As many of you already know, I am an active user and proponent of social media. I first joined Facebook in 2009 and have since engaged with LinkedIn, Twitter, YouTube, and Instagram. I also manage several accounts professionally and belong to a number of social media groups. Social media has evolved a great deal over the years and continues to change by the minute! In order to help Rotary Clubs and Rotarians make best use of social media, I've compiled a list of my Top Ten Tips. Perhaps they'll help some folks reading this note. Good luck with your social media happenings and, most of all, have fun!
Social media is a tool for enhancing relationships, engaging with new people, following news, and sharing information. It is NOT meant to replace human relationships or connections. It is meant to ADD and enhance existing connections.
If you have social media accounts, USE THEM. Be active in posting content, sharing news, commenting on other people's news, etc. If your social media account(s) are dormant, why have them at all? Be active or just withdraw from those social media channels all together.
Generally speaking, Facebook is more geared toward personal life, fun, and current happenings. LinkedIn is more professionally driven yet still provides opportunities to connect with a wide range of people. Twitter is for short and direct pieces of information and is a great resource for instant news and immediate happenings. Instagram is driven largely by photos and video clips and attracts a young audience. YouTube is for videos only. There are dozens of other social media channels, but these are accepted as the most used.
Rotary Clubs typically use a PAGE feature which can be liked or followed on social media rather than a GROUP which is often limited to specific members and not open to all.
Rotary International generates excellent content for all social media channels mentioned and all Rotarians should consider connecting with RI.
District 7390 has a page on Facebook and LinkedIn and invites all Rotarians to Connect. Our district also has a Rotary Means Business page on both channels.
Almost all 43 clubs in District 7390 have pages on Facebook and liking them is a great way to stay apprised of events and happenings around the area.
Content should be kept short, positive, and have a hook. Either an interesting fact, picture, or link. Give people a reason to engage with your posts.
Likes, comments & shares provide instant feedback for your post, but longer term returns on the investment in social media can take years. Maybe a new member comes to one of your Rotary Club meetings only after following you for some length of time. Maybe a social media post generates an inquiry that eventually leads to membership. Some ROIs may never be measured.
Social media should be supplemented with a vibrant website, friendly and welcoming membership materials, and real people behind the posts!
If you are in the social media arena, or considering jumping in, make sure you can give it the attention needed to work the best! Post often and keep the messaging genuine, meaningful, fun and creative and social media can be a valuable tool for your Rotary Club and members!
All the best,
Una Martone
2017-18 District Governor
Shout Outs!!
This list may not be comprehensive, so please notify the district office if you have any elected officials or others to add. We’ll give them a shout out next time.
Administrative Director of Cumberland Perry Vocational Technical School Justin Bruhn (Mechanicsburg-North)
Superintendent of Penn Manor School District Mike Leichliter (Lancaster-South)
Congressman William (Bill) Goodling (York)
Judge Todd R. Platts, York Co. Court of Common Pleas (York)
York County Register of Wills/Clerk of Orphans’ Court Bradley C. Jacobs (York)
Gov. Tom Wolf, Governor of PA (York)
Denny Baughman – CEO – York Academy Regional Charter School (York)
Eric Holmes – Superintendent – The School District of the City of York (York)
Shelley Merkle – Superintendent – York Suburban School District (York)
Shelly Riedel – (Retired)Superintendent – Donegal School District (York)
Aaron Anderson – Logos Academy – Head of School (York)
Christine Heine – York Country Day School – Head of School (York)
Judge Maria Musti Cook (York)
Judge Chris Menges (York)
A very special SHOUT OUT to Past District Governor, Connie Spark, on receiving the 2016/17 Dogged Pursuit Award! This honor is awarded by District 7390 to one Rotarian each year whose work has demonstrated exceptional tenacity and has significantly strengthened Rotary District 7390 and Rotary International. Connie’s service includes 25 humanitarian projects including her most recent Vocational Training Team mission to provide eye, dental, and medical aid in Uganda. Here is a comprehensive video summary of the project. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=80KRdI4Fi1g
Congratulations, Connie! You are making a difference!
Barry Rassin, of the Rotary Club of East Nassau, New Providence, Bahamas, has been selected to be the 2018-19 President of Rotary International and will be formally declared so on September 1. Rassin’s nomination follows Sam F. Owori’s death in July, just two weeks into his term as Rotary International president-elect. For more detail and to learn more about President-Elect Rassin, please click on this link: https://www.rotary.org/en/2018-19-rotary-president-selected
Since Julia Borowczyk arrived in Philadelphia a year ago, she has visited 23 states and had three host families in Lititz. The recent Warwick High School graduate from Gorzów Wielkopolski in Poland was able to see a sunset over the Grand Canyon, eat jambalaya in New Orleans, peer up at President Lincoln at Mount Rushmore, and witness Old Faithful at Yellowstone National Park. Yet, her most meaningful memories are of her host families, the two little boys she took trick-or-treating for Halloween, and all of her high school friends.
Borowczyk was a participant in the Lititz Rotary Club’s youth exchange program, spending almost a full year with three local families. She also took a 31 day coast-to-coast bus trip with other exchange students to discover America, journeying from Las Vegas to Dollywood to Niagara Falls. “I loved all the natural sites and the Grand Canyon took my breath away,” said Borowczyk a day before she was to head home to Poland. She was also amazed at some of the manmade creations that have become iconic images of the United States. She gazed up incredulously at the towering skyscrapers of New York City as she stood in noisy, bustling Times Square. She was intrigued by the sights and sounds and flavors of the French Quarter in New Orleans. Las Vegas might have been the most bewildering place of all to the Polish 18-year-old. “There was the Eiffel Tower in Paris, gondolas in Venice, the Egyptian pyramids and ancient Rome all in the middle of the Nevada desert,” she said. She had never seen anything like it before.
The staff of the Byrnes Health Education Center extend a cordial invitation to all Rotary members and guests of Rotary District 7390 to attend
An Evening of Appreciation on Thursday, August 24, 2017 from 5:00 p.m. until 7:00 p.m.
Please join us at our facility to experience your investment at work and to receive an update on new programming. Our teaching theaters will be open and our educators will be available to acquaint you with our health education mission!
Dinner will be provided. All Rotarians are welcome!
RMB EVENT: THURSDAY, AUGUST 24, 2017 HOSTED BY THE ROTARY CLUB OF YORK.
5:30 – 7:30, at the York County Economic Alliance, 144 Roosevelt Avenue, York, PA
Bring a lot of business cards! The cost of admission is $10. Hors d’oeuvres, beverages, and drinks (wine and/or beer) are provided. Click here to RSVP NOW!
RSVP Now!! The Rotary Club of Carlisle will host the next Northern Tier (greater Harrisburg area) RMB networking event on Tuesday, 12 September at the Hoffman Funeral Home and Crematory (2020 West Trindle Road, Carlisle) with the event starting at 5:30 and ending at 7:30 pm. Click here to Register NOW! The cost is a non-refundable $10 for great heavy hors d'oeuvres, soft beverages, water, wine and beer. Hoffman Funeral Home and Crematory is providing the venue and covering catering costs. Thank you Hoffman! Make great business connections, enjoy wonderful fun and fellowship, and bring potential Rotarian guests. Do not miss this networking opportunity.
Following through on an initiative he outlined when taking office on July 1, John Anthony, President of the Rotary Club of Mechanicsburg-North, announced the creation of the club’s new after work meeting at a recent club meeting. “This is one of the first new initiatives for the year.” Anthony said. “Central PA residents and business professionals are such givers … but many cannot regularly attend a morning meeting. This is an opportunity for them to be a part of our Rotary vision,” he added. The Kickoff Meeting has been scheduled for August 23, 2017 at 5 pm at Your Place Restaurant, 6035 Carlisle Pike, Mechanicsburg. “We are very excited about this venture.” stated Ben Wielebinski, the Club’s Membership Chair. “We will be providing service to the community while working with like-minded professionals,” Wielebinski said.
Matt Staub from the Harrisburg Club, and their Co-Chairperson for Water Projects, was the program speaker at the Hanover Rotary Club this week. Matt and 7 other Rotarians from Harrisburg were part of a team which installed a water filtration system in a village in the high hills of Haiti. Matt is the son of Greg Staub, Past President of the Rotary Club of Hanover. In the picture, President Ralph Jodice is presenting a children’s book to Matt which he signed and then is donated to the Guthrie Memorial Library in Hanover.
Past President Al Sykes, a member of the York Rotary Preserve Planet Earth committee, noticed this memorial when he was watering trees that our Preserve Planet Earth Committee the PPE committee had planted in Allen Park. The circle was empty, the planter was just weeds and vines as was the area around the memorial. Al called the York County Parks Department and inquired about it, asking if he could clean it up. Their answer was “of course”. So, Al dug everything up, planted a white dogwood in the circle and a white rose in the planter with vinca (myrtle) and some daylilies, of which he had an overabundance, in back of the memorial. The city spread some mulch around the plants for him. Next spring, PP Al plans to replace the grass with hydrangeas and put red and white and blue wave petunias around the memorial. He’s also working with the city to remove spray paint from the memorial. The Rotary Club of York says “THANK YOU” to Past President Al for a great job of Rotary “Service Above Self”!!!
Fellowship of Motorcycling Rotarians member PDG John Kramb rode his Indian motorcycle to the Rotary International Convention in Atlanta. On his way to the convention he stopped at "The Snake" (long winding road), where it crosses the Appalachian Trail in North Carolina. John rode over 1,000 miles on his trip to and from Atlanta. The IMFR (International Fellowship of Motorcycling Rotarians) meets twice a year for fun, fellowship and riding! If you are interested in joining the fellowship, please contact PDG John Kramb at pdgjoh2015@gmail.com.
Did you know there are at least 20 committees in our District? Why not invite one of the committee chairs to be a speaker at your Club? This is just one example of the many educational and inspirational resources provided at the district level. Click here to see a complete list of the District committee chairs!
Join Millersburg Rotary Club for a Tasting Tour of Millersburg presented by Mid Penn Bank on Saturday August 26 from Noon until 4pm. Participants will stroll through downtown Millersburg experiencing local foods and drinks. Enjoy the historic ambiance of our business district and relax along the scenic vistas of our river parks.
Your ticket is your passport to approximately twenty venues within one square mile where various local flavors await. Food and drink samples include cheese, honey, sauces, bakery items, hors d'oeuvres, wine, and liquor. In addition to the samples, products will be available for purchase from most vendors.
This event will raise funds to help Millersburg Rotary Club plant trees in conjunction with Millersburg Borough's 2018 MYO Park Centennial Improvement Project and to support Millersburg Rotary Club's youth programs.
Tickets are available now at rotarytastingtourofmillersburg.bpt.me for $25 in advance, and if there are any tickets left (only 200 tickets will be sold), they will be available for $30, cash only, on the day of the event at Mid Penn Bank's Union Street Millersburg Branch.
Participating vendors include: Mid Penn Bank, Every Day Blessings Gift Shoppe w/ Chef Tim's Vinagrette, TVP Colonnade Theater w/ Rachel's Pretzels & the Ned Smith Center, Historical Society featuring Jacob Light's National Clock, Gallery on the Square w/ Armstrong Valley Winery, William's FF, Wooden Nickel, China Star, Millersburg Hardware Store w/ Mid State Distillery, Burrell's Florist w: Carns Bee Farm, Johnson's Jewelry w/ Winery at Hunter's Valley, Pisano's, The Furniture Center w/ Lykens Valley Creamery, Max's Grille & Sport's Bar, Daniel's Cafe, Manor House Gifts w/ Riverview Candies, Special Moments Bridal Boutique w/ Wanda's Heavenly Cupcakes, Daniel's RiverFront Cafe, Olivero's Winery and Loose Ties Model Railroad Club at the Millersburg Train Station
Sponsors include: Mid Penn Bank, Lisi Oil Co, American Legion Post 326, Thermo Fisher Scientific, Bolig's Propane Inc, Chris Dietz, Blaine G. Walter, JR VFW Post 5507, Boyer Swimming Pools, Scott Meckley, CPRS, Coleman's Military Surplus.
One putt, one serve, and one wicket at a time……the Rotary Club of York is making a difference one pitch, one book, and with one veteran at a time with our annual “LOVE FORE COMMUNITY” fundraising event, which will be held at the Country Club of York on Monday, September 11, 2017. Golf, tennis and croquet is offered for the sporting folks, with a buffet dinner and a silent auction full of terrific items for everyone to participate. This year’s recipients of the proceeds will be York City Little League, “Reach out and Read” project to put books into the hands of children ages 0-5, and to pay tribute to 9/11, we have chosen York County’s Veteran’s Court. The Club has raised more than $300,000 over the years from the annual event, helping many organizations provide services to the community. We want to invite all D7390 Rotarians and their guests to partner with us to through sponsorships and participants. Please join us for a fun-filled day for great causes. The registration form is online at www.yorkrotary.org or you may contact the club office at 717-848-1370.
This cute video spoof “What is Rotary” overviews some of the misconceptions about Rotary AND it has a tie back to District 7390! It was produced by Heather Ranck whose father, Don Ranck, is a member of our very own Paradise Rotary Club! Well done Heather!
Since Julia Borowczyk arrived in Philadelphia a year ago, she has visited 23 states and had three host families in Lititz. The recent Warwick High School graduate from Gorzów Wielkopolski in Poland was able to see a sunset over the Grand Canyon, eat jambalaya in New Orleans, peer up at President Lincoln at Mount Rushmore, and witness Old Faithful at Yellowstone National Park. Yet, her most meaningful memories are of her host families, the two little boys she took trick-or-treating for Halloween, and all of her high school friends.
Matt Staub from the Harrisburg Club, and their Co-Chairperson for Water Projects, was the program speaker at the Hanover Rotary Club this week. Matt and 7 other Rotarians from Harrisburg were part of a team which installed a water filtration system in a village in the high hills of Haiti. Matt is the son of Greg Staub, Past President of the Rotary Club of Hanover. In the picture, President Ralph Jodice is presenting a children’s book to Matt which he signed and then is donated to the Guthrie Memorial Library in Hanover.
Fellowship of Motorcycling Rotarians member PDG John Kramb rode his Indian motorcycle to the Rotary International Convention in Atlanta. On his way to the convention he stopped at "The Snake" (long winding road), where it crosses the Appalachian Trail in North Carolina. John rode over 1,000 miles on his trip to and from Atlanta. The IMFR (International Fellowship of Motorcycling Rotarians) meets twice a year for fun, fellowship and riding! If you are interested in joining the fellowship, please contact PDG John Kramb at 
