Need-to-know information for your chapter election
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CHAPTER LEADERS
Prevent unexpected surprises; be aware of election requirements
Beginning next month, Thrivent Financial members have the unique opportunity to vote for those who will represent them on their local Thrivent chapter leadership board in 2008.
Action Requested: Please review this checklist of important requirements to prevent any unpleasant "surprises" as you prepare for and report your election event:
The chapter leadership elections must be heldbetween Sept. 1 and Nov. 30.
Chapters must provide reasonable notice of the chapter leader elections (date, time and place) and the chapter leader nomination process to their chapter members.
Tip: Many tools are available (see the related article from this month's Chapter News issue) to help you announce and promote your election event. For example, sending the Chapter Election Invitation to all members of your chapter qualifies as reasonable notice.
Chapter leader ballots should have names for at least all five required elected chapter leader board positions (president, vice president, records director, financial director, congregational service team director) at election time.
As announced in a separate Chapter News article this month, a member who agrees to be a candidate for a chapter leader position also agrees to have his or her name, phone number and e-mail address posted to the public chapter Web site on Lutherans Online.
Please see Nominating Committee & Recruiting Guidelines in CHIP, your online chapter reference guide, for a checklist to ensure eligible candidates are on the ballot—helping to prevent unexpected eligibility concerns that may arise at or after the election. In CHIP, type "candidates" in the Search For: box, click Go, and choose "Chapter elections: Nominating Committee & Recruiting Guidelines."
Voting for the chapter leadership board must occur at an election event/meeting. However, chapters may hold their election meetings on multiple sites and/or dates depending on the needs of their chapter and on guidelines provided by their Lutheran Community Services (LCS) Team. To draw more people to the election event, many chapters hold a fund-raising, service or social activity as part of the event.
All voting needs to be donein person (no proxy voting, absentee ballots, voting by mail, etc.).
All adult Thrivent Financial benefit and associate members can vote for chapter leaders.
Chapter operating funds should be used to fund your election event(s).
The chapter leader candidates receiving the most votes for each leader position are elected. (If there is a tie, the chapter leader board determines which candidate is elected.) Elected chapter leaders hold office for one year, from Jan. 1 to Dec. 31.
Chapter leadership election results need to be entered by current chapter leadership no later than Dec. 31 in the Chapter Leadership Administration Menu. A chapter must report the election of the five required leadership positions to receive its January operating funds deposit.
Review CHIP, your online chapter resource guide, for complete details about planning, conducting and reporting local chapter leadership elections, as well as recruiting tips and guidelines. Type "Elections" in the "Search For:" box or click on Elections located on the left navigation bar.
Chapter leader contact information might automatically be posted to chapter Web sites next year
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CHAPTER LEADERS
Notify all 2008 chapter leader candidates before your chapter election
Based on requests from many chapter leaders and Thrivent Financial for Lutherans members, Thrivent Financial might automatically post chapter leader information (names, phone numbers and e-mail addresses) to the chapter Web sites on Lutherans Online beginning next year.
ACTION: Because chapter Web sites are public and accessible to anyone on the Internet, it's important to make all candidates running for a chapter leader position in 2008 aware of thisbefore your chapter election this fall. By agreeing to run for a chapter leader board position, a member also agrees to have his or her information posted on the chapter Web site.
Posting chapter leader information will help prevent missed opportunities
When members look for their chapter leaders online, they go to the Chapter Locator on www.thrivent.com and enter their ZIP Code. They then receive a link to their chapter's Web site.
Most chapters who update their site already have their chapter leader contact information posted. However, if a chapter hasn't updated its site, the member links to a blank or outdated Web site, and in most cases will give up trying to contact the chapter. That turns out to be a missed opportunity for the chapter, for the member, and more importantly for the volunteer activity that could have benefitted from Care Abounds in Communities® funding.
By automatically posting, all chapter Web sites will at least have the chapter leader contact information, which will enable members to contact the chapter and get answers to their questions.
Questions?
For more information about chapter Web sites, please see CHIP, your online chapter reference guide. Type "Web sites" in the Search For: box, click Go, and choose Web sites for chapters.
For details about eligible candidates for chapter leader positions, and messages that must be communicated to candidates before the election, see CHIP. Type "candidates" in the Search For: box, click Go, and choose Chapter elections: Nominating Committee & Recruiting Guidelines.
If you have others questions about the elections or chapter Web sites, please contact the Fraternal Service Center at 800-236-3736 or fraternal@thrivent.com.
What can you tell members at your election event?
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CHAPTER LEADERS
Promotional ideas and tips as you prepare your event
Your chapter election event provides an opportunity to bring together a large group of Thrivent Financial for Lutherans members. As chapter leaders, you are in a great position to let members know how they can help their congregations and communities through the chapter system, and to tell them about Thrivent Financial offerings that benefit them.
Here are some ideas and tips you may want to consider for your election event this year:
Invite and encourage your Thrivent Financial representative(s) to be involved with your election event. It's a great opportunity for them to be in front of members and have members get to know them.
Don't forget to encourage Thrivent Financial benefit members to vote in thenational election for the Thrivent Financial for Lutherans Board of Directors. Ballots again will be sent to these members via mail in October. We ask you to use every opportunity available to promote the national board of directors election and remind benefit members to submit their ballots by Nov 30. See CHIP for more details.
Remind members how they can use the Care Abounds in Communities® and Care in Congregations® programs to help them help others, their communities and congregations. Provide information on how members from your chapter have made a significant difference through chapter activities held in the past year. Invite service team participants and recipients to share their stories at the election event.
Show the Multiplying the Good We Do, TogetherDVD — an uplifting 3- to 4-minute video that helps show what it's like to volunteer with Thrivent Financial for Lutherans and the impact our members and volunteers have in their congregations and communities. You can order this from your Order Chapter Supplies page. See the June Chapter News article for details.
Promote Thrivent Builds with Habitat for Humanity and the work being done in your area. Ask your Thrivent Builds Chapter Specialists or a member of your regional Lutheran Community Services (LCS) Team for ideas on how they can bring visibility to Thrivent Builds at your election event.
Promote the new Thrivent Financial for Lutherans Financial Fitness Clubs (FFCs) simply by providing a quiz and brochure at your election event. (See this month's Chapter News article about FFCs for details about this new program.)
The brochure provides details about Financial Fitness Clubs.
The quiz helps participants determine what type of "financial animal" they are and what that means.
The materials also inform members how to bring a club to their congregation if interested.
To order, send an e-mail to Laurie Harris at laurie.harris@thrivent.com.
Include the anticipated number of attendees and the address of where to send the brochure, the quiz and accompanying animal sticker sheets. Allow two weeks for delivery.
Ask members if they know what their ThriveQ is, and remind them about this free, easy and personalized tool that helps them see where they stand on their path to retirement. Ask your Thrivent Financial representatives if they'd be willing to promote this tool at your event.
Also, ask a member of your Lutheran Community Services (LCS) Team or a Thrivent Financial representative about possibly having ThriveQ table tents (item number 24590T) at your event. If so, they can order these for you.
Tools available to help announce your chapter election
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CHAPTER LEADERS
Invitation, bulletin insert, news releases, ballot and more
Please take advantage of these three tools to help you prepare for and promote your chapter election event this year:
Chapter Election Invitation template — This two-page template (one sheet, front-to-back) is available on the Chapter Mailing Service:
The first page has space to add the date, time, location and other details about the event.
The second page has space to include one of the following:
More information about your election event.
A "form" for members to fill out, tear off and send back to the chapter to notify you they are coming (for example, some chapters ask members to send in the form along with a check to help pay for the meal).
A chapter leader election ballot that members can complete and bring with them to the event. Remember, voting must occur in person at the election event. Note: A preformatted ballot that you can copy and paste to page 2 is available in the Common Articles section of the Chapter Mailing Service.
The election invitation is sent via first-class postage. Allow one to two weeks for delivery.
There is no charge to the chapter for sending this invitation, and it does not count as one of your four free newsletter mailings.
Important: Please note that
the template automatically includes the following paragraph at the bottom of page 1. Therefore, it's important to use the "Print Preview" function before submitting your election invitation template to make sure none of the chapter election information you entered has been cut off.
National Board of Directors Election - You Get to Vote!
This year, we are again conducting the Thrivent Financial for Lutherans National Board of Directors
election through the mail. If you are a benefit member (generally the insured or annuitant on an
insurance or annuity contract issued by Thrivent Financial, or premerger AAL or LB), you are
eligible to vote and will receive the mailing. The opportunity to elect your Board of Directors
is a benefit of your membership in our fraternal benefit society. Watch your
mail in October for election materials. Please participate — your vote matters!
You also can use this wording to promote the national election via your chapter Web site and other correspondence with benefit members.
Chapter Leader Election Bulletin Insert template — Use this to invite Thrivent Financial members from area congregations to your election event. Three versions of this template are available:
A Microsoft Word version that you can fill in electronically and then print. (Word, 48K)
A PDF version that you can highlight electronically, type the information and then print. (PDF, 704K)
A PDF version that you can print and fill in manually. (PDF, 80K)
Click on the links above to access these versions. They also are available on your Order Chapter Supplies page under the "Chapter Supplies - printable format" category.
Remember to get permission from congregations before using the bulletin insert.
News Release templates:
Thrivent Financial for Lutherans members to elect local leaders (Word, 32K) [PDF copy]
This release not only announces your election event, but brings awareness to your chapter and the Care Abounds in Communities® program. It provides space for you to list examples of how chapter activities helped your community in the past year, and invites people to join in a volunteer activity hosted by Thrivent Financial for Lutherans.
Thrivent Financial for Lutherans members elect 2008 volunteer leadership for local chapter board (Word, 33K) [PDF copy]
For use after your election, this release provides space for you to add the names of your 2008 elected chapter leaders, briefly describes the Care Abounds in Communities® program and the overall responsibility of the chapter leadership board, provides quotes that can be attributed to chapter leaders and Thrivent Financial representatives, and invites people to join in a volunteer activity hosted by Thrivent Financial for Lutherans.
Click on the links above to access these templates. Fill in the bold, all caps sections in parentheses with the appropriate information, save it and send to your local newspapers. They also are available on your Order Chapter Supplies page under the "Chapter Supplies - Publicity" category.
Election ballot template also available online
Three versions of an 8 1/2" x 11" election ballot template are available:
A Microsoft Word version that you can fill in electronically and then print. (Word, 38K)
A PDF version that you can highlight electronically, type the information and then print. (PDF, 1.75MB*)
A PDF version that you can print and fill in manually. (PDF, 90K)
Click on the links above to access these versions. They also are available on your Order Chapter Supplies page under the "Chapter Supplies - printable format" category.
* If you do not have high-speed Internet access, you may experience a long wait time while downloading this file.
Many other supplies available
The tools above are specifically designed for your election event. We encourage you to review the Order Chapter Supplies page in your Chapter Leadership Administration Menu or The Store for other great publicity materials you can use at your election event such as name tags, posters, signs and much more.
What activities do you plan to hold at your chapter election event?
—·FOR
CHAPTER LEADERS
Please respond to this month's Quick Poll question
As you make preparations for your annual election event, we'd love to hear what you are planning. The election event is a great opportunity for a large number of members to come together in one place, and we know chapters have excellent plans to draw as many of these members as possible to their event.
There are two very simple ways you can tell us about your event:
Take a few seconds to complete this month's Quick Poll, which is located on the For Chapter Leaders page on www.thrivent.com. (Click here to get to the page. The quick poll is in the right margin.) The question asks what type of activity(ies) you will be having at the event (e.g., fund-raiser, service activity, educational program, recognition, social activity) or if it's as simple as having people come and vote.
Would you like to read about your chapter's 2006 charitable impact in the local press?
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CHAPTER LEADERS
News release template available; copy numbers from Fraternal Highlights
Many chapters have found that Fraternal Highlights is a great tool to have at meetings and events for promoting the outreach provided in your chapter by Thrivent Financial for Lutherans and our members.
Click on the link above and save the template to your computer.
Add your local information and the statistics from your chapter's Fraternal Highlights, which is located at www.thrivent.com > Fraternal Programs > Fraternal Highlights.
Save the changes.
Send the release to local media outlets.
More detailed instructions about accessing your chapter's Fraternal Highlights are included on the first page of the news release template.
The template also is scheduled to be added to your online Order Chapter Supplies page in September.
See Visibility Toolkit for tips on working with media
For details on submitting a news release to your local media and working with your local media, see the Media Relations area of the Visibility Toolkit, located at www.thrivent.com/visibility.
Questions?
If you have questions about the news releases, please contact Brant Skogrand, Senior Media Relations Specialist, at 800-847-4836, ext. 35088, or at brant.skogrand@thrivent.com
The following articles also were posted for congregational coordinators.
Gulf Coast families need our help; new opportunity for members
—·FOR
CHAPTER LEADERS AND CONGREGATIONAL COORDINATORS
Please help us recruit for 10 Thrivent Builds Worldwide volunteer work trips this year
Ten Thrivent Builds Worldwide volunteer work trips are being organized to assist families who suffered from hurricanes Rita and Katrina. During these trips, volunteers will help a total of five partner families build their homes in Biloxi, Mississippi.
These trips:
Will help us test a Thrivent Builds Worldwide trip model to maximize the Thrivent Financial member experience and help trip participants better understand the value of their membership.
Provide a great opportunity for more members to experience Thrivent Builds and more importantly help aid the recovery of the Gulf Coast. At the beginning of the year, 100 Thrivent Builds Worldwide trips were filled in just two months. This was 25 trips more than we had planned — and there continues to be interest in even more trips.
Action Requested: Because you have access to our members through your chapter leader and congregational coordinator roles, we're asking for your help to recruit volunteers for this “Gulf Coast Experience.” Trips will take place from mid-September through mid-December.
Ways you can help: recruit and/or participate
Approximately 200,000 people in southern Mississippi still are housed in FEMA trailers. You can help us bring more families home. Here’s how:
Begin recruiting volunteers for trips now
The one-week trips begin Sept. 17. To find out more about the Gulf Coast Experience, review and use the following to inform Thrivent Financial members in your area:
Sign up for a “recruiter trip” from Sept. 10 to 14 We need 40 participants for the trip, which may include Thrivent Financial representatives, Lutheran Community Services (LCS) Team members, chapter leaders, congregational coordinators, Thrivent Builds chapter specialists and Thrivent Builds congregational champions. After the trip, you will be asked to:
Provide feedback on the experience you had during the week
Lead and/or heavily recruit a team for one (or more) of the scheduled volunteer work trips to Biloxi
How to register for a trip
To register for a trip or to get details, including costs, go to www.thriventbuilds.com/gulf or contact Jeannie Antonetti, Volunteer Manager, at 228-314-0011, ext. 309 or at JAntonetti@hfhmgc.org
Questions?
If you have questions about the Thrivent Builds Worldwide program, please contact the Fraternal Service Center at thriventbuilds@thrivent.com or 800-236-3736.
A new kind of club to help people get financially fit
—·FOR
CHAPTER LEADERS AND CONGREGATIONAL COORDINATORS
Financial Fitness Clubs offer fun, interactive and motivational approaches to sharpen basic financial skills
Recently, Thrivent Financial for Lutherans introduced a new concept that is active in several states — Thrivent Financial Fitness Clubs. Because of your role as chapter leaders and congregational coordinators, we want to make you aware of this offering for members and others. We also encourage you to share information about the clubs with your members.
What are these clubs?
Financial Fitness Clubs are formed locally and are designed for Thrivent Financial members and others who want to improve their personal "financial fitness." They:
Provide attendees with fun, interactive and motivational approaches to sharpen skills in the areas of budgeting, setting goals, spending and saving.
Show participants how taking small steps can lead to big changes. A strong emphasis is placed on breaking goals into simple and attainable steps.
Give participants an opportunity to assess their personal financial to-do list and learn ways to reach their goals.
Overall, we believe that building knowledge and taking action will lead to greater financial confidence.
How do the clubs work?
Club members join by paying a nominal fee (scholarships are available). A club meets weekly for an energizing 1-hour session that focuses on a different financial topic. A Financial Fitness Trainer leads the club and shares tips, tools and solutions for success.
Thrivent Financial products and services are not sold in the sessions. “Our focus is on motivating behavior change, not selling products,” says Mary Downs, Financial Fitness Club leader. “If attendees want more help than we are able to provide, then we will refer them to their Thrivent Financial representative or to other resources that can help.”
What are participants saying? Club participants describe the clubs as “a non-threatening way to look at your finances with good ideas to make improvements;” and “a comfortable group in which to discuss financial goals, problems and strategies to improve.” One participant said the best part of the Club is “instead of celebrating 'keeping up with the Joneses,' it's great to celebrate savings!”
Check out the Web site; what's your 'financial animal?'
Encourage members to visit our Thrivent Financial Fitness Club Web site at www.thriventfinancialfitnessclub.com to:
Read complete details about the clubs, including what they are and what they are not. This page has excellent information to share with members.
Take a quiz to find out what kind of "financial animal" they are. (Note: Paper copies can be ordered for a chapter activity. See instructions below.)
How to order paper quizzes
If you'd like to use the "animal quiz" at a chapter event, you can order paper copies and the accompanying animal sticker sheets by sending an e-mail to Laurie Harris at laurie.harris@thrivent.com. Include the anticipated number of attendees and the address of where to send them. Allow two weeks for delivery.
Questions?
If you have questions about the Thrivent Financial Fitness Clubs, please contact Linda Maas at 800-847-4836, ext. 84667, or at linda.maas@thrivent.com
Financial Fitness Clubs are a program of Thrivent Financial Lifelong Resources Inc., a subsidiary of Thrivent Financial for Lutherans.
Be aware of important privacy guidelines regarding Member Lists
—·FOR
CHAPTER LEADERS AND CONGREGATIONAL COORDINATORS
It's important to appropriately use your access privilege to member information
ACTION Required: As chapter leaders and congregational coordinators, you have access to member information (e.g., names and addresses) via an online or paper Member List. Because of this privilege and our commitment to protect member information, we are required to periodically send you a reminder about the importance of following Thrivent Financial for Lutherans' privacy policy and practices as it relates to Member Lists:
Member Lists contain proprietary information that is solely for use by employees, volunteers, and agents of Thrivent Financial for Lutherans in connection with fraternal activities of Thrivent Financial for Lutherans. They must not be copied or reproduced for unauthorized use, including personal use.
ACTION Required: You must keep this information secure and protect it from any unauthorized access or use. If you become aware of any unauthorized use of the information, you must immediately notify the Fraternal Service Center at 800-236-3736 or fraternal@thrivent.com.
ACTION Required: Member Lists must be destroyed if requested by Thrivent Financial for Lutherans or if you determine you no longer have need for the information. Consider confidentiality as you destroy chapter materials and records such as Member Lists and past financial records. If records contain a member's personal information (name, address, phone number, etc.), shred, tear or burn these records when disposing of them.
Complete details about the impacts of privacy on chapters, activity payees and recipients, and chapter leaders', congregational volunteers' and service team leaders' personal information are located in CHIP, your online chapter reference guide. Type "Privacy" in the "Search For:" box.
Accessing Member Lists
Chapter leaders can order chapter member lists via the Chapter Leadership Administration Menu (go to the Reports/Listings area and click on Order Chapter Member Listing). Because chapter member lists can be lengthy and expensive to mail, they should not order a list unless they need to recruit new chapter leaders now and/or they need to contact members to request involvement in volunteer activities.
Congregational coordinators can order a member list for their congregation via the Congregational Coordinator Administration Menu (go to the Reports/Listings area and click on Order Congregational Member Listing). Although these lists are shorter than the chapter member lists, these should not be ordered unless they are needed for recruiting new congregational coordinators or volunteers for activities.
See CHIP for more details about member lists. Type "Member Lists" in the "Search For:" box.
