Working Rotarians Make It Happen
Posted by Claudia Trusty
on Mar 10, 2012
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One of the least understood Avenue of Service is Vocational Services. Our club has always supported projects that fall under this umbrella but few of us know what V.S. is all about. In a nutshell, it is about sharing professional expertise and skills to address problems and to promote high ethical standards in the workplace. In fact, while Vocational Services does serve others, it also serves each of us.
According to Rotary International, Vocational Service is all about helping others using what we know. Sometimes those “others” are on the other side of the world; sometimes they are right in our club. A few RI guidelines include:
Strengthening the emphasis on professional diversity in member recruitment by asking our friends and business colleagues to join us. Including various professions helps enhance projects with various needs. Steve Osborne and David Axner have helped strengthen our Interact clubs, Mentoring and Next Gen work in ways that would not be possible for a non-educator.
Identifying ways to emphasize professions in club activities. Our club has benefited from the advise of our CPAs, attorneys, medical providers, insurance professionals and a myriad of other member skills. We count on member expertise to help us achieve our club goals. Each of us should know what our fellow club members do for a living, where their vocation meshes with their avocation. I know that I can ask any member for professional advice or help, and they will be there for me. Can’t imagine being part of a better network!
Placing a stronger emphasis on business networking with integrity at the club and district level -- which also is a means of attracting and mentoring the next generation. When we develop business relationships and collaborate with our club members and other Rotarians we know there are shared values in business. Given a choice, I would rather work with a fellow Rotarian, wouldn’t you?
Wolf Lant chairs our Vocational Services committee, which is involved a various projects including Robotics, Mentoring, Leadership Dublin and Scholarship committees. Contact Wolf to learn how you can share your professional skills to improve someone else’s life.