Bellevue Rotary Foundation

TO FUND VARIOUS CHARITABLE AND EDUCATIONAL ORGANIZATIONS AND ACTIVITIES WITHIN THE GREATER EASTSIDE OF LAKE WASHINGTON LOCATED IN WASHINGTON STATE.

Our Vision Statement is “To change lives in our local and world communities through service and fina

Goal One: Provide financial support for non-profit organizations in our community by providing funds and other assistance in making capital purchases that increase their ability to serve our community.

Goal Two: Provide volunteer support for non-profit organizations through a combination of sustaining programs and as-needed efforts.

Goal Three: Provide financial support for international causes, including partnering with other Rotary clubs to amplify funds by using Rotary International’s grant-matching program.

In July 2021, our Board conducted its annual half-day retreat for purposes of educating members on their specific roles and aligning on goals for the year. In November 2020, the Board completed a full day training workshop on diversity, equity, and inclusion involving an outside, paid expert facilitator. In February through April of 2021, our incoming President participated in Rotary International’s President-Elect training. From February 2021 through present, our President organized a discussion group for approximately 40 Presidents in our Rotary District, which has met weekly to discuss leadership issues across the Rotary Clubs and Foundations in our District. Our leadership team holds bi-monthly “Presidential line” meetings to coordinate activities and strategy between the current President and the next two incoming Presidents; which serves as a leadership development and continuity program for the next two Presidents.

For the past several years, the financial support we provide has been divided between community grants and international grants. Early in the pandemic, the Board decided to increase the priority of community grants, and it shifted budget from international support to local community support. Our foundation has maintained a “rainy day” fund for use in extreme circumstances. In response to urgent need during the pandemic, in FY2021 the Board used the fund to increase the local Community Grants budget by 22%. For the FY2022 Rotary year, the Board shifted the international vs. local allocation back to what it was pre-pandemic, based on the belief that the international need had become at least as strong as our local need. Our fundraising focus also shifted from in-person to virtual. We held our annual gala in 2020 on the date originally planned, and we raised an amount (net of expenses) very close to what we had planned to raise in person. Our board meetings shifted from in-person to virtual in March 2020. All Club members are invited to observe board meetings. Unexpectedly, we found that this change increased the number of non-board members’ who observed our board meetings, which resulted in more transparency for our board operations. Our committee meetings also shifted from in-person to virtual in March 2020. Most of our committees have found that they can meet more frequently and more easily when they meet virtually. We expect that most committee meetings will continue to be virtual for the foreseeable future. Our weekly Club meetings also shifted from in-person to virtual from March 2020 through June 2021. As we shifted back to in-person meetings in July 2021, we retained the virtual option so that members could choose whether to attend in person or virtually. Approximately half our Club is participating in each mode. Unexpectedly, the availability of a virtual option has allowed us to attract new members that we otherwise would not have attracted.