‘Welcome, Respected & Valued’

From exit interviews we know that Rotarians leave Rotary because they may feel one or more of the following:

1. unwelcomed

2. not respected

3. undervalued

In Tasmania we are seeking to address this by developing a culture in all Rotary Clubs where members feel ‘Welcome, Respected & Valued’

As this develops we want to call our ‘Club Culture’ within District 9830 The Three Tenets, with those being:

‘Welcome, Respected and Valued’

This is particularly important for newer members in our Clubs. Appointing a Club ‘buddy’ and/or ‘mentor’ for a new member is a good way to address this. Another way is giving a new member a specific role with encouragement, support and training so that they succeed and achieve a sense of belonging to the Club.

…How many Clubs fail this basic step?

There is also the broader concept of ‘inclusiveness’; and it relates to the issues of ‘culture’, ‘religion’, ‘gender’, ‘sexual orientation’, ‘demographic’, ‘socio-economic status’, ‘physical ability’ and more.

After all, Rotary is essentially an egalitarian organisation:

• we are all Rotarians

• we are all equally important

• we are all welcome, respected and valued

• we can all contribute the best we are able in many different ways to the success of our clubs, and ultimately Rotary.

The challenge for all Rotarians is to embrace the rich diversity that our society offers and harness the benefits that are derived from it.