There is an old saying that you never get a second chance to make a good first impression.  That’s why I love our Greeters Committee!  Over the years, Scott Bleeker has always made me laugh as I walk down the stairs at the Spokane Club and he shouts out, “Kyle’s here, we can now start the meeting!” Okay, I guess I’ve had a reputation for being the last one down the stairs over the years.  But the more important message is that the Greeters committee has always made me feel welcome and I know they’ve done a great job making all of us feel welcome over the years.

 

After college, one of my first jobs was working for U.S. Bank in their Trust Department in Eugene, Oregon. There was a group, similar to Rotaract, called the Eugene 20/30 Club, that I had an interest in joining.  I asked a co-worker who was a member if I could come with him to a meeting.  I remember going and standing around as my co-worker went and chatted with his friends. No one came over to say hello.  After the meeting, my co-worker never asked what I thought of the meeting or ever asked if I was interested in coming to another meeting.  No one from the Eugene 20/30 Club ever followed up with me.  Needless to say, it was a poor first impression and I never joined.

 

Fast forward to moving back to Spokane and getting invited to a Rotaract meeting.  I was welcomed by many at my first meeting, and the person who invited me followed up and asked if I was interested in joining. Needless to say, my answer was “Yes”, and as Paul Harvey used to say, “And now you know the rest of the story!” 

 

As we move back to in-person meetings, please think about all the people you’ve invited to meetings over the years or those who said they’d be interested once we’re back in person.  Guess what, we’re back in person! So please do invite them back to a meeting!

 

And when you’re at a meeting, please do say hello and welcome to our guest! It just may be your kind welcome that convinces them to join!  And if your guest is truly interested in becoming a Rotarian, please ask a member of the Greeters Committee or Rotary Office for a membership application, or reach out to our Membership Development Co-Chairs, Adam Brigham-Althoff and Omar Sabouni, and be sure to follow up!

 

So as we venture back to in-person meetings, please invite a guest, let the Rotary office know if you have a guest, and let’s all be proactive in making our guests feel welcome.  Because “F” is for “First Impressions” and we never get a second chance to make a good first impression.