President Tim puts forward some thoughts in our weekly programme commencing 3rd January, 2013

I thought as we start a New Year, it would be good for us all to revisit our Rotary Theme for 2012/13, Peace through Service. During the Christmas period I believe we are reminded about the need to renew, revisit and engage with friends and family, a time for sharing goodwill messages and even getting together to celebrate this special time.
In our last weekly programme I reviewed what our eClub had achieved in just one year as a team working together, it was certainly impressive, so this week I want us to consider the need for us all to continue to build our friendships within the eClub through engaging with the Service projects we undertake as an E-Rotary Club.
It is our listening, supporting, encouraging, laughing and talking to each other that helps build our team, we can do this in a number of different ways:

• through the Service activities we undertake together
• through supporting and encouraging each other through posts on Facebook or Twitter or Linked In
• through our comments and thoughts we post on our eClub meeting place here on this website
• through a phone call to discuss an idea or even using Skype
• through the informal get together opportunities organised by the eClub or the ones organised by one or two members in the same area
• through going to visit or helping other Rotary Clubs in the area you live or work
• plus other ways..

What is important is that we see this interaction with each other as an important aspect of our E-Rotary experience, to me this is how we develop relationships, greater understanding of each other and where we come from and how we can best help each other, to me this is how Peace with others will be achieved. If we’ve got it right within our own E-Rotary experience, then when we interact with others it will be a natural process as to how we do things.

Our theme this year Peace through Service gives greater emphasis to us to build our friendships with each other in the eClub whilst we continue to develop our Service above Self to our community. We have much still to do in 2013, however let us all place more emphasis on getting to know each other better, encouraging each other and having fun together whilst we do Rotary.

How about as a new year’s resolution – choose two people you don’t really know in the eClub and through using Social Media or this website or Skype get to know them better by March 2013!

Which activities can you get involved with in the next three months?

• Post Christmas Get Together at Jimmy’s on the 12th January
• Visit to Uplands School new project at the end of January, where as an eClub we may be asked to do some painting
• Help plant hedgerow in the Stroud area, to be organised by Katharine, date tbc
• Help promote the Autism Awareness Workshop to be held on the 16th March
• Help with the virtual balloon race in February, for the British Heart Foundation – in Heart Month
• Attend the next round of District Zone Meetings or the District Council Plus on the 16th January with me
• Being involved with the Group Study Exchange from North Carolina a chance to learn more about Rotary’s Foundation work
• Meet the RIBI President on the 27th February and help showcase E-Rotary

Or have you an idea about something that needs our involvement? Use this meeting to suggest the idea, lets discuss it and see what we can come up with to help you get it happening….