Joann
JOANN Aquino, the new president of the Rotary Club of Saipan, spoke about her goal to expand membership during the club meeting on Tuesday, July 9.
On Saturday, when she was inducted as president, Aquino said she intends to establish satellite clubs on Rota and Tinian.
She said there is interest on both islands to be included in Rotary Club of Saipan events.
“Prior to our induction I had reached out to some [current Rotary Club] members on Tinian and a few on Rota,” she said in an interview. “We have potential individuals there who want to serve.”
The Rotary Club is a civic organization that aims to “provide service to others, promote integrity, and advance world understanding, goodwill, and peace through our fellowship of business, professional, and community leaders,” according to its website.
Aquino plans to “showcase” the club to the local and international communities.
To accomplish this, she said the Rotary Club of Saipan will network on Rota and Tinian, and increase its digital footprint with a revamped website and social media.
Her goal is to increase the current membership from 42 to 53 before the end of her term as president in summer 2025.
“The main goal is to get people to know who we are and what we do and to expand out of the CNMI so other Rotary Clubs can see what we do,” Aquino said. “If people saw what we were doing, then possibly they’d be interested in joining our club.”
Aquino said Rotary Club membership is expanded on an invitational basis. A current Rotarian recruits a candidate into the club, and from there the club secretary and board of directors review the application submitted by the recruiting Rotarian. General members of the Rotary Club provide input before the board of directors approves or disapproves an application.
At the general membership meeting, Aquino shared some projects that will be implemented in the coming months, which include continuing the student mentorship program that began in 2023, the manamko’ Thanksgiving lunch, Halloween Trunk or Treat, the international student exchange program for students on Saipan and Japan, visits from sister clubs in Japan, the Las Vegas Night fundraising event, and community service projects.
