Why Become A Member
One of the many main advantages of joining our civic organization is the sense of community you gain. As a HCJ member, you’ll be able to participate in group volunteer opportunities, gain business contacts, and develop friendships.
Individual Membership Benefits
Well, there are many personal benefits to becoming a member of Honolulu Chinese Jaycees:
Expand your network of friends and business contacts locally and across the globe
Get the chance to give back to your community and effect positive change
Develop your leadership and management skills; as well as have personal development opportunities
Complement training at work
Get a chance to practice public speaking and debating in a safe environment
Meet people from all over the world at JCI’s conferences
Discover your true potential and what makes you motivates or interests you
Meet new challenges
Have fun with a dose of positive energy and meet new people
Gain experiences to last a lifetime
Being a part of the Honolulu Chinese Jaycees, and in larger context the Junior Chamber International, is a * Learning by Doing * organization – the more you put in the more you will get out!
Corporate Membership Benefits
If you are an employer and you wish that your employees further develop themselves on a personal, social and business level, Honolulu Chinese Jaycees can provide the following environment:
a place to meet new people
to work with different personalities
to learn to collaborate with others
to deal with different situations
to be motivated to take initiatives
to become more active than passive
to learn on project planning
to learn to communicate better – public speaking as well with others
And all this is achieved while doing something good for our community.
New members bring in new blood into the organization. That means new ideas, new energy and enthusiasm. Our organization is in a constant state of change. Career advancement, family commitments, and reaching forty–these are some of the reasons Jaycees typically leave a particular chapter. Therefore, it’s very important for the organization to be identifying and recruiting good new members and sharing the Jaycee movement.
After you join, all that remains is for your to involve yourself in whatever areas stimulate your interests. If there is something that interests you that the our organization don’t do, then you are encouraged to propose a project of your own!
Typically your local chapter, region, state, and national Jaycees organizations are continuously improving their programming to better fulfill the needs of the community and varied interests of all our members.
Membership, International, Community, Individual
The thrust of the leadership training within the Honolulu Chinese Jaycees is achieved through running projects. The member can take on many roles within the projects — from project chairperson to project helper.
During the 90 plus years since the beginning of the Jaycee movement, the organization has gone through many changes, both in programs and in names. The Jaycees have become the greatest young people’s leadership training organization in the world, and during this period, have developed a “concept” of what the Jaycees should be for its members. Since True Leaders possess skills in many different areas, it is only logical to learn skills in those different areas of opportunity. All projects and programs run by a Jaycee chapter fall within one of four major programming Areas of Opportunity: Individual Development, Community Development, Business Development and International Development. These categories are as follows:
Individual Area of Opportunity
Embodying the line of the Jaycee Creed, which states “Earth’s great treasure lies in human personality,” this area provides an opportunity for individual members to realize their personal potential through training programs.
While there is an Area of Opportunity for individual development, every single activity in the Jaycee organization is oriented to develop the potential and skills of the individual member. Active participation in activities in any of the Areas will give the member the opportunity to enhance his or her potential. Training opportunities dedicated to the enhancement of a Jaycee member’s personal skill set (not related to official Jaycee responsibilities) and not specifically covered by another Area would be included here.
Through its four Commissions, the Individual Area of Opportunity ensures that new members are brought into the organization and are provided with training to fully develop their personal and professional potential.
Personal Development: This Commission includes projects that improve the quality of life of the membership. Such projects provide education that benefits members in both their personal and professional lives. Examples include training in areas of family values, spiritual development, hobbies, retirement planning, time management, public speaking, CPR training, the United States Jaycees competitions program and communication skills.
Professional Development: Projects aimed at developing members as leaders in their chapters and professions are the focus of this Commission. Examples include the leadership training, stress management, team building, a course in “How to Motivate Others” and other managerial training.
Membership, Retention, Growth and New Chapters: This Commission ensures that new members join the chapter regularly, receive proper orientation and are included in the chapters activities immediately after joining. Project examples include M-Nights, Growth Week, assisting another chapter with membership recruitment, new member orientations, establishing a new chapter and activation programs like Springboard and Degrees of Jaycees.
Chapter Activities: This Commission ensures that members have the opportunity to participate in a wide variety of social activities., and that members have the opportunity to participate in meeting procedures. Some examples include picnics, chapter awards programs, chapter meetings, progressive dinners, watching fireworks and sports.
Community Area of Opportunity
Embodying the line of the Jaycee Creed, which states “Service to humanity is the best work of life,” this area develops the sensitivity of individual members to societal problems and fosters knowledge of community dynamics in solving these problems, through actual experience. Like all citizens, Jaycee members have a stake in the betterment of their communities. The Community Area of Opportunity is built around four Commissions:
Community Service: Involves projects that are designed to promote or improve the quality of life for people in the community. This includes projects that deal directly with community needs such as elderly assistance, mental health and retardation, and health and safety. Projects dealing with properties, economic development, energy and the environment would also be included here. Note: youth projects would be listed under the Children and Youth Commission (Community) and state, national and international Junior Chamber priority projects would be under the State, National and International Junior Chamber Involvement Commission (International).
Community Fundraising: Projects with the direct raising of funds for a specific non-Jaycee program. This includes local disaster or emergency assistance, health related organizations, foundations and any organized community charities.
Government and Civic Involvement: Projects that generate involvement in all areas of the local, state and national government process. Projects include town forums, debates, “Get Out The Vote”, advocacy issues, and criminal justice projects. Also projects providing assistance to other civic organizations in the community go here.
Children and Youth: This Commission’s responsibility is to promote and coordinate projects related to children and youth. As the future of our community lies in the hands of today’s young people, many projects should be conducted to ensure that young people are well prepared to take the community leadership roles in the years to come. Examples include youth sporting events, fingerprinting, building a playground, holiday egg hunts, reading and other educational programs. Note: Projects involving children of non-Jaycees fall under this Commission. Family-related projects, where children of Jaycees are involved with their Jaycee parents, fall under the Personal Development Commission or Chapter or Chapter Activities Commission in the Individual Development Area of Opportunity.
Management Area of Opportunity
Embodying the line of the Jaycee Creed, which states “Economic justice can best be won by free men through free enterprise,” this area provides an opportunity for individual members to contribute to the development Almost all members of the Jaycees are involved in some business activity – working on their own, for another company, or preparing to open their own business. The Junior Chamber was established in 1920 to give young people an active voice in the business community. This same purpose is now found in the Business Area of Opportunity and is divided into four Commissions:
Marketing and Public Relations: Projects in this Commission are conducted to promote the image of your chapter and the Jaycee involvement in the community. Some examples are brochures, business cards, television appearances, chapter marketing via local print media, radio PR efforts, press releases, external awards programs such as Distinguished Service Awards or Business Sponsor Awards, parades, pageants, newsletters, Jaycee Week, ongoing public relations work and training in marketing and public relations.
Strategic Planning: All projects involving record keeping, reporting, planning needs analysis and evaluation. Examples include developing Chairman’s Planning Guides, creating, reviewing and revising a chapter business plan and any short-term or long-term planning and evaluation. Training the the above activities would be included here.
Financial Management: Ensuring that the chapter’s finances are handled in a proper way and projects that look for ways to enhance the financial stability of the chapter. Projects with the primary purpose of raising funds for the chapter would go here.
Business Opportunities: All projects that enhance the economics of the community and/or increase business productivity. Economic progress can be achieved by partnering with the local Chamber of Commerce, organizing small investment clubs, visiting successful companies to learn how they conduct their business, and by inviting successful entrepreneurs to speak at monthly meetings. Jaycees can also conduct training sessions on how to enhance company operations and promote free enterprise as the best way to achieve economic justice.
International Area of Opportunity
Embodying the line of the Jaycee Creed, which states “The brotherhood of man transcends the sovereignty of nations,” this area provides an opportunity for individual members to contribute to the development of goodwill, understanding, and cooperation among all people. Programming in this area would encompass all projects and programs that enhance a member’s knowledge of different cultures and countries around the world. This includes the following two Commissions:
State, National and International Junior Chamber Involvement: All state Jaycee, USJC, and JCI emphasis programs. Consult your state organization for a list of state programs. Current nationwide chapter projects include: American Cancer Society’s Relay for Life, Outstanding Young Farmer (OYF), and Ten Outstanding Young Americans (TOYA). For a complete list National Partner programs, visit the U.S. Jaycees website at www.usjaycees.org. Examples of JCI programs include JCI Presenter, JCI Business Academy and the Best Business Plan in the World. For a list of additional JCI programs, visit the JCI website at www.jci.cc. Note: Chapter visitation programs would also be included under this Commission. Chapter twinning however, would be included under the International Involvement Commission, see directly below.
International Involvement: Projects in this Commission include those that provide assistance or promote understanding and communications between the chapter and people outside the United States. Jaycee members recognize the fact that the present world problems can often be solved through international collaboration, tolerance and friendships. Members put this belief into practice by collaborating in joint worldwide projects. Examples include food drives for other countries, the study of traditions and dress of other cultures, chapter twinning and international guest speakers.