by Collette Leland, Winston & Cashatt, Lawyers
EWI of Spokane Chapter President
Our Chapter bylaws require two business meetings each year, one of which must be our annual meeting. Our annual meeting includes a financial report of our current year, but primarily it looks to the future. It is at our annual meeting in August each year that we elect our officers and directors for the upcoming year and approve our budget. Although it has not been easy in our post-Covid world for civic groups to maintain their vibrancy, I see great things in our future.
Our Nominating Committee, led by current Board Advisor, Amanda Landreth, has recruited and selected an amazing group for next year. We have some stalwarts who are continuing to serve our Chapter, but some new folks who are willing to step up, despite relatively little time in our Chapter. I’m looking at you Chris and Mandy. Your willingness to serve and excitement about our Chapter is contagious.
Although our new budget is not quite as exciting as our officer slate, it’s an important part of our work because it reflects our values as a Chapter and is part of our accountability as a Board to our membership.
One of the first things you will notice as you review the proposed 2024-2025 budget is that we have budgeted for reduced revenue from membership fees and meals. Our prior budget was based upon an estimate of 50 member firms, which is not currently accurate. We are still one of the larger EWI Chapters in the U.S. in Canada, but we, like many other organizations in our post-Covid world are suffering from a decrease in civic engagement. Our tenets: Careers, Connection, Community, make us a little countercultural at this moment in history, but there are signs that folks are recognizing the value of face-to-face interaction and are looking for new ways to engage. We believe that we can move up from our current 38 member firms to 45 or even 50 in the coming year.
Fortunately, we have the resources and the enthusiasm to seek out and welcome many new firms into our Chapter. This year the Board approved a pilot program that uses up to $3,000 of operating funds to cover the cost of guest meals, so that the prospective members that R&R are recruiting (or that you invite), can attend one of our Chapter meetings free of charge, provided they are an actual prospect. (Sorry, no free meals for your best friend who is in town for the night.) Julie Richardson and her team are planning more events for next year to attract and retain member firms. One of my favorite things about our Chapter meetings each month is getting to know these prospective or new members, so I’m excited to see who Julie (and all of you) bring our way.
Many of these new folks find us via social media or our website. I am so grateful to our Marketing and Communications Committee for the time and talent they have put in to our monthly Connect newsletters, our social media content, our annual Journal of Business insert, and the multiple forms they create that allow us to purchase flowers and online swag, as well as allow students to apply for our multiple scholarships online, so that they do not have to bear the expense of mailing applications and supporting materials in triplicate to our post office box. New on the budget for MarCom is a subscription to Canva, a design platform that will allow our Chapter to create graphics for our website, flyers, invitations, and other content more easily. The Board approved this cost this past year and so far, Canva has delivered. At MarCom’s request, we have included it as an expense for 2024-25, so that we can continue to use Canva as a tool to bring in new firms and communicate with our existing members.
Our biggest expense each month is our monthly meeting. Our programs committee has kept us within our budget by seeking out low or no cost venues and by providing a mix of tasty buffet and plated meals. You can help keep our costs down by hosting a firm night—just as Bernardo Wills did last month. Firm nights provide an opportunity to showcase your business and its work. (Remember that great night at Contract Design Associates’ new office?) The Programs Committee will do all the work, but you get to be the host and promote your firm. Please consider talking to your management team about hosting during our 2024-25 year.
You will see on our BCDP Budget, that we have increased the awards for second and third place EWISP winners, and have again included funds to allow students to bring additional guests to the scholarship banquet on us. Our Fundraising Committee plans to raise $2,000 for the EWISP endowment and $1,700 for ASIST to ensure that these endowments remain sustainable into future, even as we increase scholarship amounts to reflect rising costs.
Under the leadership of Debra Raub this year, our Fundraising Committee has been very intentional about identifying the amounts needed for specific projects and avoiding overwhelming our membership with too many asks and activities. As a result, we continue to see increased participation and revenue from two to three key events each year. I am so grateful to the wisdom and practicality Debra brought to this role, as well as the vision and energy of the dynamic duo of Kathleen Proud and Jene Ray, who have continued to expand and improve our scholarship program. Kathleen and Jene are back for another round next year, so keep expecting great things from our Scholarship Committee.
Under the leadership of Bridget Walden, our Philanthropy Committee has sharpened its core focus on literacy to put on two Reading Rallies at local elementary schools each year. These have been a big hit with students, not in small part because of local author Tayla Tollefson’s participation. Tayla is an EWU student, who wrote Wait, while still attending Ferris High School. Because of your generosity, we have been able to double our Reading Rallies with no additional funding allocation, even while purchasing a copy of Wait for each student. As we approach our next Reading Rally in October, please consider blocking out half a day on your calendar to attend our fall Reading Rally. You won’t be sorry you did.
I know that annual meetings do not make everyone’s heart go pitter-pat, but as I look at the values and plans reflected in our budget and look at the slate of officers and directors who have volunteered to work to make those plans reality, I am truly excited for the future of our chapter. We are doing good things and bringing in good people. We make a difference.