Home & Country Newsletters (Stoney Creek, ON), Fall 1978, p. 3

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GREAT EXPECTATIONS AREN’T ENOUGH Do you want to make changes in your life ..... specifically in the area of volunteer work? why not take a look at yourself - yes, you. What can you do to be a better women’s Institute member. Are you one of the persons who believes action is futile? How much do you give to the organization? Do you ride along, only taking and enjoying the best? Do you feel if you attend one of the Home Economics Branch courses you've done your duty? Why not urge a friend or neighbour to attend? It’s hard to believe that each of you can't find one more interested person. The women's Institutes are only as strong as each member (how often have we heard that before). The soâ€"called crisis with government is due to the failure of individuals to decide on goals, directions and values desired. Governments can never devise acceptable policies unless citizens are clear about the direction in which they wish to proceed. It is no different with the N.I. If all the members in every branch would devise interesting and innovative programs and projects, it would soon be realized that solutions are our own responsibility. Voluntary initiative must come from within. We always seem so quick to fbnnulate resolutions asking the government to implement our ideas, but how slow we are to write letters individually. Lf statistics are correct, it seems likely that volunteerism will continue to be an influential force in our society. It encourages us to meet goals designed by a partnership - the members and offiicers. However, if we are to continue to grow, we must know what we want and find ways to help meet our needs. hwst of all, the membership must use their minds and skills and learn to see the old "things" and methods in a new light. It can teach us to look at our hands and ndnds and say ’what do they do? What can they do?" In an organization with the potential power that the W.I. holds, forecasting is essential. The relationship among ourselves, the community and the image we present, is ours alone to project. It is up to the members to become the voice, asking, questioning, relating. What will the forecast be? We must decide on the changes for the future from causes that are present today. we can learn what those causes are, and their consequences, by studying the past. Is optimism or pessimism to be the goal? It all depends on interpretation. One can say many members have had long years of experience or many members belonging to the organization have ample opportunity to gain years of experience. Both are needed, experience gained and experience to be gained. We really can't afford pessimism, nor can we bask in the achievements ofthe past, so optimism is the only way to go. The way ahead! From the plateau on which the organization now stands, the mountain can be seen. How soon we arrive depends on the direction taken. The time has come to clarify the view for the future. Apathy has a killer instinct. Don't be a killer! 772:7”, fiefiew

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