Pearl Rotary Awareness Raising Kicks In

A top priority for Pearl Rotary's membership program this year is to raise awareness of the club's program and activities among businesses, organizations and residents of our local service area, the Pearl District and NW Portland.

Pearl Rotary changed its name from Northwest Industrial Rotary of Portland and its location to the Pearl District some five years ago. Since then, the club has sunk roots in the community and this year plans to focus its membership recruitment and public relations efforts to expand its presence in its home base.

First steps include the revision and updating of the club's marketing brochure (see our web site's Clubrunner section "Club documents" for a copy). Now completed and printed - thanks to Pearl Rotarian Jerry Baysinger's

contribution - copies of the new brochure will be placed at outlets throughout the Pearl and Nob Hill at banks, coffee shops and key employers.

Pearl Rotary's Membership Committee will also spearhead an effort to make presentations on behalf of the club at local businesses and in condominium buildings in the area. Development of a new Pearl Rotary poster for public placement is also planned. A large public "sandwich board" display sign is now placed each Tuesday in front of the club's meeting place, the Ecotrust Bldg., notifying the public of our regular weekly meeting.

In addition to raising public awareness of Pearl Rotary, the Membership Committee has developed a strategy for 2009-10 around recruitment and orientation of new members and retention of existing members.

Approved by the club board at its July meeting, the strategy has these goals: a net of five new members for Pearl Rotary by the end of 2009-2010; meeting and exceeding District 5100 goal for membership retention of 80%; assuring each new member has an early assignment of a mentor and a club committee and/or project.

"Getting recently inducted members involved early and often in club activities will be the key to a high retention rate for the coming year," says Don Barney, chair of Pearl Rotary's Membership Committee for 2009-10. Other members of the committee are Myron Fehr, Shaun Brennan, Duane Cook, Dee Wolfe, Nancy Parker, Paul Cathcart, and Club Services Director Ivy Nelson.