Every Club has at their fingertips a pool of individuals (aka the ‘gold nuggets’) who could act as guest speakers, consultants, collaborators, volunteers, project partners, Rotary advocates, participants of future Rotary opportunities, sponsors or donors and even potentially future members. These individuals are Rotary’s alumni; past participants or recipients of Rotary’s Youth and Foundation programs and scholarships.
Unlike many other individuals in the community Rotary could connect with, Alumni are often already passionate and grateful about their Rotary experience and its impact and can be particularly motivated following their experience to continue their relationship with Rotary. However, as Clubs and members we often fail to invest and mine these gold nuggets.
To assist Clubs in connecting and engaging with Rotary Alumni we have the following available:
- Your Club’s updated Alumni List (via RI) is emailed annually to the Club President and Secretary by the end of September. Only certain program/scholarship Alumni are recorded by RI. Clubs are encouraged to collate and maintain their own Club Alumni lists and provide a copy to the District Committee for record keeping.
- Various resources available via the District Alumni Webpage
- Webinar on how to Connect and Engage with Rotary Alumni on 31 August 2023 at 7pm (booking details coming soon)
- Committee members available to present to your Club or speak with interested members (contact Kehela via kehelavandenberg@9810rotary.org.au to arrange
- Alumni Pins that can be provided to your Club’s Alumni (purchase via https://www.trybooking.com/BZGKJ)
- Alumni Banner that Clubs, Youth Programs and Foundation Committee can borrow for their Alumni events from September 2023
For Rotary Alumni associated with this District we are planning the following upcoming events:
- End of year luncheon
- District 9810 Alumni Reunion in the first half of 2024
Meanwhile applications are now open for the Rotary Alumni Global Service Award - which recognises an outstanding Rotary alumnus or alumna each year whose career, activities and service to humanity illustrate the impact of Rotary's programs. The nomination period commences 1 July until 15 September of each year. All Rotary alumni are eligible for consideration. More information and the nomination form is available via: https://my.rotary.org/en/learning-reference/learn-topic/awards.
Whether you are in a Club or District role – always ask ‘how we can involve our Rotary Alumni?’.
Kehela Vandenberg
District 9810 Alumni Chair