I write these words to you in the afterglow of our District 6250 Virtual Conference. This conference, like our year together, has been different in many ways. The conference was a week long. We had inspirational presentations from our entire Rotary International President Line. We had evening sessions that dived deep into our Seven Areas of Focus, our Foundation, our Membership and Public Image teams (working together!) , and our Youth Programs. The virtual element allowed Rotarians to dip in and out of the agenda as our busy active lifestyles allowed. The Conference team aimed to educate, inspire and engage. I am proud of what was presented to the District, and I hope that you found the conference met our goals.
During the week, we had over 100 District Rotarians join each evening for our deep dives. These are numbers not normally seen during a District Assembly, and it speaks to the deep desire of Rotarians to engage into what drives their passions. The Youth Program night on Monday saw some of our largest turnout. My thanks to our Youth Programs Chair Laura Lee and her Youth Program leaders for the great evening and passion.
The people who know me best – my family and the Rotarians of the La Crosse area – know that my passion for Rotary is boundless. My family also knows that I don’t expect them to get involved in Rotary the way I have. It’s a choice that is up to them. But I must admit, I can’t help smiling when I see them making the right choice. 😊
This past year has had a large impact on my family. Both my wife and my youngest daughter have had their eyes open to the great work done by Rotary in our communities and in our world. My wife was impacted deeply by our time at the International Assembly and Zone gatherings that occurred late in 2020 and early 2021 before our world shut down due to COVID. My youngest daughter was so moved by seeing Rotary programs that involved past exchange students and how it changed their lives that she was moved to join me in my plans to travel to the International Conference in Taipei. We also know how that ended… but I’d bet that she will join me at our next opportunity. But she will be joining me at the Virtual Youth Exchange Pre-convention in June!
If my passion for Rotary is boundless… there is an entirely next level for my passion for our Youth Programs. I have been blessed to be involved with virtually all aspects of Youth Service within our District over the past decade. Take Rotary Youth Leadership Awards (RYLA) as one example. I have seen firsthand how it transforms young people into more confident, focused individuals with a better understanding of the world around them.
Everywhere I go around the Rotary world, I meet people of all ages whose lives have been changed by our youth programs. They tell me how, five or 15 or 25 years ago, Rotary Youth Exchange taught them a new language or introduced them to a new culture. Their eyes light up when they talk about their Interact Clubs… and how membership in Rotaract first ignited their passion for giving back to the community.
Rotary’s programs for young leaders extend our ideals of service, friendship, and leadership development beyond the doors of our clubs to hundreds of thousands of young people in most years. This year saw many of those programs frozen or heavily impacted. But you can feel the energy winding up in these programs as they look forward to spring forward with the reopening of our world. When we serve with and for these young people – as sponsors, project partners, and mentors, it brings out the best in us, and it brings out the best in Rotary.
May is Youth Services Month, and there are many ways your Rotary club can celebrate. Check in with your Interact Club and make sure they are ready to jump at the opportunities that reopening our schools will present. Consider a Rotaract Club – either University or Community based – to engage the young adults in your community to take action, become leaders, and gain a global perspective. Team up with your Interact and Rotaract Clubs for a service project. Get your club ready to welcome Youth Exchange Students (Long and Short Term) back into our communities, clubs and lives.
This month, be open to the opportunities that young leaders in our communities by engaging them, mentoring them, and working side by side with them on meaningful projects. It’s an investment in their future and in the world they will live in after we’re gone. And it’s work that will forever enrich their lives… and our own.
As we reflect on the 2019-20 Rotary year, I am so proud and inspired by how our clubs found innovative ways to connect with their members, their communities, and the world.
During 2019-2020 the clubs in District 6250 worked to increase their membership, contribute to The Rotary Foundation, serve their communities, participate in Rotary programs, improve their public image, and so much more.
I am pleased to recognize this accomplishment by presenting District 6250 with the 2019-2020 District Citation digital certificate. Your district is one of 93 districts worldwide to receive this award, which honors Rotary districts in which at least half of the Rotary clubs earned the Rotary Citation. In your district’s case every club earned the Citation!
I encourage your district leadership team to achieve this prestigious award again in 2020-2021 and I congratulate your 2019-20 club presidents, assistant governors and other club leaders on their efforts to grow Rotary and for demonstrating how Rotary Connects the World!
Kindest regards, Mark Daniel Maloney President, Rotary International 2019-2020
Thank you to everyone who was able to attend our Foundation District Conference sessions. We covered a lot of ground and topics but still only touched the surface of our Rotary Foundation.
Our Rotary theme for the month is around Maternal and Child Health so we wanted to share some information along with a couple of projects from around the world:
Every day in 2017, approximately 810 women died from preventable causes related to pregnancy and childbirth
Between 2000 and 2017, the maternal mortality ratio (MMR, number of maternal deaths per 100,000 live births) dropped by about 38% worldwide.
94% of all maternal deaths occur in low and lower middle-income countries.
Young adolescents (ages 10-14) face a higher risk of complications and death as a result of pregnancy than other women.
“The Life on Wheels,” a $56k Global Grant project taking place in Nigeria is based around a well-equipped van designed to receive blood donations simultaneously from three persons. The mobile blood bank can collect 100 units a day and store up to 150 units daily. The project will help to create awareness on blood donation “through its public address system, holding camps in remote rural areas and enhancing Rotary’s public image.”
A bank of another sort was set up in India through a $35k Global Grant to establish a Human Milk Bank at the Satribari Christian Hospital. The bank will pasteurize and freeze breastmilk collected from donor mothers who have enough milk and are willing to donate. The milk bank facility will help reduce neonatal mortality rate in that part of India. According to Dr. Devajit Kumar Sharma, the neonatal specialist at the hospital, birthing mothers will be the primary donors. The hospital will organize camps in the villages to encourage lactating mothers to donate.
While there are projects going on around the world, there are also projects taking place right here in the Midwest as well. This includes a project that is being pitched around installing cameras in the NeoNatal Care Unit of the local hospital to allow parents to see their child from any distance.
Josh Mansee
La Crosse Rotary - After Hours, President-Elect 2020-2021
District 6250 Foundation Chair
608-386-2641
District Member Count: 2539
Member Growth Success: Lake Mills +9, Mayville +8, LaCrosse After Hours +6, Sun Prairie +5
Thank you for those who attended to the Membership Night at District Conference. Hopefully you had a ton of fun and can now impress your houseguests with the making of an Old Fashioned! More importantly, I am hoping you have picked up on some tools and ideas to use to help grow your club’s membership. I have inclination there are many people eager to become more involved in the community who have never been apart of Rotary as well as those who have been previous Rotarians who are now ready to get back into the community. Please make these people aware of the advances you’ve made (hybrid meeting options, differing meeting times, reduced costs, etc) in your club to make it easier to become a Rotarian.
Social media has changed the way we connect. We like, comment, and share as a way to get the word out and support people, organizations, and causes. So, how can you effectively use social media for your club? First of all, it's essential to understand that platforms like Facebook, Twitter, & Instagram cannot replace your website. Second, define your strategy and break it down into manageable steps.
Define your goal
Here are a couple of questions to consider:
What are you trying to accomplish through it?
Who will your audience be?
What will capture their attention?
Put a team together or identify a single person as the lead
Many Rotarians are on one or more social media platforms. Almost 100% of our clubs in District 6250 have a Facebook page; however, the level of engagement varies. Some clubs have a high level of engagement, where others haven’t posted in weeks. Below features the information to help you increase your social media presence.
Examples for a team approach
One member takes photos of club meetings and activities while the other comes up with appealing headlines & stories to promote engagement.
One member creates a post about club meetings/events while the other creates a post featuring a Rotarian, past event, and/or the monthly themes.
Ideas to promote an online presence and get your story told
Below are some examples that are easy to do and will help your club share all of the incredible things Rotarians do for others, create engagement, and likely increase membership. You do not need to do them all but perhaps commit to one or two to start.
Club meetings - Post a picture of the speaker and/or your members during the meeting. Share the images on social media before or after your meetings.
Thursdays - Use the hashtag #TBT (Throwback Thursday) and feature a picture/video from the past.
Any day of the week, share a DIstrict 6250 and/or a Rotary International post.
Twice a month, feature the RI theme. If your club did an activity connecting with the theme, use it to promote and bring attention to the theme.
Turn on the “top fan badge,” and once a week/month, feature the top fans and thank them for spreading the word about Rotary.
Once a month, feature a Rotarian. One month you could post a picture of a Rotarian who has put in years of service, and the following month you could post a picture of a new(er) Rotarian. Ask each Rotarian to write up their bio and why they joined Rotary. Post their bio and reason with the picture.
A few reminders:
Post regularly. At a minimum, we recommend once a week so that your social platforms look current. Don’t be afraid to report the same post (worded slightly differently every time).
Encourage club members to like, comment, and share your club’s posts.
Pin your most important posts right on top of your newsfeed, so it's the first thing visitors see when they land on your social feed.
Link your club website so people can read the story behind the photos and learn more about how they can be part of it too.
Tag participating members and community partners in your posts.
Use the Brand Center, your one-stop shop for logos, creative assets, guidelines, and more. Be sure to visit often as new materials are added for your use.
Develop a social media schedule – Manage your time by planning your club’s social media activity in advance.
These are just a few ideas to help you take baby steps to gain a social media presence. Jump in and get started.
Thank you so much to everyone who joined us for Youth Night at this year's District Conference. Our team worked hard to give you relevant and important information that will help you and your club to connect with the Youth Programs that Rotary offers.
May is Youth Service Month for Rotary, which means it's a perfect opportunity to take the information that you learned at District back to your clubs and promote Youth programs. Take the month of May to see what changes your club might be able to implement and increase your participation with the youth in your community. Here are some ideas:
Partner with an Interact club to do a Service Activity in your community.
Schedule a Youth Exchange reunion with former Inbound or Outbound students
Remember that sharing our Rotary passions with the youth in our community can help them to continue the work that we're doing today. They'll grow up and establish themselves in a community and some day could be a member of your club. Why not expose them to the ideas, strategies and focus that are the foundation of Rotary so they're ready to be an active and engaged Rotarian?
Josh Mansee
Post regularly. At a minimum, we recommend once a week so that your social platforms look current. Don’t be afraid to report the same post (worded slightly differently every time).
