The Rotary Club of Kernersville, NC

Often a person being considered for membership is invited by a member/sponsor to attend one or more club meetings to learn more about Rotary. The sponsor may then submit the name of the candidate to the club's membership committee or secretary. The club's Secretary ensures that the person is fully qualified and approves or disapproves of the proposal within a few days. The Rotary Member Sponsor of the proposed new member is notified through the Club Secretary. The entire membership of The Rotary Club of Kernersville is informed of the application for membership, then asked to give any objection to this person joining the organization. If no objections to the proposal are received within seven days following the publication of the name, that person, upon payment of an admission fee, is a new Rotarian.

Members are expected to attend weekly programs of the club. Opportunities to make up attendance include attending the regular meeting of another Rotary club, attending various other Rotary meetings, or attending a club service project authorized by the club board of directors. (More info HERE!)

Members are required to pay annual dues to their clubs, their districts, and to Rotary International.

Members are expected to participate in local or international activities or projects of the Rotary club.

Clubs encourage members to aspire to leadership or committee roles within their clubs.

We organize events for Rotarians and their families. We plan and hold a cookout/tailgate for the Glenn High and East Forsyth football game and hold a special Christmas meeting for the club. Volunteers help organize and coordinate the events. Unlike the Pancake Supper, Fourth of July Parade, etc., the activities are not set in stone and can vary year-to-year.

This is a very rewarding program started by this club and it business partnership with Cash Elementary School. Each year we have an open invitation for Rotarians to participate in this program. The program consist of giving 30 minutes per week of volunteer time to a student at Cash. This time maybe used to read, assist in homework, math facts or just take the time to bond and provide a friendship that will build self esteem to many of these children. In some cases these students may need the consistency of you being there for them to make a difference.

You may choose a day that is appropriate for your schedule, it is more convenient for the school and student if you can be there at you being 8:30am or during the lunch time of your student. The children really look forward to you being there each week so if you are unable to attend your scheduled day we just ask you notify school so they can contact the student. It is a great program that in the end we as Rotarians probably get more out of than the students, but it does make a difference in their lives.

Since 1988 our major fund raiser has been our Pancake Supper. The first few years it occurred after the 4th of July parade, but since 1996, it is scheduled immediately after the Christmas parade at Kernersville Elementary School and occurs rain-or-shine. We have raised as much as $17,000 per year.

On the Fourth of July the Rotary Club holds an annual 5k run. This 5k run is one of the Rotary Club's fund raising projects for the year. The project starts up in February/March with an organizational meeting in which major sponsors are consider and tasks are given to committee members. Prices for runners are also determined at this time. $500 major sponsors are solicited and designs for brochures and t-shirts are considered during the next month. Brochures are printed and distributed to previous runners and sports stores in the area. Online registration for runners is also setup. In mid-April $100 t-shirt sponsors are gathered (mostly from club members). In early June t-shirts are printed for all runners and sponsors.

On July 3rd pre-registration packets are put together. The morning of the race, setup begins at 6:30am at the start/finish line. Club members, who volunteer to assist hand out pre-registration packets, take race day registrations, hand out t-shirt to racers, act as race course marshals, man a mid-race water station and assist race timing company with finish line timing. After the race trophies and door prizes are handed out and cleanup begins. Cleanup is usually completed by 10:30 or 11:00am.

Every May, Rotary Club golfers met at Pine Knolls Golf Club and play 100 holes of golf for charity. The marathon round of golf starts at dawn and ends when all of the players finished their 100 holes. Each of the players solicit sponsors for each hole to raise money for local causes, such as scholarship awards and community outreach programs.

Outstanding young leaders from both East Forsyth and Glenn High Schools participate in the week long program every summer and is modeled after the Leadership Kernersville program. Topics for the week include History of Kernersville, Education, Law Enforcement, Government and Leadership. Speakers typically include Mayor Curtis Swisher, County Commissioner Dave Plyler, Police Chief Neal Stockton, School Board Member Buddy Collins and local businessman Joe Dudley. The group also tour the Korner's Folly, the Kernersville Police Department and the Forsyth County Jail.

Rotary members volunteer for a day or two to assist the students during the day.

From the earliest days of the organization, Rotarians were concerned with promoting high ethical standards in their professional lives. One of the world's most widely printed and quoted statements of business ethics is The 4-Way Test, which was created in 1932 by Rotarian Herbert J. Taylor (who later served as RI president) when he was asked to take charge of a company that was facing bankruptcy.

This 24-word test for employees to follow in their business and professional lives became the guide for sales, production, advertising, and all relations with dealers and customers, and the survival of the company is credited to this simple philosophy. Adopted by Rotary in 1943, The 4-Way Test has been translated into more than a hundred languages and published in thousands of ways. It asks the following four questions:

THE FOUR-WAY TEST
…of the things we think, say or do
first... Is it the TRUTH?
second... Is it FAIR to all concerned?
third... Will it build GOODWILL and BETTER FRIENDSHIPS?
fourth... Will it be BENEFICIAL to all concerned?