Where are all the young members?

Evan Burrell, left, discusses membership with mem-
bers of his Rotary club.

By Evan Burrell, a member of the Rotary Club of
Turramurra, New South Wales, Australia

As a former member of Rotaract and now a young
Rotarian, I get asked quite a lot, “where do we find
more young members like you?”

It may seem like young members are as elusive to
catch as Pokémon, but with the right strategy and
awareness, it’s not that difficult at all. The truth is,
they are really all around us. They may be in your
work place, they may be in your neighborhood, or
they may be in those other social gatherings you
belong to. Others may be active in our youth
programs like Rotaract and RYLA, readying them-
selves for the challenges that lie ahead.

Attracting new members is pretty critical to our
clubs. They are the lifeblood of our organization,
bringing in fresh ideas and insights, and keeping
our clubs alive and relevant. In turn, young pro-
fessionals seek a sense of purpose and belonging,
and this is exactly what your club can give them.

As we celebrate Membership Month in Rotary,
here are my tips for attracting younger members

1. Don’t go too crazy at first. If the average
   age of your club is over 60, begin by trying
   to attract members in their 40’s and 50’s and
   work from there.
2. Use your age differences to your advantage.
   Stress the opportunity for career mentoring and
   set up mentoring programs pairing members
   with vast experience with those just beginning
   their careers.
3. Make sure you welcome new members into
   your club. At meetings, assign a seasoned vet-
   eran to each new member to be their host and
   introduce them to everyone else in your club. In
   time, the newcomer will get a better feel for the
   club.
4. Use social media (Twitter, Facebook). Let’s
   face it, anyone under 30 is on social media 24/7.
   So use it to your club’s advantage by promoting
   your activities and what you do in the community.
5. Sponsor participants for our young leaders
   programs. College or university students are excellent candidates for a Rotary Youth Leadership Awards event. Sponsor a high school student for a Rotary Youth Ex-
   change, and you not only broaden their horizons, but
   also make a lifelong friend of Rotary. Work alongside
   these future leaders of tomorrow so they become in-
   terested in your club and our organization.
6. Keep younger, and newer, members in the loop.
   This one is a biggie! Don’t waste all that effort attract-
   ing new members only to forget about them and let
   them drift away from lack of attention. Engage them
   in as many ways as you can. Find out what they are
   interested in, and put them in charge of things that match their likes. If you have enough new members with a particular interest, start up a new program or incorporate their in-
   terests into an existing one. Make sure you give them lead roles, and give them a real opportunity to make a difference.

Member recruitment is a must for any club that wants to sur-
vive and not turn into the Rotary Club of Jurassic Park. It is
not difficult, but you DO have to put some effort into it. You
won’t regret the time, though, when you see your club take
on new life.

Join a discussion of membership best practices