How often have you heard "Rotary doesn't really DO anything"
As Rotarians, the ONE thing we all have in common is the genuine, heartfelt desire to make a difference in our community. And, if we're honest with ourselves, we really want that impact to be something big and showy and visible to everyone in the community. You want to be able to point to a project and say, "We did THAT!" We want the community as a whole to recognize our club as an agent of positive growth and change.
But that is not often the case. In fact, the opposite is often true. As you speak to people in the community and share something about Rotary, you may often hear, "What's Rotary?" or "What does Rotary do?" or (worse) "There's a Rotary club here? I didn't know that." It can be discouraging and disheartening to pour your heart and soul into our club's service projects, community events and other activities and to have none of it recognized. You are so very proud of your role in something that takes months to plan only to have not only your part, but the entire event, unacknowledged. Ouch.
So, what do you do when you are faced with a situation like this? A few suggestions:
First (and this is really hard), remember that Rotary's mission is service to others, advancing understanding, goodwill and peace. Nowhere in there does it say anything about accepting or expecting accolades.
However, that doesn't mean that we as a club should brag about how awesome we are. So, second, if you are hearing these types of comments on a regular basis, we clearly need to do a better job of promoting all that we do. If you are interested in serving on the PR committee, we would certainly value your contributions! Let a board member know of your interest.
But, finally, remember all the incredible SMALL things we do. They won't make the front page of the paper or be splashed all over social media. But these small acts make a BIG difference to some of our community members. And, in case you need to be lifted up by what we do, here are some snippets from recent letters and cards we received:
- "Thank you for choosing me for the Ray Gustafson Memorial Scholarship."
- "We appreciate your support for the Montgomery County Fair and 4-H program. Thank you!"
- "Thank you for the very thoughtful scholarship! The money will be used to further my education in the fall!"
- "Thank you so very much for your very generous donation to the Mural Project."
- "Thank you for awarding me this scholarship to further my education."
- "Thank you for supporting the Kiwanis Duck Race."
That's one month of impact. Multiply that by twelve. Think of the 15 families who received cleaning supplies and hygiene items in November. Think of the family whose children had Christmas presents because of our club. We DO make a difference.
That's not so say we haven't done big, visible projects (the Cage, our electronic sign), or that we won't do another big, visible project again soon. Those types of projects take time to plan, coordinate, fund, etc. (If you are interested in THAT, also let a board member know). In the meantime, please don't forget the value in the little things we do, because to some people in our community, those "little" things are very big, indeed.