Charlie called the meeting to order, Mary lead us in the Pledge, Rennie lead us in the Reflection and Dean collected the happy and sad fines.
John S had the raffle ticket, no winner.
The calendar raffle winner was Matt Valliere (Dean).
Guests were Lydia Reynolds, RYLA attendee/GF, and our speaker Paul Avella, Littleton Club member, along with his daughter Connie.
MEMBERSHIP UPDATES
The after-hours meeting from July 24th at the Leominster Veterans' Center yielded one Service Member application, which is pending. John S will reach out to everyone who attended.
We watched the membership video "Are We Welcoming?" The main message was to be sure our communications are accurate, and that visitors are made to feel welcomed and wanted. Everyone in the club should reach out to all guests who visit our chapter.
GENERAL TOPICS
Charlie received very positive feedback from Pam Anastasi's visit. She was impressed with the attendance and the interaction among club members and visitors.
On 9/30, Mike Ellis will talk to us about club financials, and will train club members as appropriate.
Dean is heading up the Johnny Appleseed Fair. The materials were lost, but John T has the files.
For our offsite club meeting at AIS, the meal request will be coming out soon for our 9/16 meeting and tour.
The Flower Box Project is almost complete. 2 unpaid sponsors will be removed, and Louise will call 2-3 others with one final deadline to pay the sponsorship.
Last week's speaker (7/29, no bulletin) was Sarah Conti from Design You Marketing, pictured with Charlie below. Sarah is a creative website designer who incorporates marketing ideas which lead to success for small businesses.
Guest Speaker - Paul Avella, Rotary Friendship Exchange
Do you know the difference between the Rotary Friendship Exchange and Bandey-Hefler? If you were at this week's meeting you do! The B-H program is specifically between US and British Rotary Club members. It is a social program, involving visits to the US 1 year, visits to the UK 1 year, and 1 year off. The Rotary Friendship Exchange speaks to point 3 in the 4-Way Test - build goodwill and better friendships. They are coordinated at the District level. To get involved, consider hosting first, then traveling. These trips are typically self-funded, and focus on 3 areas - Culture, Service, and Vocation.
There are 3 current potential Exchanges - Sweden (Cultural), Australia, and India. The 4 step process to get involved is 1) Choose your destination, 2) Define your purpose, 3) Fund your Exchange, and 4) Share your story.
Paul sent around an interest sheet for us to express your current or future interest in getting involved with an Exchange. Visit the District 7910 web page for more details!
Special mention - thanks, Claire, for sharing this great picture from our Revolution Event!
Lydia spoke to us about her RYLA experience. Last year, she attended RYLA as a student, and this year she came back as a GF - Group Facilitator. Next year, she will apply for a position as PF - Program Facilitator. Even if she doesn't get the PF role, she will come back as a volunteer. You can tell she is very enthusiastic about RYLA!
Initially, she thought RYLA would be another boring program, but she quickly realized she was wrong about that. She learned a lot about herself as she went through the activities, which all have strong leadership messages. Her favorite take-away from the event was that "the true sign of a leader is someone who will step back and let someone else go forward".
When asked about the food this year, Lydia responded that it was "way better" than last year, which was disorganized and "messy". The organizers this year focused on special dietary requirements and keeping the mealtime process in order.
Finally, Lydia talked about working on starting a Rotaract Club at Leominster High School. Connor will also be involved, and there will be volunteer opportunities for us as a club.
FUN FACT
Did ya know? Movie trailers were originally shown AFTER the movie.
Movie trailers are a big part of the cinematic experience. Some people love them, and others show up 20 minutes after a film’s start time to avoid them. But did you know they used to be shown after the feature film in the early 1900s? That’s how they got the name “trailers.” But because many people leave when the feature film’s credits start rolling, trailers started playing before the feature film began to reach the maximum number of eyeballs. That’s why they’re now called previews or coming attractions.
RYLA Speaker, Lydia Reynolds
