The Golden Valley Rotary Board of Directors met for a conference call on March 19, 2020 to make important decisions for the near future of the Golden Valley Rotary Club. We share a deep concern for you, your loved ones, the Golden Valley community, and the community at large.
Due to the spread of COVID-19, the federal government and the state of Minnesota strongly discourage meetings of more than 10 people. Rotary International has encouraged all Clubs to follow recommended guidelines. Therefore, the GV Rotary Board of Directors has decided that the Club will not meet in person through at least the end of April. Brookview Community Center has also suspended meetings and meal service until April 3, and we don’t know what their policy will be after that. As this is a fluid and rapidly evolving situation, we may decide to extend the timeline for resuming in-person meetings. We will keep you posted on future developments.
WHAT THIS MEANS FOR YOU AS A MEMBER
Meetings
There is a strong desire among the Board to continue to meet as a Club. As a result, we will continue our normal speaker program every Tuesday during our normal meeting time 12:15 p.m. – 1:15 p.m.
These meetings will be held virtually via Cisco WebEx. We used the WebEx platform for our Board meeting and it worked quite well. The platform allows the sharing of content similar to a PowerPoint presentation and anyone that calls has the capability of activating the camera function so you can see everyone that calls in. It is the next best thing to being there in person!
You will receive an email invitation to each meeting with directions and a link on how to access the meeting from your computer, phone, or other device. We’ll post updates on our Club website, Facebook page, and of course, the newsletter! Our goal is to bring us together, be interactive, and host our speakers and guests.
Club dues
Given that members are charged dues one quarter in arrears, members will be charged their normal amount for Q1 2020 (i.e. through March 31, 2020). However, since we will not have in-person meetings the last three weeks of March and therefore will not incur any meal costs for these weeks, any members on the standard billing cadence (i.e. the flat $300/quarter) can request a credit for the last three weeks of March, if they so choose, and that will be applied to the next invoice in June. If no credit is requested, these funds will go into Rotary’s general fund to help the Club operate or get donated back into the community.
Beginning April 1, all members will be charged under the R-85 billing format. This means that all members will be charged $60 per quarter for Rotary dues, but will only be charged for meals if an in-person meeting is held and there are meal costs incurred by the Club. For example, if we don’t have any in-person meetings between April 1 and June 30, 2020 every Club member will be invoiced for only $60. Likewise, if we resume in-person meetings on May 5 and are able to meet the last nine Tuesdays of the quarter through June 30, members will be charged for 9 meals in addition to the $60 for quarterly dues.
Make a difference in our community during this challenging time
Many in our community are experiencing housing, food, and income insecurity as a result of this unprecedented public health crisis. Please consider donating your time, talent, or treasure to the community. Here are a few examples of community engagement projects provided by our Rotary District:
- Facebook Group for Deliveries – Search “COVID-19 Delivery TC Metro. There are 22 subgroups set up to cover the metro area.
- HandsOn Twin Cities has a coordinated volunteer group here
- Many news articles have been published on various ways to support groups – Postcards for the Elderly , Supporting Healthcare Workers
- Check the websites and Facebook pages for your favorite non-profits to see how you can stay engaged – donating online, looking at their wish lists, etc. A few specific organization we discussed at the Board meeting are as follows:
- PRISM https://www.prismmpls.org/
- YMCA https://www.ymcamn.org/give
- Any of the philanthropic organizations that are part of the network of supports for Minnesota Disaster Relief Recovery Fund (MDRF) for Coronavirus. See the details at https://mcf.org/minnesota-
disaster-recovery-fund- coronavirus
These are very difficult times for people who, like us, are at our best when we are learning, growing, and serving - together. We look forward to the time when we can be in community again, as Rotarians and as friends.
Please reach back with your thoughts, questions, and ideas. Rotary Connects the World!
Stay well out there!
Bryan
Bryan Palmer
Golden Valley Rotary Club President, 2019-2020