Governor's Message

I believe that anyone who assumes a position of leadership must have a vision of what he or she will like to achieve during his or her term of leadership.  My desire is that Canadian District East achieves the highest net growth percentage among all of the districts in the entire Civitan organization.

I also hope that all of the presidents in our district have the desire to be an honour club president. However, such vaulting position is easier said than done because many of our clubs fail to end the year with a membership of + 1.  To begin this new year our International President has urged all of his governors to sponsor at least one new member during the month of October. I am happy to state that I have sponsored successfully.

During our Spring Convention in Gananoque last May, I as Governor Elect had asked the membership to emulate nature, for it is during this season that nature rejuvenates itself.  It is the season of growth and new birth.  I encourage all members to make an effort towards sponsoring new members and to think about trying to build new clubs.

My message today is the same, only it is put simpler and easier to understand, for I say today, of CIVITANS, “Let us all live the Civitan Creed”.  It is that creed which we say on every occasion we meet as members of one body as it is to remind ourselves of who we are and why we exist.      

It is the Creed which we say with pride and an element of reverence. “I am Civitan, as old as life, as young as the Rainbow, as endless as time, and as we continue, on reaching our fourth statement or pledge, as I consider it to be, we say, “My eyes search for others to join in the fellowship and service of Civitan”. I consider this to be the most important point of all in our Creed for it is what gives life to our organization.  It is the foundation on which all that we say in our Creed is based. If we do not search for others to join our organization, how will we be able to boast that we are as old as life; how will we be able to proclaim that our organization is endless as time is endless.

 It is imperative; therefore, that we live this aspect of our Creed, not some of the time, but all of the time; but many of us give only lip service to this pledge, too often.  I know only too well for I, also, bear a degree of guilt.  I consider, “My hands do the work of the World and reach out in service to others”, the second in importance. Without new hands, who will continue the work which we have begun, who will carry on throughout life, throughout time? We have committed ourselves to this work; therefore the search for others to carry on must be endless.       

The reference made to hands and work in this point of our Creed silently shows us how we can achieve success.  Notice the hand, all of its members are different, each can move independently, but the hand can only function successfully if all of its members work together, at the same time, as a team.  So it must be in Civitan.  All of our members must work together, searching for others, not just the few who respond repeatedly to that aspect of our Creed.

If we truly live what we pledge, every aspect of our Creed will be alive, and we will find within us a heart that truly beats for every friend, bleeds for every injury to humanity and throbs with joy at every triumph of truth. 

This truth to which our Creed refers, I have interpreted to be the reason for which all of humanity was created, that is, “To Love and To Serve One Another”.

It is only by living our Creed, we can say with pride and joy, “We have met the Challenge, We have Championed Civitan, and Civitan Rocks in our Communities, in our Townships and Cities, in our Provinces and Country, and that CIVITAN ROCKS OUR WORLD”.

Yours In Civitan

Ted Coqueran
Governor 2009-2010

Return to CDE Home Page