As James A. Garfield once said, “A president is the last person in the world to know what the people really want and think.”
A president of an organization, for example, may have to find facts “through the grapevine” or by learning from others’ mistakes.
Often the sharing or brainstorming of ideas can be beneficial to the president, head, or leader of an organization; through others he identifies with, he may find ways to make his organization run more smoothly or efficiently; ways to increase membership or worthy programs, for example, and thus, that organization will operate with a maximum benefit to its community or surroundings. For that reason, among others, the Presidents Club of Vandalia-Butler is in its formation.
The membership of the club is made up of area organizations; represented by the head or leader of that organization. The Presidents Club will provide a vehicle for the members to coordinate, cooperate and promote matters and projects of multiple interests.
The “founders” of the area Presidents Club are Guy Bishop, Marvin Link and Rusty Tomlinson, each of who is involved in his fair share of community service-related organizations such as the Vandalia Lions, Rotary and Kiwanis.
Link is also a 15-year member of the Dayton Presidents Club, of which he also served as president in 1978. He said he saw the need and potential for the Vandalia-Butler area to give rise to its own club.
And so Link began, he said, with the help of Bishop and Tomlinson, at organizing the Club and finding support to back it, nearly a year ago. A letter directed to the Vandalia-Butler Chamber of Commerce, sought the Chamber’s support and backing of the project and the Chamber agreed. A feasibility study was then done, determining interest and gaining support from various organizations in the community, by the distribution of a letter containing the following purpose statement:
“The purpose of the Presidents Club shall be to provide a forum for the discussion of matters of mutual interest to the member organizations; to promote a spirit of cooperation and coordination among the member organizations; to receive, screen, and make recommendations on any civic, educational, or other worthwhile project which may solicit, need, or merit the support and approval of the member organizations for the benefit of the community.”
“In mailing out letters we didn’t intentionally eliminate any organization,” Link said. He said approximately 25 letters were mailed to local organizations and the response was favorable.
“Of the 25 organizations we contacted, we received a positive response from about 20. We’d like to think all those organizations will be members of the club,” he said.
At the regular meeting of the Vandalia-Butler Chamber of Commerce in February, Link presented the Chamber with the favorable response, and affirmed, again the Chamber’s support.
The Chamber agreed to endorse the Presidents Club of Vandalia-Butler and back it with $250 for its first year in existence. The Presidents Club will also be housed at the Chamber offices, during its quarterly meetings.
Link said the process of actually “getting the club rolling” would begin this month. The process of electing officers will begin and dues will be collected. The yearly dues for an organization to be a member of the local Presidents Club will be $25. Link said, “The dues structure has been very well received by potential members.” He said those interested in joining are willing to pay for the services they’ll receive from the club.