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A Vision for Our Club's Future
A few of the more than 30 club members who gathered for an intense Visioning Exercise last week. Lots of great ideas emerged on where we should be in five years and how we might get there. Details coming at a Club Assembly in a few weeks.
Sucess Built on Concern for Her Staff
Ann Marie Harrington started her company, Embolden Design, in 1998 after working in the non-profit world as a social worker. She used to work for Kids Count and got involved with designing a website for that organization when the web was still in its infancy. She found she had a passion for web design and thought it was a great way to get information to people.
When she developed her company, she wanted to focus on non-profits to help them become know via the web. Her business plan, however, was unique in that she also used her social work background to provide for staff. She now has 20 people working for her out of an old mill in Pawtucket.
She offers every staff person fully paid health and dental insurance, flexible work hours and family membership to the YMCA. She has staff meetings weekly, but at staff meetings, not only is work discussed, but workers are encouraged to tell about what is happening in their lives. Sort of like our Happy Bucks time.
As I catalog my thoughts for this week's blog, I am most mindful of the Club's Visioning Seminar, which took place on Monday evening. Thirty-two of us participated in this long-range planning/assessment of where-our-Club-is event. Along with simply being one of the group (nice for a change), my strongest impressions were that we are an active, engaged, multi-talented Club on the move positively and that we have very good group cohesion (added to Rotary goals of continuity, consistency, and consensus - the three C's). A BIG thanks to PE Cynthia Leonard and
the District facilitators who brought this off as well as all who attended. Our Club will be receiving a detailed written analysis as well as a DVD presentation of the program highlights.
Cynthia and I and future leaders will almost certainly utilize some of the good ideas/strategies/results we obtained from this exercise. James Jones agreed to be our Club Vision guru, and a Club assembly in April will be devoted to long-range planning goals and programs.
You should have received the ballot for election of club officers and directors. The ballot itself reminds us of the talent, commitment, and energy we have going forward. So please don't forget to carefully follow the instructions and vote timely (not often).
Richard Kaplan wants all to be reminded that donations made to Haiti Relief between 1/12/10 and 2/28/10 can be deducted on 2009 tax returns.
Bill DiBiasio, the Club Foundation, and I wish to express our sincere thanks to all who have donated to date - keep the cash coming, as Haitian need for shelter will be long in duration. Tell your friends their donations will be matched by our Foundation when they give through our website www.providencerotary.org.
It was gratifying to meet and hear from Mary French and Mohammed Alansari, national leaders of the Dictionary Project. Once again, PP Randy Dittmar is deserving of great applause for the consistently wonderful job he does with this literary project. Rhode Island as the first state where all third graders get dictionaries? That would be something we would be proud to be first at.
The Board meets on Thursday the 18th, and Rotary After Dark is at 5:30 at Capriccio's that evening.
Yours in Rotary,
Richard
President Richard: March 4th is Rotary Night at the PBruins.
Jean Audette: The Haiti Shelter Box Drive has raised $2,796.
Gary Kaufman: The website is up and running. Thanks to Art Norwalk for the content and visual display, Jeff Cavanaugh for making it work, and everyone else on his committee for the help. There will be a membership location on the site that each Rotarian will be able to update, including a new photo. Address of the website is www.providencerotary.org.
Bill DiBiasio: The Shelter Box program is going very well. We currently have 7,000 boxes in Haiti. Each box offers shelter to ten people and includes insulated items for cold weather, tools, cooking supplies, and a stove that runs on any type of fuel. They are now using jet fuel in Haiti. In addition, every box that is delivered, a Rotarian goes with it to help with set up and to make sure those in need get it. By next week, there will be 10,000 boxes in Haiti, 20,000 by the end of February, which will provide housing for 200,000 people.
Jenny Miller announced that Rotary After Dark will be on Thursday, February 18 atCapriccio.
Pat Germani: Her nephew Nick will be home from Iraq for two weeks and will be done with his services by the end of May. Also, last week business colleague came to Rotary with Pat. Her friend and her husband were trying to decide how to donate to help those in Haiti. Before she left, she wrote out a check for $100.00 toward the Shelter Box Program.
Bob Murphy: The last time he came to Rotary he was hit by a car near Providence Place Mall and has been recuperating since.
Jenny Miller: Congrats to Gary, Art, and all those who put together the new website.
Bryan Cook: His son, Zack, got his driver's license.
Jim Gilcreast: For 36 years in Rotary and 36 years of perfect attendance!
Kris David: She was the dictionary lady when she delivered the dictionaries.
Don Saracen: He also delivered dictionaries. One boy was so excited to show his brother the dictionary because his brother got a dictionary a few years ago from us.
Jean Audette: Barrington Middle School is the New England champion.
David Burnham: He works with the Shakespeare group which was featured in ProJo. Next week, he will travel to the Dominican Republic to work with people there. He does this every year, but this year he will be helping the earthquake victims.
PP Randy Dittmar: Thanks to all those who helped with the dictionaries.
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