Your Best Club Program/Speaker Ideas

Past International President Bo Shafer talked about "how blessed we are to be Kiwanis members."  We are blessed in so many ways, we don't realize how lucky we are.  One of those blessings is the fact that we have joined Kiwanis and can do so much for others who really need help.  

Kiwanis focus on serving the children of the world has created many good things to happen, and reinforces the idea that we are here to "be a blessing to others."  It is the best feeling in the world to know that we have given something back.  

Bo's words and ideas were truly inspirational.

Mark,

I agree that Bo's message is very powerful.  I heard it on cassette tape and was so positively impacted that I passed it on to some friends.  If we were to create some high quality DVD's of presenters like Bo, I wonder if clubs would use them at their meetings?  We could have a series of topical messages under the banner "Kiwanis Presents".    

Rob

Thanks for the kind reply.  Clubs are always in need of great speakers and programs.  We would welcome a series of messages including inspirational/motivational.  I love humor and would enjoy listening to Immediate Past International President Steve Siemens weave his great jokes about "big pigs" and other animals into a program.

Mark

A few years ago a member of our Highland club initiated a once a month speaker program called "Know Your Neighbor's Religion."  Leroy Fassett, a retired minister, suggested that each month, one of the people responsible for programs invite their clergy person to be the speaker.  They were asked to present historical background info on their particular religion, as well as some of the culture.  It became our most popular program each month.  We heard from Catholic, Muslim, Jewish, Latter Day Saints, Presbyterian, Greek Orthodox, Baptist, Lutheran and many more.  Not only did the programs educate us, but they also brought diversity to our meetings - giving us all a better understanding of others.

A good program; an ontime, flowing meeting; great fellowship; and good food are all the ingredients of a Kiwanis Club that is healthy, growing, and one that a visitor is willing to join.

There are a lot of great speakers out there that are willing to speak to a Kiwanis club meeting if asked. We encourage our members to recommend speakers that they have heard in other meetings so that our membership can benefit. We are fortunate that over 3/4ths of the programs that are presented each week are interesting, informative, and productive or entertaining.

It takes work to make sure we have a good program every week but it is vital to a healthy club. We assign a month to different members where they are in charge of the program and their names are available to the members every meeting so they can be contacted with ideas of good speakers to have. It works the majority of the time. It takes someone to head it up and monitor it.  

Some of the best programs has been from the organizations that we raise money for, seeing the difference that we are doing. It really encourages our members.

I know this is an old blog Rob, but I am just catching up on some website reading! I personally would love a series of DVD's of inspirational/motivational Kiwanis leaders to present at club meetings. We struggle sometimes to come up with relevant programs to fill 4 meetings per month (too many meetings?!). At today's meeting I showed our members the DVD of your speech from the delegate session at Int'l Convention re how we were going to reach 1 million members and our club loved it and were very inspired by it. It's a great way to give those that cannot attend every convention/training session etc an overview of the bigger picture in Kiwanis. It might also be an additonal little fundraiser for KI funds perhaps if you could sell DVD's at a slight profit?

It is vital to keep the membership not only informed but appreciative and excited about the overall vision and goals and how we can do it together.

I think videos on DVD also would be a great community awareness and membership recruitment tool that could be used not only at meetings, but also Kiwanis events and fund-raisers--possibly even as public access television programs.

It's that time of year again when are thoughts turn to those who are away from their families during the Christmas season.  We had a speaker who spoke on his experience with "anysolder.com".  He himself is a veteran, but of World War II.  He had a DVD, "Tango Mike",  that he had produced that spoke of many of the troops stationed overseas.  One of them he had "adopted" himself and she had recently been killed during her tour of duty.  It was a very touching and emotional program.  I went online after the meeting and obtained an address of a female soldier who was stationed in Baghdad.  I kept in touch with her for almost a year until she returned home to her family after her tour of duty ended.  Although we have never met, I felt a sense of  relief when I she contacted me and told me  that she was home safe.

3MuBu4 Thanks for good post