Speaker Rotarian Anne Griffin

Working from a slide show from this year’s District Assembly Anne covered theme for 2026/27 “Work Together Dare to be Different”. The aim should be to  create a lasting impact. She said that she believed Blaize were OK as a club but that we were not sending people to work at District. 
She said that we needed to work together with other clubs in the area to try to make a difference. Her key points were: -
•    Together people create change 
•    Increase Impact
•    Extend our Reach
•    Embrace Participation and Enhance Engagement
•    increase our Ability to Adapt

She gave an example where 7 Leeds clubs have joined together to organise a run for Alzheimer's. There were several pillars that she suggested: 
1.    Dare to serve have flagship projects
2.    Dare to Open Our Doors Wider – support Rotary Foundation
3.    Concentrate on membership retention. District 1040 targets for the next Rotary year are:
        a.     increase membership 7%
        b.    get 85% retention of existing members
        c.    create 10 new clubs 
To do this we need to stay relevant to modern societal needs and aspirations
4.    Dare to evolve and stay relevant. Inspire youth and invest in people building the future.
5.     The Rotary Foundation Different theme each month are: -

• July: Maternal and Child Health
• August: Membership and New Club Development
• September: Basic Education and Literacy
• October: Economic and Community Development
• November: Rotary Foundation
• December: Disease Prevention and Treatment
• January: Vocational Service
• February: Peace and Conflict Resolution
• March: Water and Sanitation
• April: Maternal and Child Health / Environmental
• May: Youth Service
• June: Rotary Fellowships