Tennessee Federation News Issue 2004

My Dear and Remarkable Clubwomen—
There will be one more Lana’s Letter so I will save goodbye and thank you for that. For this one, I feel it is my duty and responsibility to let you know how I see the condition of our organization after nearly two years of first hand observation. Consequently, this will be my “State of the State” address in which I will share with you my thoughts from the President’s viewpoint.

Please be assured that we have a great and solvent state Federation. Although we, like all volunteer organizations, are experiencing loss of members due to attrition, we are also very fortunate to have offset this somewhat with the new members we gained this year with GFWC’s Act in Oct and our own And Beyond. I congratulate each of the clubs who welcomed new members during this time.

While it is true that we are solvent right now, it is also true that we must take a long hard look at what needs to be done to stay that way. We are so very fortunate to have our GFWC Tennessee Endowment Fund to depend upon for operating expenses. However, during this year many of the investments matured and had to be reinvested at a much lower interest rate. That, coupled with declining membership, makes it imperative that we look very closely at our budget when presented and that we consider how we might reduce expenditures from this fund. We must also consider how to continue increasing the fund and membership. I challenge you to offer ideas and solutions to ensure the growth of this, our very valuable asset.

A major area that needs attention is our District Organization. When our districts were established, they were set up to coincide with our Congressional districts. Of course, we all know what gerrymandering has done to that – and what that has done to us. Few, if any, of our districts coincide with the Congressional districts. For a wide variety of reasons it is becoming increasingly difficult to find clubwomen willing to serve as district officers and members who care to attend these meetings.

The attendance (or lack thereof) at district meetings is frightening. I asked the district presidents to provide me attendance statistics for the past three administrations. These ranged from a low of 3.9% in District 1 to the high of 26.5% in District V. A nice portion of our budget goes to funding you state president’s visits to all of the districts during the first year of her administration. It is important for the president to make these visits because it gives her the opportunity to present her programs and those of GFWC to members who are unable to attend state meetings and who otherwise might never have the opportunity to meet the state president. Funding for these visits comes from the above mentioned endowment interest and other fund raising done by our state federation. Considering the above statistics, it becomes fiscally irresponsible to continue funding seven visits for the President and three for the Director of Junior Clubs for this miniscule attendance. We must consider how to make the District visits more cost effective as well as how to recreate interest within the Districts.

Now, let me tell you what is alive and well in Tennessee. That is the continued enthusiasm of those who do participate. I have read the reports you sent to me and I am just overwhelmed at the job you do. The ideas you have for projects, the innovative way you raise funds for those projects, the endless hours you spend seeing them to fruition says all that needs to said about GFWC of Tennessee clubwomen.

YOU ARE THE BEST!!! I am so proud to represent you.

Mary Ellen Laister has successfully blended a long career in the insurance business with her Federation volunteer activities. In the past years she was President of the GFWC of Arizona and the GFWC Arizona Central District. At the international level, she served on the GFWC International Hostess Committee and the GFWC Membership Committee.

Mary Ellen was past president of GFWC Las Nochas Women’s Club and served three terms as GFWC-Arizona Junior Mentor. Her experience also includes serving a stint as GFWC-AZ Community Improvement Chairman, three terms as Free Enterprise Chairman and one term as Ball Chairman for three years. In addition to her volunteer work, Mary Ellen is a member of King Glory Lutheran Church, Zonta International of the East Valley and is past president of PROFIT Executive Club.

Born and raised in Beaver PA, she is a graduate of Walsh College in Miami, FL. She currently lives in Tempe with her husband and son and works as an independent contractor for Property and Casualty Insurance.