As we finish the 2007/2008 Newcomers year, we can honestly say it has been a success! We’ve truly enjoyed serving as co-presidents. Our dynamic club continues to welcome people to beautiful Ridgefield so they can build lasting friendships in the community.

The Board was comprised of motivated individuals who worked hard to keep things running in a seamless manner. Despite the demands of daily life, they stepped up time and again. The following are some highlights from the year:

Greater emphasis was placed on the Hospitality function which welcomes new members and gets them linked into the club. Special events such as a cocktail party, coffees and the Memorial Day picnic were provided as opportunities for these individuals to become engaged.

We hosted our first annual "Camp Fair" which was very successful. Approximately 40 camps participated in the fair which was extremely well attended by the community.

We were able to provide more efficient processes to our membership such as Paypal, on-line membership, and an activities survey. Our communications vehicles (Newsletter, Website, e-mail) were produced in a professional, low-cost manner. Membership continues to thrive and our list of sponsors has grown.

Our Activity Chairs, to whom we owe so much, did a wonderful job running our monthly activities. The ACs enabled the club to provide a robust menu of offerings including: Wine Tasters, Ladies’, Men’s & Couples’ Nights Out, Gourmet Group, Weekend Moms, Tots Activities, Playgroups, Bunco, Knit2gether, Book Club, Golf and Softball. Their creativity, motivation, and dedication were apparent!

In addition to the monthly activities, we successfully hosted larger, special events such as the Halloween Party, Santa Claus Party, Martini Night and the Keeler Tavern Garden Party. Feedback regarding these events was positive and many of them will be held again next year. We look forward to our largest event, the "Ruby Red" Gala which is also a celebration of the club’s 40th anniversary and promises to be a wonderful evening.

In an effort to provide members the opportunity to serve the community, we launched the Philanthropic Activities Group. Besides successfully running Soles for Souls and Reach Out and Read (ROR), this group became a vehicle for other charitable events such as Walk for the Cure, Great Strides and the Holiday Giving Tree.

That said, we graciously hand the baton to the Board of 2008-2009. We wish the incoming co-Presidents, Board, and Activity Chairs much success – and fun!

Enjoy your summer! See you next year!