Meeting Notes.....1/27/11

President Jen Hogan presided over the meeting today.  She opened the meeting with The Pledge of Allegiance and the singing of God Bless America.  Leonard Kimball gave the invocation before lunch.

CLUB SERVICE:

Adam Dow welcomed Mac McPeake back after an extended trip to Egypt and Jordan.  He also welcomed guest and soon-to-be Rotarian Leonard Kimball, a visiting Rotarian from the Bat Sunrise Rotary Club and a returning guest, Bates College Student, Stephan, who is from a Rotary family.  Stephan and his college roommate, also from a Rotary family, are interested in beginning a Rotaract Chapter at Bates.  We will be sure to follow up with them to make this a reality.

Tom Knight won today’s 50/50 Drawing!

Happy Dollars:  Several Rotarians including President Jen had happy dollars today.

FOUNDATION THOUGHT:

Phil Nadeau gave today’s Foundation Minute on why we should support our Rotary Foundation.  The Annual Programs Fund is the primary source of unrestricted support for the programs of the Rotary Foundation. It funds programs in more than 160 countries on seven continents. From digging clean water wells for villages in Africa to teaching basic literacy skill to children in Latin America, during any given moment in a day, thousands of Rotarians volunteer their time and expertise ensure that all contributions given to The Annual Programs Fund are spent wisely on quality Rotary projects. Only if Every Rotarian makes a gift to the Annual Programs Fund Every Year, will we will be able to continue to do the great work of our Rotary Foundation.

ANNOUNCEMENTS:

Shawn Wright gave more details about the Comedy Show on March 18 to benefit Polio Plus and other Rotary programs.

 PROGRAM:

Vice President Nancy Richard introduced our speaker, Marc Pitman, today.  An international fundraising trainer, Marc A. Pitman is the author of Ask Without Fear! founder of FundraisingCoach.com, a website dedicated to practical ideas for fundraising more effectively.

Because of his dynamic trainings, Marc is invited to speak to organizations like Blackbaud’s Conferences for Nonprofits, Habitat for Humanity International, the New England Association for Healthcare Philanthropy, the Association of Fundraising Professionals, and even the International Bowling Expo. His experience in nonprofit fundraising in many sectors (colleges, prep schools, and healthcare), in executive coaching, and in leadership training has caused him to be sought out by NBC, CBS, Fox News, Reuters, the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, the Chronicle of Philanthropy, and the American Marketing Association.

Marc uses the formula “Get R.E.A.L” when coaching others to lead a successful fundraiser.

R   Set REAL goals….set a specific dollar amount as your goal.

E    ENGAGE your donor.  Marc explained this step as the “dating    stage”….Get to know your donors and create your donor relations.

A    ASK for the money!  Make an appointment and be sure to ask for a specific amount.  Let the donor process your request before speaking again.

L     LOVE!  Love your donor and work on getting a long-term commitment to support your cause for many years.

Marc’s final tip was to be sure to THANK your donors.  The magic number is 7 times.  Be sure to thank your donors on ALL printed literature in addition to personal “thank yous.”

Shawn Wright thanked our speaker today.