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Revised 8/2016
board of directors’ Meetings, copies of monthly reports
and other communications. Other duties include the
following:
1. Notify each member of club meetings.
2. Assist the club reporter.
3. Submit books for audit.
I congratulate you and am happy to install you as
secretary of the Ruritan Club.
VICE PRESIDENT
(First Name) , you have been elected vice president
of this club for the coming year, an honor which carries
with it many responsibilities. These are set forth in the
Officers’ Handbook. Some of these are the following:
1. Preside in the absence of the president at club and
club board of directors’ Meetings.
2. Prepare community service reports with the help of
the president, secretary, and the Objectives Committee.
3. Serve as chair of the Finance Committee.
4. Serve as chair of the Objectives Committee and
make monthly reports to the club.
The success of your club during the coming
year depends upon the planning and work of these
committees. Your leadership is most essential.
I congratulate you and am happy to install you as vice
president of the Ruritan Club.
PRESIDENT
(First Name) , you have been elected president of
this club, the highest honor your fellow club members
could confer upon you. You have demonstrated those
qualities of leadership needed in Ruritan. You have
worked well in the assignments that have been given you.
Your fellow club members have confidence in your ability
to lead them in service to the community.
You have the greatest responsibility of this club.
Included among your duties are the following:
1. Give direction, encouragement, and leadership to
the officers and committee chairs and make certain each
is fulfilling his/her assignments.
2. Preside at meetings of the club and club board of
directors as prescribed in the bylaws.
3. Attend zone and district meetings and the national
convention.
4. Serve as the Ex Officio member of all committees.
5. See that each new member is properly initiated.
Very few persons in this community have the
opportunity to contribute to its progress as you will have
while serving as president of the Ruritan club.
I congratulate you and am pleased to present you with
a pin, gavel, or symbol of office. I install you as president
of the Ruritan Club.
Procedures for Installing Club Officers
Initiation Ceremony for a New
Ruritan Member
Notes to initiating officer
1. Review this agenda prior to the initiation ceremony.
2. Be sure you know the new member’s name.
3. Be sure the new member has been properly voted
into the club and indoctrinated.
4. Be sure you know the new member’s committee
appointment and the committee chair’s name.
5. Have lapel button or new member kit ready for
presentation.
6. Be sure the member is welcomed at the close of the
meeting.
Suggested Script
It is always a pleasure to welcome a new member
into Ruritan. It is the privilege of our club to welcome
__________________ as our newest member(s).
Please come forward.
You have been chosen a member of this club
by your fellow members because they believe you
manifest those qualities of leadership and service
needed in Ruritan.
Ruritan’s main purpose is service to the community-
the center of American Life. From the community
come our ideals, our integrity, our moral strength,
and our leadership. These qualities are usually no
stronger in the American people than they are in the
communities in which they live. Ruritan is building a
better America by helping to build better communities.
Membership in a Ruritan Club is an honor and a
privilege. However, because service is the keynote, it
also involves duties and obligations. These should be
performed by you with faithfulness and enthusiasm.
You will serve as a member of the
_______________ Committee. ________________
is its chair. As you serve on this committee and
become involved in club activities, you will experience
the satisfaction of working together and sharing
the accomplishments of the club. This involvement
creates an opportunity for fellowship that is seldom
equaled.
I congratulate you and present you with this lapel
button, and I am sure you will wear it with dignity and
pride.
(Applause)
General
Closing Comments
Fellow club members, your officers can accomplish little
without the cooperation and support of every member.
During the coming year, all of you will have important
assignments. Officers and members, as you fulfill these
assignments, you are serving and strengthening your
community. However, of greater importance, you are
helping to keep America strong.