to Membership and Projects, and on the former topic there is a clear need for a better gender balance in the Club as well as a desire to expand the ethnic make-up of our Membership. We need to attract younger Members by giving them a reason to join e.g. by providing meaningful assistance for them to build their careers and to expand their contacts in our community. Some of our social activities also have the potential to attract potential Members. On the question of Projects, we agreed that the emphasis should be largely local, and we can establish links with other organisations’ projects if we cannot mount something of our own. Liaison with the Council would be helpful in this context and an example of this approach might be to organise a training event ahead of the next Rottnest Swim. The Australian Government has a Stronger Communities Programme which provides contributions to local capital projects. All good food for thought!
