The Rotary Club of Saugatuck-Douglas simply could not do what it does without the many friends and volunteers who have rallied to help us over the years. If you’ve been one of them, we’d like to say, “Thank You!” Our communities are stronger when “we unite and take action to create positive lasting change in our towns, in our world, and in ourselves.”

That’s our towns’ Rotary Club purpose.

Starting in 2020, the Rotary Club is enlisting local folks to form a new organization in support of that purpose called the Friends of Rotary, (“F.O.R.)” If you lack the time or interest right now to become a full Rotary Member but are interested in helping us create positive lasting change, you are already a friend of the Club. Let’s make that “FORmal!”

What might becoming a Friend of Rotary look like?

  • Time: are you willing and able to volunteer for one of our events such as the July 4th Waterfront Festival or the Mt. Baldhead Challenge in September? Do you have a heart for young people in need of mentors, tutors, or stable adult guidance? If so, you sound like a Friend of Rotary!
  • Talent: might your “mad skills” be put to use to help us with managing our social media strategies? Or are you good with spreadsheets and numbers? We have a range of periodic tasks that benefit from specialized expertise our Members may lack. If you’d like to offer your skills to us, it’s likely we have a job for you as a Friend of Rotary!
  • Treasure: perhaps you applaud the initiatives we support and want to lend a hand, but your schedule prevents it. If you are interested in sharing some of your financial resources with us, know this: over $0.95 of every $1.00 we take in goes directly to our neighbors in need. We are all unpaid volunteers, so our overhead is light. Check writers are Friends of Rotary, too!

Friends of Rotary will be supported and coordinated directly by the Board of Directors of the Rotary Club of Saugatuck-Douglas. F.O.R. will have its own social media communications; a quarterly email newsletter; a distinct brand identity (complete with F.O.R. wearables); and an annual Friendship Celebration over the Memorial Day weekend to kick the summer season into gear.

We hope to draw around 100 active problem solvers into the new Friends of Rotary team by mid-2021. We invite you to inquire about serving as a Friend of Rotary by leaving us a short message and your contact information at letstalk@saugatuckdouglasrotary.org.

A final quote:

“Friendship is unnecessary, like philosophy, like art… it has no survival value. Rather, it is one of those things that gives value to survival”       –C.S. Lewis