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THE FELLOWSHIP HISTORY
The
Fellowship was started when it was still at the stage of a pilot
project as IVCG (International Vocational Contact Group). It was
the year 1993. Only years later, when the IVCG pilot projects
became regular on the basis of a review by the RI Board, it was
renamed RRVF (Rotary Recreational and Vocational Fellowship).
The name was recently changed again into Vocational and
Recreational Voluntary Fellowship.
When it started, the
rules were much less rigid. It needed only about seven members
from different Rotary Clubs and at least three countries
represented, with the approval from just one DG and registration
from RI.
No constitution, bylaws etc were
specified. So the fellowship started with just about 7 members,
with the representation of India, the Netherlands and Belgium.
The last was the result of the notice
during the EFQM annual convention in 1991 (?) held at Brussels.
The membership kept increasing, especially after RI
started advertising the RRVF activities through The Rotarian
magazine as well as regional magazines started keeping a page
for the application to RRVFs.
The Chairman published
quarterly newsletters called TQM RRVF. Membership went up to
around 200 plus and from more than about 20 countries, but
there was no feedback from members. There was no membership fee.
In order to enable greater fellowship among members, it was
published a questionnaire in one of the newsletters which
members could fill up and return. Less than 10 members
responded. Similarly, there was no reaction when nominations
were invited for the position of chairman of the fellowship.
In order to see whether the large number of members can
be limited to only the serious ones, nominal membership fee was
proposed. It was made in three slabs: $ 10 per annum for
Australia, North America and Europe; Indian Rupees 100 for
India; $ 5 for all other areas.
Member Representatives were
authorised, one for Europe and one for the US, to collect the
subscription as well as to distribute copies of the
Newsletter.
Less than 20 members subscribed.
The
silver lining in the cloud was the very successful formation of
the Italian Chapter and its activities.
Meanwhile, the
Chairman Rot. Ram Ramamurthry retired from his regular
employment and relocated.
Many changes were brought about
by RI in the rules for RRVF - like requirement of
constitution, by-laws for Fellowships.
RI now requires many
reports.
The RI secretariat personnel looking after
Fellowships is changed and more active. RI committee require
to report the fellowship activities and send copies of the
newsletters. According to this new approach the Chairman
Ramamurthry decided to give up his position and asked the
Italian section Coordinator Rtn. Pietro Freschi to take him
over.
The new Chairman found the Fellowship as a convoy
with two velocity:
- the international section completely
inactive in spite of the effort spent in trying to develop some
activity
- the Italian section with its 34 members full of
enthusiasm and producing papers of various titles to introduce
Quality to Rotarians.
After having published the “quality
in the Club, for a Rotary of quality” and distributed hundreds
of copies, the 35 Italian members (two more in the 2002) have
approached the theme of quality in the schools.
The guide
aims to give the basic knowledge to the Rotarians who want to
approach any local Authority related with any type of
instruction: how to improve the level of the standards, to meet
the clients (students, parents, teachers) expectatives, to
measure the expected levels.
All the Italian Rotary Clubs, have had the
opportunity to challenge for “the best quality Club” having
followed the basic rules included in the Rotary Procedure Manual
and checked through the parameters listed in the publication
mentioned above.
The award was given officially in June 2002
during the D 2040 Convention and similarly in the following
editions.
Now the seven edition is in progress.
The
members have also defined the “quality in the health system” and
the new approach is to consider and take care of ill people
considering their point of view.
The pamphlet will be lunched during a
particular convention with the political presence of the
Regional Governor and the highest personality in the medical
field.
Quality in tourism, quality in education was the
next challenge.
A pamphlet regarding Privacy in respect
to the Club members has also been done.
Officially
several members are located in various part of the world but
unfortunately no activity is registered in such Countries in
spite of all the efforts of the International Bridge.
A
web site has been developed and regularly updated.
This
is the fellowship updated history, for more information please
contact:
web site
www.rotarytqm.hpage.net or send by e-mail the complete
address to be contacted.
From the office of
PP
Pietro C. FRESCHI
International Chairman
TQM-RRVF
Total
Quality Management
Rotarians Fellowship
Milan,
10th October 2008
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