It all started as a lark. Wouldn’t it be fun to visit some virtual Rotary meetings during the pandemic? It soon became my mission to attend a virtual Rotary meeting in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Canada and Mexico.
This mission began quite by accident. I was asked to be a guest speaker via Zoom at the Parkville, Missouri Rotary Club. I gladly accepted and logged in to my first Rotary virtual meeting, other than at my home Club in Cloquet, Minnesota. It was an enjoyable experience for me, and good for them to have a program presented from someone outside their geographical area.
Like many others, I was working virtually from home during the pandemic. That, along with a broken leg and harsh Northern Minnesota weather provided me with ample opportunity to accomplish this project. I could go to meetings anywhere my computer could take me.
Moving from state to state throughout my career, I knew I would be welcomed, so I started my journey. I accessed the Club Finder feature in the Rotary.Org website and soon found a club with a zoom link included. My journey officially began with a virtual visit to the Phoenix East Rotary Club in Arizona. I liked it so much that I visited two more clubs that day; Uvalde Texas and Kamloops, British Columbia. I was officially hooked on crashing club meetings. Always, I was graciously welcomed. There was usually an air of excitement at the prospect of having a Rotarian visiting virtually. My adventure was underway.
I crashed a Christmas Party in Cheyenne, Wyoming. (It was a good thing I had my “Ugly Christmas Hat” handy as the “Ugly Christmas Sweater” contest was a highlight of the day.) During other meetings, I heard of great social activities, such as “Drag Queen Bingo”, and humanitarian efforts such as Alaskan Rotarians packaging caribou meat for those in need. Rotarians were continuing to raise funds for scholarships, foundation work, and local community needs, through events such as “Running of the (Golf) Balls”, “Poinsettia Sales” and a “Beer Can Fundraiser”. Speakers and programs ranged from Member Classification Talks, to the Kansas Secretary of State, President of the National Urban League, a Rotary District Governor, a Rotary Peace Scholar, and even The Vegan Magician, Live via Zoom from London, England.
I learned of marvelous efforts of clubs supporting local causes, such as the Chelsea (Massachusetts) Club’s Service Dog Project and the Petaluma Valley (California) Club’s Helping Hand Grants for local teachers. Through it all, it was readily apparent: “Service Above Self” is alive and well, even in the midst of a pandemic.
It was good to learn that Rotary traditions remained strong in virtual meetings, including the reciting of the Four Way Test, member fines, happy bucks, and yes, even singing clubs. (I cannot pass the opportunity to remind all that the mute function is critical for singing clubs.)
I was reminded of the international part of Rotary International while attending meetings in Australia, Mexico and Canada. I was impressed that the Washington, D.C. Club, was entertaining guests from Russia, Italy, England, Ghana, Nigeria, Uganda, France and Scotland.
Not surprisingly, I learned that most clubs have technology problems and that seldom do Zoom meetings go as well as hoped. I also learned that most clubs experience problems with Zoom etiquette, and members need to be reminded frequently to (1) Mute your microphone when you are not speaking and unmute when it is your turn to speak. (2) Keep background noise to a minimum. (3) Limit distractions and avoid multi-tasking, as that distracts others (4) Be well prepared if you are speaking and know how to share your screen. (5) Don’t stare at yourself during the meeting. (6) Turn your camera on whenever possible. (It is very unsatisfying to be staring at a screen full of names and not seeing a smiling face looking back at you). Again, every club has issues with technology. Make it a goal to reduce these distractions.
Finding access to a link to join a meeting virtually was by far the biggest hurdle for me to overcome. I urge clubs to aggressively promote the link to your meetings on the RI club finder, your club website, Facebook, newsletters and any social media you utilize. This significantly enhances the potential reward of attracting visiting Rotarians.
Also, meeting links must be accurate. Frequently, I attempted to attend a virtual meeting only to discover the meeting link was invalid. Also, links must be prominently displayed. Often times I searched a club’s website thoroughly, only to find the meeting link tucked away in an attachment or page that non-members would overlook. Importantly, if a contact person’s name is listed, they should respond promptly to inquiries. (I emailed many clubs that responded weeks later, if at all.) Unanswered emails, phone or text messages lead to hesitation about attending a meeting and fails the tenants of the Four Way Test.
A practical tip I learned the hard way for anyone planning to attend virtual meeting is to verify the time zones of the meeting host! I sometimes logged on to a meeting an hour early or an hour late, failing to recognize that some states are divided by time zones, and some states don’t recognize daylight savings time.
It became obvious during my virtual Rotary road trip that Rotary continues to lack diversity. True, women make up much more of our membership and the average age of Rotarians seems to have come down. However, the distinct absence of people of color in most meetings was disappointing. It became apparent to me that most clubs need to do a much better job of attracting and retaining members that reflect the diversity of their communities.
On March 5th, 2021, I officially met my goal of attending a virtual Rotary meeting in all fifty states, the District of Columbia, Canada and Mexico. The final meeting was the Smoketown Rotary Club of Brunswick, Maryland.
Throughout this virtual adventure, I met many dedicated Rotarians, some of which were characters. My love for Rotary was bolstered. I am prouder to be a Rotarian than ever before.
In conclusion, I strongly encourage clubs to make virtual attendance as easy as possible for visiting Rotarians, guests and potential members. I also encourage members to visit other clubs virtually, so that they may experience the benefits that I did.
