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Heidi Wright believes young people looking to help their community don’t simply want to write checks; they want to get involved.
But getting young people to join local service clubs has posed a challenge, said Wright, president of Sycamore Rotary Club.
“It’s something that’s really a high priority for us,” Wright said of boosting young membership.
Many local service club leaders acknowledged their membership lacks people in their 20s or 30s. Some guessed the average age of club members is in the 40s, 50s or older. Other clubs have seen a greater span of ages, such as the DeKalb Noon Lions, which includes several Northern Illinois University students.
Steffanie Barringer, manager of the DeKalb Elks Lodge, said taking part in service clubs often is perceived as an older person’s activity.
“At 40, I’m considered young,” she joked.
Older members have provided invaluable contributions over the years, Wright said, but young members offer new energy and perspective and are essential to keeping clubs thriving.
“It’s important to bring in the younger people to keep [the club] going in the community,” said Becky Beck, president of the Kishwaukee Sunrise Rotary Club.
Before he joined the club, 30-year-old Eric Stice – president-elect of the Sycamore Rotary Club – thought the group’s members were “a bunch of stiffs.” He soon realized they were simply older versions of himself.
“I think young people just need to be asked,” Stice said, adding they shouldn’t be overwhelmed upon joining.
But they also need to realize the benefit of service clubs in providing a chance to network and develop relationships with other community members, he said.
Challenges
Many of the clubs charge dues quarterly, which include a meal at meetings. Dues can range from less than $100 to several hundred dollars per year. Local Elks and Moose lodges charge annual fees.
What members get in return, club leaders said, is the opportunity to network and make a difference through a club that can be a lifelong activity. Local clubs hold fundraisers, donate to charitable organizations and take part in activities such as The Salvation Army’s annual holiday bell ringing.
Dues and scheduling issues can present problems for the younger set, said Paul Stoddard, president of the Kishwaukee Kiwanis Club. Beck said economic constraints may have led people to re-examine their budgets.
Bill White, administrator of the DeKalb Moose Lodge, said people turned off by dues or fees may not understand those charges also support charitable causes.
Potential members may not feel they have the time to attend all meetings or take part in service projects, Stoddard said. Additionally, someone may have the desire to get involved but not know where to start or how to find clubs.
Lois Anderson, president of Sycamore Kiwanis Club, said she understands the time issues for many young people: When raising her children, she wouldn’t have had the time to devote to the club.
Eva Rey, president of DeKalb Kiwanis Club, joined the club five years ago when her family moved to DeKalb. Rey, 40, said she got involved with a service club because the meeting schedule worked well with hers, and she appreciated the variety of work the club performs.
Stice sought to join a service club five years ago to meet his professional needs and to serve Sycamore. The lunch-hour meetings appealed to him because he has a family, and he could tailor his level of involvement in the club’s activities.
“I didn’t feel like I was committing to something that would force me to give up every weekend,” Stice said.
Clay Kloster, president of the Sycamore Lions Club, said people tend to join the club once they are older because most people in their 20s aren’t thinking about it.
“It’s hard to get them, and it’s hard to keep them because of their lifestyle,” he said. But as the group ages, “the members that we have can’t do what they used to do.”
“A lot of our older members have been doing this for a long, long time,” Stoddard said. “It just takes so much effort, and we just need people who have the energy to put into these types of things.”
Efforts
Even beyond the networking possibilities a club offers, young people are “looking to make a difference in our community,” Beck said.
To engage them, club leaders are getting active online through social media websites such as Facebook and Twitter.
Some local clubs sponsor school groups, such as Kiwanis’ Key Club or Rotary’s EarlyACT, that allow children and teens to get a glimpse of involvement.
“And I think that can carry over for when they become young adults and want to get involved in the community,” Wright said.
Many clubs offer a different type of membership for those looking to be slightly less involved. Others are looking to reduce dues.
Suzanne Sedlacek, president of DeKalb Noon Lions Club, said the club sought to draw NIU students into the mix almost two years ago and offered to cover dues for those that made an effort to attend meetings and take part in activities.
While turnover in membership among students was an initial concern, Sedlacek said the club wants to instill leadership qualities and a desire to help the community no matter where students end up.
The hope is if they do move outside of the community, they’ll transfer their membership to another Lions Club, she said.
Barringer and DeKalb Elks Secretary Lynne Kunde said members tend to get their adult children involved. White said young people with families are encouraged to join because the Moose Lodge offers children’s activities.