Rotary International

District 3820, Philippines                                 

Michael E. Lirio                                                  

District Governor, RY 2004-05                       

  November 15, 2003

  Dear President-Elect:

As we start preparing for our year of service, I have prepared some helpful hints that will guide you in the preparation, as well as the actual execution of your elected position.

As the leader of your club, you have the unique opportunity and responsibility to guide your club towards achieving the Object of Rotary by ensuring that your club operates effectively.

Considering the fact that our year of service is a very special year for the entire Rotary world, I would like all of you to have not only a fruitful year but also an enjoyable one. Remember, you have to truly enjoy Rotary to really love it!  

I would appreciate it if you carefully read the guidelines and tips in the succeeding pages and implement them before and during your year of service. The same will be discussed during the Pre-PETS and by your Assistant Governor (AG) in his/her first visit to your club in the last quarter of Rotary Year 2003-04.

Please do not hesitate to call me, or your AG, if you have any questions. Thank you and good luck in your preparations.

Yours in Rotary Service,

DGE Mike

Our Guide towards a successful year of Service

  Before your Year of Service:

1.   Make sure that your incumbent President and Secretary report to Rotary International (RI) your data as President-Elect (PE) and that of your Secretary-Elect (SE) on or before December 31, 2003. Let us not wait for the deadline. As early as today, RI accepts submission of incoming presidents and secretaries through the business portal www.rotary.org.

2.   To ensure a smooth turnover and monitoring, the District Governor Elect (DGE) requests you to ask the incumbent secretary to furnish you a copy of your club’s July 2003 and January 2004 SAR. It should include the Official Receipt of Payment by the Philippine Consulting Office or the authorized bank. Please send me a copy.

3.   Your Incoming Assistant Governor (AG) __________________ of RC ____________ will visit your club during the last quarter of RY 2003-04 to confer with you and help you in your preparation for your year of service.

4.   The AG will prepare a Memo on Club Visit and will make a confidential memo to the District Governor (DG) on the status of your club. Please ask the incumbent president to help and support you and the incoming AG.

   5.   The DGE will host a Pre-PETS on January 10, 2004. All PEs together with their spouses are cordially invited to attend. It will be held at Governor Modesto Castillo Cultural Center in Tanauan City. Registration will start at 9:00 AM. We encourage you to come early.

6.   ALL PE and SE ARE REQUIRED TO ATTEND THE PETS/SETS ‘04 ON MARCH 20-21, 2004 at Dalampasigan Resort, Sariaya, Quezon. Host club is Rotary Club of Lipa South, Chaired by Incumbent AG Eugene Morales. This is the best time for you to be trained and to prepare for your year of service. Exit VISAS together with your Certificate of Participation shall be PERSONALLY ISSUED TO YOU BY DISTRICT SECRETARY(DS) for Administration Art Laurena after adjournment on March 21. This will ensure full participation at the PETS/SETS. AG Eugene Morales will get in touch with you as to the details of this activity. The host club is now accepting pre-registration fees at a discounted rate.

7.   For those presidents who will miss this COMPULSORY TRAINING, he or she will be required to attend other districts’ PETS; or a special PETS could be conducted by the AG in the office of the DGE or office of the AG with cost of transportation and other essential expenses of the AG during the special PETS to be borne out and paid for by the participants.

8.   The DGE will have a special forum for ALL PEs during the PETS. This is the best time for the PEs to inquire/ask questions to the DGE about their concerns. ALL AGs will be requested to attend the forum.

9.   The District Assembly ‘04 will be held on April 24-25, 2004 at the Development Academy of the Philippines in Tagaytay City. It will be hosted by the Rotary Club of Sta. Rosa South. District Chairman is CP Rey Añonuevo. This is a COMPULSORY activity for all Incoming Club Officers. Again, EXIT VISAS together with your Certificate of Participation shall be PERSONALLY ISSUED TO YOU BY DISTRICT SECRETARY(DS) for Administration Art   Laurena after the adjournment on April 25.  We will also conduct the TRF Academy simultaneous with the DISTASS.  We expect all club TRF chairmen to attend.  Watch out for CP Rey’s communications.  The host club is now accepting pre-registration fees at a discounted rate.

10. The EXIT Visas are to be attached on the RY 2004-05 DISTRICT GOVERNOR’S AWARD KIT (RY 2004-05 Activity monitor form), which will be submitted, as proof of participation, at the end of the year during the yearend review. This is one of the required supporting documents for a club to qualify for the yearend awards.

11. ALL owners of unclaimed Exit visas are to be considered as absent in the PETS/SETS and DISTASS and shall be required to have make-ups. The unclaimed Exit Visas are to be forwarded to the incoming AGs for proper action and disposition.

12. The DGE is encouraging all PEs to attend the District Year End Review and DITAC for RY 2003-04. The main purpose is for you to have an idea of our year of service and for you to prepare well. Attendance will be checked and will be credited as attendance to a district affair for RY 2004-05. 

13. All clubs are encouraged to have a Club Assembly immediately after the DISTASS. It will be the best time for you to echo to your club members what you learned during the PETS/SETS and DISTASS. It is also the best time for you to announce to the general membership your plans and programs for your year of service.

14. The DGE will host a DGE breakfast during the Legaspi District Conference on Saturday, March 6, 2004. This is by invitation only.  PEs, and Incoming District Officers are invited   to    attend    the    breakfast.   Please   confirm   your participation with PP Evelyn Laurena of RC Metro Tanauan (0917 4866547).

15. Please submit to your AG the Planning Guide for your Year of Service during the months of April-June 2004.

16. For better time management, the DGE has prepared a schedule of his visits during the months of July to September 2004. Please refer to Incoming DS for Operations PP Pol Hernandez for your schedule.

17. The DGE fully encourages joint inductions. This will save lots of time and money. This will also give more time for clubs to concentrate on the Governor’s Visit. He has patterned the inductions based on the clubs who held joint inductions this RY 2003-04. All other clubs are encouraged to talk with other clubs for bigger joint inductions. Group level clubs are encouraged to have joint inductions (i.e. Area 2, Group 5 clubs – Tanauan, Metro Tanauan, Malvar, and Sto. Tomas – will have one induction). 

18. All clubs who will hold joint inductions are encouraged to have a joint project, using the savings gained during the induction as seed money.

The purpose of the governor’s official visit is to focus attention on important Rotary issues, to motivate Rotarian participation, to provide individual attention to special attention clubs, and to recognize outstanding Rotarians. I suggest the following:

1.   Ensure that the PE and SE (Presidents and Secretaries for RY 2005-06) join in the initial meeting with the DG. That meeting will precede the presentation of Plans and Objectives. A Club Assembly (all members are needed) will follow, with the DG delivering a short message, summarizing, among others, what transpired during the Governor’s Visit.

 2.   The DG hopes that the Council of Past Presidents be present during the Club Assembly. The DG wants to confer with the PPs on the state of health of the club.

 3.   If the Governor’s Visit will coincide with your club’s induction, the meeting will start at 10:00 AM SHARP. There    might be some deviations, but we will try to adhere to this schedule.

 4.   The DG wants to focus on the Governor’s Visit, which is of great importance; so the DG is discouraging visitation of club projects on the day the DG visits your club.

 5.   The following is the suggested program for the Governor’s Visit: 

 09:30 AM    Arrival of the DG

10:00 AM    Call to Order/Start of Meeting with President,   Secretary and PE

10:45 AM    Reporting of Club Officers/ Plans and Completed Projects

12:00 NN     Lunch and Club Assembly

12:30 PM     Short Talk of District Governor

01:00 PM     Other Matters/Concerns

02:00 PM     Adjournment

02:00 PM     Rest

06:00 PM     Induction

6.  If the visit does not coincide with the induction night, meaning, the DG will have no scheduled induction for the day, he will devote longer time for the club assembly and open forums.

 7.   If the Governor’s Visit is done in the month of August 2004, the DG expects to receive reports of your completed projects for July 2004. The same is true if the visit is conducted in the month of September (the DG expects a report on the completed projects for July and August).

8.   In NO WAY should the Governor’s Visit be postponed simply because the visit coincides with the Induction night and members have not prepared well for the visit. The visit should be the centerpiece event of the day, with the induction as a mere icing on the cake.

 9.   Aside from club visitations, the DG is required by RI to prepare and submit, on a monthly basis, voluminous paperwork and reports. For Clubs who want the DG to be present in project launches and presentations, please give the schedule to DS Pol Hernandez during the Governor’s Visit or at least one (1) month in advance. We are very good and responsible professionals and businessmen; so it is upon us to plan ahead for our projects. Deputy District Governors and/or Coordinating Chair for Community projects are able representatives of the DG.

On New Members:

Please remember that our members comprise the lifeline of our club. Without them, we will not be able to have a successful year of service.

1.   The reason why the DG attended Club Inductions during his time as DGE is for him to monitor new members inducted during RY 2003-04. The DG expects that these new members are retained for RY 04-05 and are actively participating in club activities. That is on top of the required new members to be inducted during RY 2004-05.

2.   All Clubs with less than 30 members are encouraged to recruit to make their total membership a minimum of 30.

 3.   All Clubs are requested to have a special Rotary Information and Orientation seminar to all New and Sophomore Rotarians in one of your club meetings. A regular meeting devoted for this is encouraged. This should be conducted by a PP or a knowledgeable Rotarian in the club, or in the District. A detailed report on this is required from you. Clubs can invite our District Rotary Information Chairman/AG/TRF Chairman (please see #1 below on Other Matters and Concerns).

 4.   All PEs are required to submit their targeted number of new members for RY 2004-05 to their AG during his first visit during the last quarter of RY 03-04.

During your year of Service:

  Congratulations! You are now the president of the world’s first service organization. This is the first day of your new life! I suggest that you do the following:

 1.   First and foremost, please make sure that the club pays its obligation with RI before plans for a grand club induction night is planned. We will not encourage clubs to plan for their inductions if said club is in arrears with RI. The deadline of payment for the 1^st semester is July 31, 2004 and January 31, 2005 for the 2^nd semester.  The office of the DG can help you facilitate payment to RI.

 2.   Please take note of the Provision of the recent October 30 Board Resolution of Rotary International which will take effect on July 1, 2004.

E-9.  Revision of Procedures for Collection of Club Past Due Financial Obligations

Effective 1 July 2004, The Board amends its policy regarding the collection cycle for club financial obligations to RI.  The new collection cycle will:

a.    shorten the collection cycle for club financial obligations(a 90-say reminder, then termination of the club after 180 days from the due date- 1 July 0r 1 January)

b.   eliminate the intermediate suspension  of services to clubs in arrears

c.    require a reinstatement fee of US$10.00 per member for terminated clubs

d.     require a club being reorganized after 270 days to pay a charter fee as a newly admitted club

3.   Please expect your AG to visit your club a minimum of one (1) visit per quarter (minimum total of five (5) visits for the whole year). The AG is encouraged to visit “Special Attention clubs” more often. Please call the attention of the DG when the AG does not visit you.

4.   The following are some important dates and data during your year of service. The DG hopes that you have projects that pertain to the thrusts of each of the following months:

a.   July is Literacy month

b.  August is Membership and Extension month

c.   September is New Generations month

d.  October is Vocational Service month

e.   November is The Rotary Foundation month

f.    January is Rotary Awareness month

g.   February is World Understanding month

h.   April is Magazine month

5.   The district will list down all district activities in the Directory. Please take note of the dates of these activities and reserve the day for the said activity.

6.   The President and Secretary, together with the concerned Club Chairperson, are expected to attend ALL district affairs and activities.

a.     The Club Service chairperson together with his/her sub committees and ALL the new members are expected to attend the Membership Development and Club Service Seminar.

b.     The TRF and International Service Chairperson together with their respective sub committees are expected to attend the TRF/International Service Seminar.

c.     The Youth Service Chair, together with all his respective sub committees, are expected to attend the RYLA and Youth Service Seminars.

d.     The Vocational and Community Service Chairmen together with all his/her respective sub committees are expected to attend the RCC/Vocational and Community Service Seminar.

7.     ALL Clubs are enjoined to participate in ALL district activities, big and small.

8.     Aside from compulsory training seminars, the DG has lined up several fellowship activities for the year (i.e. District Sports fest, DISCON). All clubs are required to participate in these fellowship activities.

9.     Joint club meetings/fellowships among neighboring clubs are fully encouraged. However, the DG strongly suggests that he is properly informed before any joint meetings/fellowships are planned. The joint meeting should not in any way be in conflict with any district affair and the DG is fully briefed on the aims and topics of said meeting.

10. District Officers are on hand to help the clubs with their respective concerns. They are fully briefed on their respective duties and are fully equipped with the knowledge and materials with respect to their committees. The DG is requesting clubs to course their concerns with the respective district officers first (i.e. Concerns on YEP to CP Tom Clemeno,   Rotary Information to IPP Vincent Eleazar, etc.) before the DG.

11.                                                                                                                                                                                             All clubs are required to submit a MID-YEAR REPORT. Due on January 15, 2005 to your respective AGs. Copy furnished PP Linda Coniconde of RC Bay (Chairman for Awards) and the office of the DG.

12.                     This early, we are requesting the clubs to plan for the District Conference in Baguio City on March 4, 5 & 6, 2005. CAP-JOHN HAY is the venue. With the Manor as the official hotel. You may wish to stay in other hotels or houses. DISCON Chairman Tato Dimayuga can help you source one. This will be the culmination and celebration of our success and Rotary’s Centennial year.

13.                     One of the most important parts of the DISCON is the Business meeting. ALL CLUB PRESIDENTS or the club’s duly authorized representatives are REQUIRED to attend the business meeting. All Presidents and/or duly authorized representative will need to sign in their attendance on the business meeting.

14.                     ALL Clubs are encouraged to have joint or individual Centennial Projects. Early schedules are requested so that the DG can visit and attend as many projects as possible. If there is any conflict, the DG will request the DGE and the IPDG to represent him.

15.                     We encourage ALL Rotarians to attend the 96th International Convention in Chicago on June 19-22, 2005. This is a good opportunity for all Rotarians to see and witness Rotary’s culminating celebration of the Centennial year. To help facilitate processing of USA visas, the following will be required from Rotarians (who still have to secure US visas) wanting to have a certification from the DG for US Embassy purposes:

a.     Receipt and certification from RI that the Rotarian has pre-registered for the convention. RI usually sends Letters of Invitation for pre-registered Rotarians. The DG suggests that you pre-register on or before December 31, 2004 for you to get the invitation in time for the interview.

b.     Only duly registered members and spouses are to be certified by the DG. If the Rotarian and spouse would want to bring their children, they will also have to be registered for RI requires all attendees to be duly registered.

c.     A certification from the president of the club that the visa applicant is a member in good standing of the particular club. A copy of the SAR should be submitted.

d.     The DG cannot guarantee that the above will assure issuance of visas by the US Embassy; but it will surely help. The applicant will still have to substantiate with the consul his proposed travel.

16. Please take note that since the 1999 Singapore International    convention, RI has implemented a NO ID, NO ENTRY policy. All Rotarians, guests, visitors are required to register before they can gain access to the convention hall and the House of Friendship.

Other Matters and Concerns:

1.   As you all know, the DG will be sending you Governor’s Monthly Letters (GML). The GMLs, however, will come to you almost a month late. The DG strongly suggests that all Presidents and Secretaries be active in our egroup. Kindly enroll email addresses with our DICO, IPP Ton Bugaoan. Please open your emails often for you to be updated on what is happening in our district.

2.   The district encourages all clubs to invite the District officers (i.e. District Coordinating Chairpersons, AGs, TRF Chairman, etc.).  However, if clubs invite officers, past officers of the district and RI, or other Rotarians to come for other visits or events, the individual club is expected to pay their expenses (Rotary Code of Policies 8.030.).

3.   The DG would like all clubs to take note of the provision of the Manual of Procedures on Circularizing Rotary Clubs:

The limits of authorized circularization of Rotary clubs, as prescribed by convention action, are as follows:

a.   a member club desiring to request the cooperation of other clubs in connection with any matter whatsoever,  shall  first submit its purpose and plans to, and secure the approval of, the respective governor or governors;

b.  no member club shall solicit financial aid from any other club or from individual Rotarians other than its own members unless and until it first secures an authorization from the RI Board. (80-102)

4. We all know that swapping and/or selling of tickets or solicitations between clubs will only have a negative effect in the financial coffers of any club. The DG is discouraging solicitations amongst clubs. If a club within the district has a fund raising project, said clubs is discouraged to sell tickets to the clubs within the district. Any solicitations of any club, shall be on a personal basis and should be personally be borne by the incumbent president, if he so decides to donates.

5.   All concerns and internal club problems should be coursed through the AG. The DG will entertain complaints and resolve problems only after the AG has exhausted all means on his level. Any unresolved conflicts shall be threshed out following the Club constitution, Rotary Code of Policies and the Manual of Procedures

6.     Awards are secondary purpose for each and every club. The real joy is in knowing that we have done something good for our community. The district will be giving out awards based on the criteria that will come out on or before April 2004 during the DISTASS. We hope to invite experienced Rotarians from outside the district to be part of the review panel during the Year End Review.

By following the above, we hope that you and your club will have not only a successful year of service but also an enjoyable one.

     GOOD LUCK!

          Notes: