Civitan

1 CivitanA Service ClubWorthy ofYour TimeCivitanA Service ClubWorthy of Your Time2 This informational brochure is an orientation fornew Civitans, prospective members, and friends ofCivitan. It is for the person who asks, What isCivitan? It covers all levels of Civitan serviceand brochure includes the history, organization,operational details, and service opportunitieswhich are available through Civitan . It is presentedin the hope that the reader will be inspired to domore for his or her new members or prospects fully understandthe Civitan organization, their membership oppor-tunities and satisfaction will improve. In essence,by taking advantage of the resources of the largerorganization, they benefit the local community.

2 Civitan is doing things, big things, for the community, state and nation, and I certainly consider it anhonor to be numberedamong its ranks Civitan is doing things, big things, for the community, state and nation, and I certainly consider it an honor to be numbered among its ranks Thomas Alva Edison, 1928 How Civitan OriginatedPurpose of a Civitan ClubCivitan s Mission Statement3 Civitan s Mission StatementThe mission of Civitan worldwide is to build good citi-zenship by providing a volunteer organization of clubsdedicated to serving individual and community needswith an emphasis on helping people with developmen-tal of a Civitan ClubCivitan s purpose is to serve the community. This isdone by fulfilling human needs that are not met byother organizations or by individual efforts.

3 Individualswhose needs are best met through organized groupaction are prime candidates for Civitan service all they do, Civitans seek experiences that providelife direction, character building, leadership develop-ment, and the satisfaction of helping others. As a resultof this work, a Civitan typically experiences a height-ened sense of self-esteem and Civitan OriginatedOn March 17, 1917, a group of Birmingham, Alabama,business and professional men began meeting weeklyat lunch to discuss ways they might contribute to theimprovement of the community. Like all major cities then and now Birmingham had problems. Thesemen found some of the answers, and decided to jointogether as a winning World War I, these Birmingham Civitans gen-erously contributed both resources and service.

4 Clubmembers not entering the armed forces took up thetask of conscientiously supporting every drive startedin support of the United States war effort. Dr. Courtney W. Shropshire, a prominent physicianand surgeon, was among that initial group. He is cred-ited with being the founder of Civitan word of the effectiveness of the BirminghamCivitan Club spread, men from other cities becameinterested in the Civitan concept. The growing interestoutside Birmingham soon convinced the original mem-bers that their club could be a pattern for an interna-tional organization of Civitan international organization was established onApril 15, 1920, with Dr. Shropshire as president. Severalyears later the title Founder and First President was conferred upon Dr.

5 Shropshire. Today CivitanInternational has nearly 1,500 Civitan , Campus Civitan ,and Junior Civitan clubs in more than 20 EmblemThe Meaning Of The Word Civitan4 TheCivitanCThe Meaning Of The Word Civitan : Civitan is a coined word that comes from the Latinword Civitas, which means EmblemAlthough the logo of Civitan has changed a few timesin the past 90 years, it has significant symbolic pointsthat have remained constant. The gold color repre-sents the purity of highly refined metal, indicative ofthose who would volunteer their time. The blue is aregal color, which together with the gold, has becomesymbolic of many organizations within the serviceclub movement dating back to the early part of thiscentury. The C around the globe is representative ofCivitan around the world.

6 The 12 highlights aroundthe emblem represent the 12 points of the Civitan Creed5I AM Civitan :as old as life, as young as the rain-bow, as endless as HANDSdo the work of the world and reachout in service to EARS hear the cry of children and the callthroughout the world for peace, guidance,progress, and EYES search for others to join in the fellowship and service of MOUTH utters the call to daily duty andspeaks prayers in every MIND teaches me respect for law and the flagof my HEART beats for every friend, bleeds for everyinjury to humanity, and throbs with joy at every tri-umph of SOUL knows no fear but its own HOPEis for a better world through MOTTO:builders of good BELIEF:do unto others as you would havethem do unto PLEDGE:to practice the Golden Rule and tobuild upon it a better and nobler Civitan CreedOur Creed is unique among service clubs, being themost completely developed ethical statement setforth for a service club and serving as a challenge toevery Civitan .

7 Originally written in 1922 by ChampAndrews of the Chattanooga, Tennessee, CivitanClub, it has been modified over the years, mostrecently in 1984. It reads as follows:nCreedMembership RequirementsMembership ClassificationsCivitan Club Structure6 Civitan Club StructureCharter Requirements: Civitan International issues a charter to clubs which havemet the requirements, including an initial membership ofat least 20. When a club accepts a charter, it agrees to bebound by the Civitan International :Each Civitan club is governed by a board of directors thatincludes a president, a president-elect, a secretary, a treas-urer, and at least three directors. The exact make-up of theboard and the duties assigned to each position are deter-mined by the club s standard form of the club bylaws is provided to eachclub and is the recommended club format.

8 It may beadopted without change or may be modified to suit theneeds of the particular group, providing it is not in conflictwith Civitan International Requirements:Any person, male or female, at least 18 years of age, ofgood character and reputation is eligible. Each local clubdetermines its own Classifications:There are eight classes of membership: active, support,project, corporate, member-in-military, life, honorary, andassociate. Active member:pays membership fees and dues, and mayhold elective office in a club, a district, or International. Support Member:Support membership may be conferredon any individual wishing to offer financial support to helpfurther the goals, programs, and projects of a Civitan members will be included on the club, district, andinternational roster with annual membership dues billed atthe same rate as those established for active club members.

9 Project Member:Project membership status may be con-ferred on any individual wishing to participate in local clubprojects but is unable to attend club meetings. Projectmembers shall pay an annual fee to the Civitan club andpay the same district and international dues billed to anactive member of the of Civitan Clubs7 Corporate Member:Corporate membership shall be con-ferred upon a specified number of individuals of a corpo-ration making a substantial financial contribution to a localCivitan club. The amount of the contribution is determinedby the aforementioned club. Corporate members shall beincluded on the club, district, and international roster andshall be billed at the same rate and with the same privilegesas an active Civitan member. Member-in-military:Active members fulfilling requiredmilitary obligation are automatically placed in this member-in-military pays no dues and may not hold anoffice, but has all other membership rights.

10 This status isterminated upon release from active duty. A career mem-ber of the armed forces is not eligible for this category. Life member:A club, in recognition of distinguished serv-ice, may confer life membership on any active club assumes all dues payments for life on the mem-ber s behalf. Past International Presidents are automatical-ly made life members in their home clubs. Honorary member:Members of a Civitan club can conferhonorary membership on anyone who has distinguishedhimself or herself in a praiseworthy manner. An honorarymember pays no dues, may attend meetings, but may notvote or hold office. Associate member:An active member who, for reasons ofhealth, job, or other good cause, cannot meet regularlywith his or her home club or a person seeking to be a mem-ber, but unable, because of geographic distance or otherlimiting circumstances to realistically belong to a Civitanclub, may join Civitan International as an associate mem-ber.