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Training
Building a Community of Humanists
Is your
organization a community or simply a group of Humanists? What is
the difference? A community cares about one another and has a
shared purpose that they are working towards. This shared purpose
could be as simple as wanted to become better educated, or working
to protect our first amendment rights. The harder element of
building a true community is creating caring amongst your members.
But, there are some simple things you can start doing to help this
along.
For
instance, do you provide nametags when people come in to your
meeting? Nametags are an easy way to encourage people to mingle and
talk with one another. It is also helpful to note on those tags
(with an asterisk or some other symbol) that some is new to the
group, and to have individuals whose job it is to go up to those
newbie’s and strike up a conversation - make sure they feel welcome
and extend a friendly invitation to return. This simple act will
help you grow your group.
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Make sure
the nametags are printed with type that is large enough to see
at a distance so that as a person is approaching, the name is
apparent.
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In addition
to the first and last name, the nametag also has the city or
country in which one was raised as well as the city in which the
person last lived. With so many Floridians actually being
displaced persons this becomes a wonderful conversation starter.
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Give Board
members special notice on their name tags so that anyone who
needs specific information can easily identify those in the
know!
Do you take
names? When people arrive, do you have a table set up for them to
sign in, so you can get their name and contact information to follow
up with them and let them know about your upcoming events? If you
aren't, you are missing out on another opportunity to grow your
group.
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Once you
have them on your list – contact them to invite them to attend a
coffee to share more information if they so desire.
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On the
welcome table make sure there are leaflets that explain the
basic tenets of Humanism.
Do you have
a "Care Committee?" One or two people who keep track of the
membership and offer support to members in need. Do any of your
older members need a ride to the meeting? The Care Committee can
set up a car pool. Is someone sick? The care committee can send a
card or bring over some food. These little things let people know
that members of the group care about them personally, and that is
what transforms a group into a community.
Buddy
Committee- Each person on this committee is assigned to a new
member. In between meetings, the veteran member calls the newbie to
find out how s/he is and to make sure that the newbie is aware of
the date of the next meeting. Frequently the veteran member greets
the newbie as s/he enters the meeting space.
E-mail and
phone tree. Every member is either on the e-mail list or is part of
the phone tree so that we can get messages instantly to all of our
members. Both the e-mail lists and phone tree lists are constantly
being updated.
Feeding the
Masses: Do you encourage your members to bring food in to the
reception after the program. Be sure to label all the "goodies" so
that the members who brought in the food can be thanked.
Special
Interest groups: As your group grows, it is a good idea to form
special interest groups such as movie groups, book club, digital
photography, wine tasting groups etc etc. These interest groups
provide a mechanism for the members to get to know each other in a
more intimate group setting and often become vital to social life of
your community. |
