ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURE:
The club leadership consists of the officers: President, Vice President, Secretary/Treasurer and Sgt-At-Arms. There are six members of the Board of Managers (each serves a 3 year term). Elections are held annually and the officers and Board meet monthly. In addition to the elected officers, the president may appoint committees to enhance the smooth operation of the club.
The North Central Federation represents all the clubs in South Dakota and North Dakota. It is one of nine federations in Cosmopolitan International. The Federation coordinates training and information for the local club and provides a liaison to the International organization.
Cosmopolitan International represents all the clubs in the US, Canada and Mexico. The International maintains an office and staff in Overland Park, Kansas. The International is involved in many service projects – the major project is Diabetes Research.
RAPID CITY CLUB ACTIVITITES:
The club meets every Monday noon at the Thirsty’s. Meetings begin with a lunch, followed by singing America, invocation by the club Chaplain, singing the Club song, other songs from the club songbook, and God Bless America. The business portion of the meeting starts at 12:15 PM and closes at approximately 1:00 PM.
A program follows which may include the Cosmopolitan of the Day (C.O.D.). The C.O.D.’s are members who tell something about themselves, family, business, hobbies, etc. On this day, the C.O.D. is immune from all fines.
Program speakers which are arranged by the Program Chairman (Vice President), are varied in content and are interesting and timely. They usually provide information of local, state and national interest to the members.
The business of the club follows the program. This may include reports and discussion of the club activities.
The Sgt-At-Arms is the club morale officer, whose responsibility is to maintain the proper decorum and dignity during the meeting. The Sgt-At-Arms may assess any member a fine (25 cents) if they have exhibited other than exemplary conduct, bragged about themselves, promoted their business or what have you, or in any way given the Sgt-At-Arms an excuse to assess a fine. This is all done in the spirit of having fun.
A 50/50 drawing is held at the end of the meeting and the holder of the winning ticket receives half of the pot collected. The other half is put in a fund to help pay the cost of delegates who attend Federation and International conventions. An additional drawing (Deuce of Diamonds) is also conducted to raise money for diabetes research. At each meeting, the President appoints a member designated as Mr./Ms. X. This activity encourages members to shake hands with each other. The tenth member to shake the hand of Mr./Ms. X is Mr./Ms. Lucky and wins $5.00
CLUB PROJECTS:
Members have the opportunity to participate in fund raising projects which provide funds to finance the support to the various community activities supported by the Club.
The major fund raising project is the annual “Black Hills Sport Show and Sale” in which all the club members are expected to participate.
The Club handles ticket taking and ushering responsibilities at the Civic Center several times a year to support sending delegates to conventions.
The club membership also “Rings the Bell” for the Salvation Army one Saturday before Christmas and participates in the City’s annual clean-up campaign by maintaining a mile stretch of Nemo Road.
The newest project is the Reflections Program which promotes fundraising for the fight against and awareness of diabetes in our community. All funds raised stay in Rapid City or the Black Hills Area.
We work on our projects, have fun, earn funds and provide a service to people of Rapid City and throughout the nation.
CLUB SERVICE PROJECTS WE SUPPORT:
Financial Support is provided to:
Diabetes Education and Research -$15,000 - $25,000 annually.
Annually the Club provides financial support ($10,000 - $20,000) to some of the following youth development organizations:
Big Brother/Sisters BH Food Bank Boy Scouts
CASA Character Counts! Cosmo Pals
Cornerstone Rescue Mission (Women’s Shelter)
Girl Scouts Love, Inc Rapid City Club for Boys Storybook Island
Wellspring Western Jr. Livestock
Working Against Violence Inc YFS (Girls Club) YMCA
BECOME A COSMO
You will be glad you did!
This has been just a brief overview of Rapid City Cosmopolitan Club. You will become more familiar with club activities as you participate as an active member.
CLUB COSTS: Initiation Fee $ 41.00* Total $ ______________ Rapid City Cosmopolitan Club “The Club That Fights Diabetes” HISTORY: The Rapid City Cosmopolitan Club was organized and chartered in 1929 and has been in continuous operation for over 75 years. Membership, which represents a wide variety of businesses in Rapid City, has ranged from 75 to 115 during the past 20 years. The Rapid City Cosmopolitan Club became a coed club in 1988. The Club has been consistently the largest club in the North Central Federation and one of the Top 10 in Cosmopolitan International.
The Club Motto is – ACTION, SERVICE & UNITY The Club Slogan is – THE CLUB THAT BUILDS FRIENDSHIP Cosmopolitan International Mission - FIGHTING DIABETES
Rapid City Cosmopolitan Club PO Box 994 Rapid City, SD 57709
Quarterly Dues $ 41.00
Spouse Membership $ 25.00/quarter
Beacon Donations $
* Includes Cosmopolitan Yellow Jacket
Current President: James Schuh -343-7998 - gymshoe@rushmore.com