Ardal Aberystwyth Rotary Club was officially formed in December 2021, as a ‘new style’ Rotary Club. In comparison to other Rotary Clubs, our membership is mostly formed of members who work full time, have young children and families. We recognise that our members potentially have less time available to attend meetings and as such we do operate with more flexibility than other Rotary Clubs (or at least, than what you may think the standard Rotary Club runs like!).
In Brief
- We have a monthly meeting on the first Monday evening on the month, usually starting at 7pm at the Richmond Hotel in Aberystwyth.
- Meetings are not compulsory, so long as you are a happy member we don’t want you to feel that you have to come to the meetings.
- We aim for at least 1 social event a month, whether it’s a catch up over coffee, a quiz or a pint.
- We have working committees set up for areas of our club. Members volunteer to be a part of those committees, e.g. social committee, New Years Day Dip, Carol Concert etc. We spread the work so you can get involved the areas specifically of interest to you.
- Our Club being new is still forming its vision forward – and we will always remain flexible to the desires of our members. We’re community focussed, and friendship driven.
Our Objectives
Our two main objectives currently are to support the community, and build friendships. As a new club, we are constantly discussing how our club looks in the future, and where we want to take it. We are interested in the voice of all of our members, and keen to ensure that the club works well not only for our communities, but for our members too.
Supporting our community
We want to support our community in a variety of ways, and although new ideas are always coming in, we currently do the following:
- Organising events to raise money for Charity fund (events such as a Christmas Carol Service, New Years Dip and more)
- Supporting established events in the town by providing volunteers (such as Race 4 Life, the Roundtable Fireworks Display)
- Fundraising for specific campaigns (such as the Ukraine appeal, where we fundraised in Morrisons for a weekend)
We are always open to new ideas, and to ensuring that our members are able to feel that they can bring any of their ideas to the table. Even if it does mean that our Llywydd has to join in the New Year’s Day Dip!
Friendship
Friendship is our other main aim at Ardal Aberystwyth Rotary Club. Given our membership, we know that a lot of our members often will only meet people within their place of work or groups they may be involved in.
Ardal Aberystwyth Rotary Club is a great way to meet people outside of your usual circle – we have members who own their own businesses, hoteliers, University staff, Ceredigion County Council staff and more. It’s a wide range, and a great way to expand your circle, make new contacts and of course – friendships.
The nitty gritty
Joining a Rotary Club involves paying a monthly fee (£15 a month for Ardal Aberystwth). Part of this fee goes towards GB&I Rotary, but a part of it remains in the club and goes into our own pot.
For 2023, this pot of money will enable us to have a Christmas dinner ‘for free’, and we’re keen to ensure we do make the most of the monthly fee paid to us.