Countdown to JacFest
Yes, it’s now less than two weeks until our 25th Anniversary JacFest takes centre stage in Applecross Village! There’s plenty happening behind the scenes as we continue to do everything possible to make this a standout Rotary Street Festival once again.
A huge thanks to Chris W, our master tactician, who continues to put in the long hours to dot every i and cross every t in managing this major project. The core team has followed that script brilliantly — well done, Chris and team.
Thanks also to John K, Suresh P, and Mike S for helping with the sign repairs and re-dating on Friday, and to John K and Cran for assisting with the on-site setup on Sunday.
We’ll have another working bee at the storage unit this Saturday at 9:30 am to prep and bundle all our on-site signage and gear, followed by the final collection and site delivery on Saturday, 22nd.
While we’re fortunate to have some new members joining the JacFest team, we need to seriously consider how to ease the load on the core team — those who have carried the long-term commitment year after year. Please lend a hand wherever you can.
Chris, in particular, deserves a well-earned break — and truth be told, my own days are numbered too! After this 25th Anniversary JacFest, we must have an honest discussion about the future.
As Applecross Rotary, we simply must find a way to bring through successors to our “aging warhorses” who shoulder so much of the heavy lifting for our fundraising and community events. If we don’t, we risk losing our major profile activities — and, with them, our ability to give back to the community at the same level.
District Membership Incentive
Two Zoom meetings were held last week to outline the new District Membership Initiative to almost 90 Clubs across WA. This is a well-designed program encouraging all Clubs to develop fresh ideas for growing membership, supported by matching District cash grants.
Disappointingly, only around 20% of Clubs participated in the sessions. Attracting new members is everyone’s responsibility, but it’s hard to see this initiative succeed without greater engagement.
Adele has proposed a very thoughtful new member project focusing on encouraging business owners to join — highlighting the community and networking benefits of volunteering. It’s a great concept that aligns perfectly with our local Chamber of Commerce involvement and is definitely worth pursuing.
We’ll need to refine the proposal, but with JacFest behind us soon, this will be a key discussion for AxR to take forward.
Applications close in early December, so let’s be ready to act.
– Kenn