Greetings Soroptimists!

It’s hard to believe, but summer is almost over, and it will soon be time to meet again for an exciting action-packed year of Soroptimists.

We are going to switch things up a bit this year, with high hopes of increasing our meeting attendance numbers. Your 2018-19 Officers and Board of Directors recognize that we are all very busy professional women, mothers, partners and community members, and our time is already stretched thin. That is why Soroptimists are encouraged to just give what you can in both time and energy. Sometimes it’s easier to meet at noon; sometimes it might be easier to meet in the evenings – so this year you get the best of both worlds.

Long-time SILG member Tressa Seydel created our new catch phrase – “Easy as 1-2-3” – and here is how it will work. Our Board meeting will be held the first Thursday of each month and the Club Business Meeting will be held the second Thursday of each month. The third Thursday of each month will be a special evening event – a combination of social networking and club education and a whole lot of fun! Those evening meetings will be held at a local business or a club member’s home (full schedule will be released soon). The evening sessions will begin at 6 p.m. so it gives everyone time to run home to check on the family, or run a few errands before joining in the fun.

My hope is that by eliminating the fourth Thursday meeting of each month, and adding an evening event to our lineup, you will each be able to attend more frequently, based on your schedule and availability. We all know that when we have a larger group participating, the energy level increases, and the creative juices flow more freely. That’s what we need to rejuvenate our La Grande Soroptimist group as we continue to grow and contribute to our community.

So here’s the second big change – all of our club board and business meetings will be held at Dennys’ Banquet Room. We WILL NOT be meeting at Island City Hall this year.

So to start things off, here is the September lineup:

* September 6- Board Meeting – noon at Dennys (anyone can attend – it’s a good way to learn more about your club and its procedures)

* September 13 – Business Meeting – noon at Dennys

* September 20 – Grande Ronde Hospital rooftop (hors d’oeuvres will be served – 6 p.m.)

The September Evening on the Rooftop is a great opportunity to showcase our Club to prospective members. If you have guests you want to bring, please contact Tori (Chair of Meeting Committee) or Andrea (Chair of Recruitment & Retention) with that information no later than September 13.

I am so excited about the coming year, and I hope you are, too. Our Soroptimist Club is such a key part of our community, and we all make a huge difference in so many lives – We should be so proud of our achievements and contributions so let’s sing out loud and proud – Soroptimists of La Grande!!!