Posted by Charles Rehberg on Mar 26, 2018
 
 
North Notes
Spokane North Rotary Club Bulletin
March 26, 2018          
 
Briefly:
          Roster check: It’s time to check the April duty roster for invocations and pledges, sergeants-at-arms and front-desk staff.
 
 Questions remain in 3rd Qtr. Club report
 
          In his 3rd Quarter report, Club President Chad Haverkamp talked about successes, transitions and looming challenges.
 
          He said the club’s forced change to move from The Lincoln Center to Nectar in Kendall Yards is a work in progress.
         
          “It was a great home, and not our choice,” Chad said, weighing pros and cons of the move.  Nectar has done a lot for us to move here, he said.  “The food has been great and we have the place to ourselves, but we need to grow and when we have more than 20 people here it’s tight,” Chad said.
 
          “Nectar has been great and it’s good to tie in with our neighborhood.  It’s undecided whether Nectar will be our home, but Kendall Yards may well be our home,” he said, noting that the current contract with Nectar expires June 30 with the Rotary year.
 
          Chad raised three other important issues:
    
          Leadership issues remain, including a board secretary and treasurer.
 
          Membership – a challenge for all clubs – is down to 25, with weekly attendance typically about 15, plus guests.
 
          The annual club spring fund-raiser was delayed to fall.
 
          Chad said club finances are on schedule, experiencing the slight operating deficit that was expected, with reserves available to cover the losses.
 
          Recent surveys distributed to club members, he said, produced a wide range of responses on recruitment and meal plans, ranging from quarterly to pay-as-you-go to forgoing lunch but adding a facility charge.
 
          With no volunteers to lead the fund-raising campaign, Chad said one alternative is to divide chores among teams.
 
          President-elect Lenore Romney said a one-page marketing flier is being produced for recruitment, adding that “time is of the essence” to resolve the unresolved issues. 
“We can’t design the marketing plan until we make decisions on membership and dues structure,” she said.
 
          She talked about the “true costs” (about $15 a quarter) and “pass-through costs” (about $140 a year) of Rotary.  She said those costs are low for an organization like
Rotary.
 
          Chad said that while our lunches and speakers have been great, the club should do more.  “Let’s do some dirty-hands projects, he said, adding: “the Holmes projects are great and fulfilling for some, but not for all.”
 
The bulletin producers:
          Bulletin editors: Chuck Rehberg and Sandy Fink
          Photos: Sandy Fink and Eric Johnson
          Program coordinator: Brad Stark