DG Welcome to 2009-2010

Dear HEROES, The Future of Rotary is in Your Hands.

These two phrases represent both the district and Rotary International’s themes for the 2009-2010 club years. You are HEROES because you HElp ROtary Excel and Succeed. RI President John Kenny’s theme acknowledges what Rotary has accomplished in the last 105 years, and looks to the future with HEROES in the lead.

I want to share our district’s vision, mission, values, and goals because in any planning process you have to know who you are and where you are going. PDG Mike, DGE Claire, DGN Chuck, and I are committed to the concept of continuity in the district, and in doing so we are forging a new path.

The RI board of directors has used these concepts in creating the RI strategic vision. They have also been used to establish continuity at the international level. I want to enable you, the HEROES, to take them, go through a planning process which includes your president, your board, and your club members, to formulate a vision, a mission, values, and goals for 2009-2010 and beyond. This is the purpose of the future vision process many of our district’s clubs have used to help with club continuity.

VISION

A vision should be clear and concise and form an ideal picture of a desirable future. It should also be a stretch vision; difficult to achieve but not unattainable. “Rotary International is to be universally recognized for its commitment to Service Above Self to advance world peace, understanding and goodwill,” is RI’s vision. My vision is similar: “District 5110 will be recognized as the district that best exemplifies Rotary’s vision.” (Please keep in mind the district is involved in a strategic visioning process, and the final vision statement may differ somewhat.)

Some may ask if we can accomplish this vision in a year or two. I would answer, “Why not?” If we do not reach it this year, it WILL be attainable in the future as long as we emphasize continuity of leadership.

What will be your club’s vision for 2009-2010 and beyond?

MISSION

A mission is the road map that gives us a sense of how we move toward the vision. It is a simple statement that guides our growth, and it is an affirmation. Like a vision statement, a mission statement can be lofty, scary, and risky. It is a commitment to pursue our vision (destination) and it helps us learn from the past. It can also lead us to try new ways of doing things.

RI’s mission is “to provide service for others, promote high ethical standards, and advance world peace, understanding, and goodwill through clubs of business, professional, and community leaders.” District 5110’s 2009-2010 mission is “to have all district 5110 members involved in club or district activities, and to be personally enriched by giving Service Above Self.” (Again, the district visioning process may alter this slightly.)

What will be your club’s mission for 2009-2010 and beyond? I challenge your club to develop a club mission which supports the missions of both RI and the district.

VALUES

Values help us make difficult and confusing decisions. They must be unambiguous, and no further questions or clarification should be needed to understand them. RI has five core values: service, fellowship, diversity, integrity, and development of future Rotary leaders. All five of them are contained in the Object of Rotary and the 4-Way Test.

GOALS

Goals are the directions to arrive at our vision/destination, and they must be achievable and serve as signposts along the way. When we reach each goal we know we are making progress. The clearer and more precise the goals are, the better our success of achieving them. Resetting goals along the way can be critical, even though it is easy to sit on our accomplishments!

We know from RI’s vision, mission, and core goals that our goals will be within the following areas:

• Conflict prevention and/or peaceful resolution
• Disease prevention and/or care
• Sanitation and clean water
• Reducing maternal and infant mortality
• Education and literacy
• Economic and community development
• Increasing membership
• Increasing contributions to TRF

RI President John’s goals are set out in his Presidential Citation. Remember, this is an award for the entire club, not just its president. These goals include:

1. Net increase of one new member by March 31, 2010
2. Participation in three of the following activities:
   • Polio eradication
   • Membership
   • Public image
   • Vocational service
   • International or local community service
   • Development of leaders within the club to serve at the club or district level

The district goals to receive the District Governor’s Club Citation Award for the 2009-2010 year are:

• The club president will contribute to TRF at least the amount of the per-club average
• The club president will recruit at least one new member
• The club has new growth of at least two members
• The club has a retention rate of 90% (not including deaths or relocation out of the club geographical area) based on the number of members on July 1, 2009
• The club attain either 100% participation in TRF, or if the club in 2008-2009 had a 100% participation, the members increase their giving amount by an average of 5% over those years
• The club participates in at least two youth programs
• The club participates in at least two international programs
• The club participates in Rotary World-Wide Work Day on April 24, 2010
• The club sponsors an event that raises awareness of Rotary’s role in the eradication of polio, and either through this event or by club contributions, contributes at least $20 per member to the polio drive
• The club has two additional participants attending the district conference May 21-23, 2010, than in 2009

The district-wide goals are:

• Sponsor at least one Peace Fellow Scholar
• Sponsor an Ambassadorial Scholar emphasizing one of the six areas of emphasis of RI
• Continue our district’s dictionary project
• Increase district membership by 142 members
• Retain 90% of members (not including deaths or relocation out of the club geographical area) based on the number of members on July 1, 2009
• Form at least one new club
• Form at least one new Rotaract club
• Contribute $675,000 to TRF, with a stretch goal of $812,817
• Recruit 71 new Benefactor/Bequest Society members

Only with your help as HEREOS can we accomplish these goals and be recognized as the district that best exemplifies Rotary’s vision. As HEREOS, we will reach our district’s mission of having all of its members involved in club or district activities and to be personally enriched by giving Service Above Self.

I am honored to have the opportunity to work with you this year as we develop and implement our individual club’s vision, mission, values, and goals, and map our way into the future!

DG John Cox