Introduction

Pathways Rotary Club is the first online Rotary club of Rotary District 6600. Although the club began within District 6600, it has evolved to include any current Rotarians worldwide who may not find that their local club fits their needs but want to continue to be a part of Rotary. We link Rotarians and those that have been touched by Rotary through their experiences in many different Rotary alumni as former Rotary Youth Exchange students, RYLA, Group Study Exchange members, and Global and District Scholars and Vocational Training Teams (members and leaders). In addition, anyone who would like to put service above self and become a new Rotarian can feel welcome to begin their Rotary experience with our club in a format that suits their lifestyle.

Our purpose is to help make the world a better place while promoting fellowship among our members. Our members can do service wherever they are physically located in the world in concert with other Rotary clubs and come together as a club to further our literacy goals and build better lives for people around the world while helping preserve the planet we all share.

 

 

1. Executive Summary

Executive Summary

  • Opportunity: We can help people serve and create fellowship through Rotary in a new way using online resources.
  • Mission: Facilitate globalization of Rotary by expanding exposure to projects in various parts of the world and country and enabling a higher degree of geographic connectivity.
  • Solution: By bringing service-minded people together to share projects and experiences in other parts of the world, broader exposure and experience can be gained to tackle these problems.
  • Areas of Focus: We have seven areas of focus: basic education and literacy, bringing clean water to the world, peacebuilding and conflict prevention, disease prevention and treatment, maternal and child health, community economic development, and the environment.
  • Competitive advantage: Our online format allows us to reach people worldwide, not just in one location. Our dues are exceptionally low without having to provide a meeting venue and meals.

 

2.  Club overview

Our club was chartered on April 24, 2015. We meet online monthly using the Zoom app, with other meetings for fellowship, special events and committee meetings. We are proud of our diverse membership. Our membership ranges from new members new to Rotary to long-term Rotarians, including five Past District Governors. Ten of our members are Rotary Alumni, six former Group Study Exchange participants, and five former Rotary Youth Exchange Students and Rotary Youth Exchange Officers. Ten of our members have served as presidents of other Rotary Clubs. Whether we have been Rotarians for more than forty years or just a few months, we are all bonded by service above self, and an online club is the right fit for us at this period of our lives. We have members residing in ten different states in the United States and nine other countries. In addition to the base of our members that reside in Rotary District 6600 (Northwest Ohio, USA), we also have members living in other Rotary Districts of Ohio, California, Connecticut, Indiana, Michigan, Montana, South Carolina, Florida, Texas, and New York. Our international members reside in Mexico, Canada, Guatemala, Haiti, Germany, Finland, South Africa, Japan, and Taiwan. And we are growing! If you think an online Rotary club is right for you, if you have service to others in your heart, we would love you to consider joining us as a member of the Pathways Rotary Club.

www.PathwaysRotary.org

 

3.  How our club serves

Our club’s primary areas of focus for service projects are global in scope, in keeping with our global membership. We endeavor to serve while trying to meet several of Rotary International’s prime goals. Among them are promoting education, saving mothers and children, promoting local economies, providing clean water, sanitation, and hygiene, protecting our environment, and promoting world peace through better international relationships.

  • Literacy: The Guatemala Literacy Project, part of the Cooperative for Education, is a sustainable project to break the cycle of poverty in Guatemala by bringing books and technology to children there. While many nonprofits spread their resources across many countries, CoEd builds long-term relationships with our beneficiaries in one country, providing them with multiple, layered programs that combat poverty. Our “deep” development approach will bring about long-term, systemic change in Guatemala.
  • Our club currently sponsors five students in the RISE program, and many of our members sponsor other students individually. Several members of our club work in the program, and one of our club members is one of the organization’s founders.

 

                                                                          Sheyla I.                   María S.                         Luisa G.                    Jessica P.                    Claudia D.

 

 

Medical Equipment and Supplies Abroad: MESA is District 6600’s premier project to help better the lives of people throughout the world.  In the United States, there is a huge wealth of usable medical equipment and supplies no longer in service. The second-hand surplus in our country is often state-of-the-art to the healing needs of developing countries. Rotarians have the resources to collect, sort, identify, store, and ship millions of dollars of still usable medical supplies and equipment. The supplies and equipment go from MESA’s warehouse in Fostoria, Ohio, into a shipping container and then into the port of a local Rotary Club for distribution. Working with MESA, our members, collaborating with local Rotary clubs and local officials, have been able to get vitally needed medical supplies and food to Indigenous people in Mexico.

 

  • Bringing Clean Water to the World: In partnership with Rotary clubs in Chihuahua, Mexico, the FECHAC Foundation, CAPTAR, Creation Care International, and other groups, our club has obtained a Rotary Global Grant from the Rotary International Foundation to bring water to homes that have never had that vital source of life. The program has been so successful that we have recently completed a second global grant. An additional water project is underway.

 

 

 

 

 

  • Operation Pollination: With global membership, we realize that the world begins in our backyard. Operation Pollination is a movement within Rotary to rebuild and expand the habitat of the world’s pollinators to help preserve our planet and food supply. No matter where you are located on the globe, you can have an influence, no matter how small, that can create real change for the better. Our members can team with Rotary Clubs locally and do service projects to help create a better environment for all of us or plant a few pollinator-friendly plants in their backyard.

 

 

 

  • Pathways to Careers: We are building an online resource for middle school/high school students. We have a set of interviews with our members and other Rotarians on how they chose and prepared for their careers. We want to share our experiences to help young adults determine their path in life. The interviews are available on our website, and we will promote their availability through educational contacts in our communities.

 

  • Service through partnership: While the traditional model of being in service as a Rotarian with a weekly meeting and service projects in a local community may not fit our members’ lifestyle, we encourage our members to reach out to their local community club and see how they can participate. Being a member of our club means you are also a member of a 1.2-million-member organization, Rotary International, doing vital work to make this a better world and can attend Rotary meetings worldwide. We feel that lending our hands and hearts occasionally to our local clubs while having the pleasure of fellowship with Rotarians worldwide is one of our group’s greatest assets.

 

 

4.  Why belong to an online Rotary club?

  • You want to put “service above self.”
  • Your busy life may not allow you to attend a weekly luncheon meeting.
  • You would like to meet other like-minded individuals from around the world.
  • You would like to explore what it is to become a Rotarian.
  • You have a busy travel schedule. You can stay abreast of Rotary and belong to the Pathways Club, thus enabling you to “attend” or catch up on meetings and presentations at your convenience 24/7.
  • You have been a Rotarian in a local club and have now moved away but would like to retain a connection with your fellow Rotarians.
  • You have had experience with a Rotary project like Youth Exchange or Group Study Exchange.
  • You might have mobility problems that preclude your ability to attend weekly meetings.
  • You are looking for a lower-cost alternative to a local club. Without having to pay for a venue for meetings or food and beverages at those meetings, our club has an exceptionally low operating cost and, consequently, exceptionally low dues.
  • We always strive to improve the club for our members and those we serve.

 

 

 

SWOT (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats) analysis looks at how we can continue to thrive and improve and where we face challenges.

STRENGTHS

·     Flexibility

·     Global reach

·     Diversity

1.     Cultural

2.     Geographic

3.     Experiential

·       Lower Cost

 WEAKNESSES

·     Individual initiative required

·     Communication challenges

·     Time differences
OPPORTUNITIES

·     Cultural enhancement

·     Language opportunities

·     Global reach

·     Learning

·     Enhance Rotary globalization

 Threats

·     Engagement needs to be constantly nurtured.

·     Other online clubs

·     Economic differences

·     Over time, where does the club “belong” within Rotary

 

 

5.  Operating Plan

We meet online using the Zoom app monthly with other meetings as needed for fellowship or other purposes. Our board of directors will meet at least bi-monthly.

  • Technology: Our primary meeting tool is the Zoom application for online video meetings. Members must be able to access the internet and run the Zoom application on whatever device they have for internet access. They must be able to use an internet browser to connect with Rotary International’s My Rotary They must have an email address to receive club communications and provide it to the club. They must be registered on the club’s preferred club management website, DACdb.
  • Officers: Officers are elected by the club and include the president, president-elect, secretary, and treasurer. Other board members are outlined in our club by-laws.
  • Facilities: Without a physical terrestrial location, our club is currently part of Rotary District 6600, Zone 30 of Rotary International, which is composed of members from around the world. Our club was founded in Lorain County, Ohio, and is part of Areas 13 & 14 of District 6600.

 

 

 

Pathways is in Rotary District 6600.                     Rotary District 6600 is in Zone 30

 

6.  Marketing Plan

Building our membership into a group that remains connected and involved is one of our biggest challenges as an online organization. We can use tools in the online community, such as Facebook, Instagram, and our website https://www.pathwaysrotary.org/, to present ourselves to potential members and keep our current members informed and involved.  As part of this, each member is expected annually to present an online program (TED Talks are one source) that not only informs members but provides a way for Rotarians to get meeting credit. These are posted weekly on our website.

  • Key messages: We must clarify what an online Rotary club has to offer to make it attractive to become a new member and keep current members. We must communicate that this is a different kind of Rotary, “not your father’s Rotary club,” but committed to the same goals as traditional clubs. We need to communicate that this is a new, exciting challenge requiring individual commitment greater than that of the old typical Rotary club.
  • Marketing activities: How can we best get the word out about our club?
  • Use of Rotary International Channels
  • Word of mouth
  • Digital Marketing

 

7.  Financial Plan

Currently, our club is self-financed. We primarily rely on member donations to fund our projects. We can leverage funds that members contribute to the Rotary Foundation through District and Global grants, but we need member contributions or other fundraising sources to access those foundation funds.

  • Develop new ideas for fundraising. We had our first outside fundraising event in 2024, our Virtual Walkathon, to raise money for the Polio Fund, but we need to explore options to bring more donations into the club. We need to explore opportunities to collaborate with local clubs in their fundraising events and look at some of the models they use to raise money, such as online classes or events to help fund our projects beyond membership donation.