SUCCESS! Our general meeting in April resulted in a full slate of officers. The previous Executive members had agreed to stay on for another year and Jan Dowswell agreed to fill in the vacant position of 2nd Vice President. We are so fortunate to have a full Executive. Many other chapters are struggling to fill positions with the great possibility of the chapters folding for lack of officers. Having said that, I want our volunteers to feel that we value their time and expertise and that we will not abuse this relationship by taking them for granted.
OPTIONS: One successful situation occurs in our Chapter. Zerlina Zamnuik volunteers as our Assistant Visitor Coordinator. This allows Cathy Zitzelsberger to travel for a few weeks at a time without disrupting the Visiting Program. When Cathy comes back, she resumes her responsibilities and Zerlina is not tied into the position full time and she gets the opportunity to learn the ropes. And Cathy returns refreshed and ready to go at it again!
CHANGING PROCESSES: At the present time our Treasurer has been doing her job for eight years. With her help and an offer from Jan Dowswell we are in the process of separating the Membership responsibilities from the Treasurer's position. According to Rosemary, this will take a lot of pressure off the treasurer. In the meantime, Rosemary is working to put our finances on the ‘Quick Books Pro' computer program as opposed to manually inputting the finances in a 30 column ledger book. She too, is hoping to take time to travel and would like to find a backup who would be able to pick up where she left off until she returns. She is also in the learning stage on the ‘Quick Books Pro" program and would love to find someone she could compare notes with.
HOPEFUL: What I am hoping is that there is some member out there, or a family member, who would act as a back up for Rosemary. Or if you are experienced in ‘Quick Books Pro" that you might mentor her as she works through the program. It would be a great benefit to our Chapter if there is another member who would be willing to take this on in a casual position and gain the experience and knowledge of our organization. Are you that person or do you know of someone who might fit this description?
OTHER OPPORTUNITIES: We do have other areas that need a willing person, or persons, to help out with - if that meets your time and commitment in a better way. They are listed on the back of the newsletter. We don't suggest you do it full time - just work for a couple of months or if there are enough volunteers, it could be done on a rotation basis.
PERKS: You get a chance to work with a vibrant group of people for a worthwhile cause. You can name your terms. This is one of the best ways of getting to know people even better.
REQUEST: Don't wait for someone else to volunteer. Let me know if you might be able to help out in some way. Our Chapter would love to have you on board.
Lorrie Pismenny
