Empowered families strengthen Rotary image

By Maureen Vaught
Rotary International News - 10 December 2007

The Garrettsville-Hiram club’s Family Week Celebration offered a fun time for children on carnival rides.
Photo by John Crawford

After 75 years, the Rotary Club of Garrettsville-Hiram faced a declining membership and dwindling enthusiasm. But by celebrating family, the club’s 10 members not only strengthened their club, they also helped their community.

The Empower the Family service project, now in its fifth year, supports activities that engage and honor families while enhancing Rotary’s image. Its centerpiece is the annual Family Week Celebration, which includes a music festival, carnival, and school-sponsored art, essay, and speech contests. In addition, residents of this small Ohio, USA, town are encouraged to Put Family First one evening and spend time exclusively with their families.

According to club member Amy Crawford, the project has succeeded on many levels: “We have more community involvement with the club. We’ve brought people from surrounding areas together. And we’ve attracted newer, younger members with children of their own to the club.”

It’s also cultivated working relationships between club members and community leaders. Local businesses, churches, governments, libraries, and schools collaborate with the club to sponsor activities throughout the week.

Convinced of the project’s global appeal to families and Rotarians alike, Vibert Kesler, chair of the first Family Week Celebration and a former member of the Garrettsville-Hiram club, created World Peace Parents in 2003. This nonprofit organization helps Rotary clubs worldwide carry out similar events in their communities. To date, clubs in Minnesota and Pennsylvania, USA, have organized family celebrations. And the Rotary clubs of Bombay Bandra, Maharashtra, India, and Muyenga and Port-Bell, Uganda, are working with World Peace Parents to adapt the concept to their cultures.

“This program works especially well for smaller communities and smaller clubs,” Kesler says. “It can really rejuvenate your club.”

Learn more at http://worldpeaceparents.org .

Celebration checklist

Vibert Kesler, executive director and board chair of World Peace Parents, offers the following tips for clubs wanting to celebrate family in their communities:

Keep it simple. The Empower the Family service project works best as a stand-alone event.

Plan ahead. Start arranging the Family Week Celebration at least four months in advance.
Schedule it for early in the year. Because schools are involved, the best dates for the celebration often fall between January and March.
Use the World Peace Parents project manual to help you organize the event.
Download the progress reports to help you stay on track.
Stay in touch with World Peace Parents, and don’t be afraid to ask questions!

This article originally appeared in the 2007 October Rotary World

6 Comments:

At 11:41AM on 14 December 2007, Anand Naik wrote: I am impressed by the concept of recognizing status of family.To strengthen it further let RI advise DGs to initiate a practice of family meets at Rotarian families, where children are encouraged to participate in such activities that brings them more joy, respect, admiration .. all that contributing meaningfully towards greater cohesiveness. In my part of India,Goa, we have a few religious ceremonies each year.. Diwali, Ganesh Chaturthi (when pooja take place), on other occasions region specific or faith specific poojas are organized and according to modern social and economic influences get togethers are held by way of birthday parties. I see customs & religion as major influences in this part of the world.School, college groups are emerging as the next..this continues till the children grow up and disperse as adults in their individual professions socially & geographically .Intra family bonds are strong still. Inter family bonds or ties need to be strengthened in light of emerging developments that continually strike at the roots of our family systems that was patterned on individuals operating on a limited sources of livelihood. In short, economic standing is predominating influences.As a consequence customs and religion will play far lesser influence in future.And for this reason family as an institution should assert through collective means. RI should advise all DGs to take this cause more seriously. Procedures may be designed to enhance participation among the children. Currently, I am the Editor of Spark, a monthly bulletin of Rotary club of Panaji ( est.1963) for the scond term.Thanks for this opportunity to offer my suggestions. Your response on my email will e highly appreciated. Anand

At 8:53AM on 17 December 2007, Ashish Mody wrote: Dear Anand I agree with your suggestion and would like to put up the same in my club. I am the editor of E Hanging Garden Times a monthly bulletin of Rotary Club of Mumbai Hanging Garden. My email is ashish.mody@yahoo.com and I would like to cover your suggection in my bulletin this month and request your confirmation.

At 11:25AM on 19 December 2007, sukhminder singh ( R.C.Bardhaman Heritage) wrote: It is very importent to involve our family into Rotary activity. There very few occassions when we involve our family into rotary activities,such as Conferances, but it is not enough. Throughout the year we should have programs for them by which they realise that club also have thoughts for them. Regular invitation of articles from lets & annes & also from the senior members of the family should be published regularly in our club bulletins as well as in rotary news. An outing with the parents on a spl festive or holiday time is a good opportunity to to serve our family. out of 52 meetings some meetings can easily announced as lets meeting or annes meeting or ek shham ma baap ke naam like that---- where they can easily share their ideas,likings,dislikings. In short they will realise that they are also a part of rotary.

At 9:09AM on 26 December 2007, Rotr.Aborisade Olaoluwa RC. of Jos Shere Hills CB.D9120 Ng. Jos. wrote: What a brilliant ideas,it goes wt the saying "Charity begins at home " if Rotn. and Rotrs. family are fully involved in ROTARY programmes like this it will make the whole family to be fully involved in the organisation activities,help spread the good image,the wives will trust and know more about the husbands movement and reasons of him attending fellowship(as this have bring misunderstanding to some families),it will also strenghtening the capacity of Rotaractors(Rotarians Children to know more about the club and join),brings continuity to the organisation(which is the life span of any organised organisation),It will also brings unity and love among members(as they extend helping hands to one another),it can also brings about inter marriages(who knows, when the family comes together ,affection might show case among the sibblings).Fellow in service,the advantages are numerous that can not be mentioned. I stongly agreed wt Rotn. Anand Naik that this should be carefully look into by RI and advised DG's,DRR's,CHAIRMAN FAMILY OF ROTARY the importance that needs to be attached to this and how to go about it. I salute the initiative of the Rotary Club of Garrettsville for this wonderful programme.If I may ask,IS IT IDEAL IF A CLUB SHOULD ATTEND OR DESING A BENEFITTING PROGRAMMES FOR MEMBERS e.g,if a member is in need of assistance either financial or others within the ability of Club? I will be expecting response from anybody that comes across this question tru,koolarry2003@yahoo.com. TX.

At 9:11AM on 2 January 2008, Raaj Bangar wrote: Dear Rotarians, I am member of Rotary Club of Gangtok South. Gangtok is the capital of the beautiful hill station of Sikkim. I warmly welcome the family week idea. We Rotarians must encourage and encoprate this idea in our respective clubs. Thankyou Raaj Bangar President Elect 2008

At 9:26AM on 8 April 2008, deb biswas. wrote: I like the idea of Raaj Bangar of South Gangtok Rotary Club. I like to know more about the family week. I will appreciate if Raaj let me know more about family week. Thank you Deb Biswas. Past President Rotaty Club Of Laurel. davebiswas@yahoo.com

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