On the second Thursday of every month at 7:30 pm, we meet to go over upcoming projects and recognize members' achievements. The public is welcome and encouraged to attend. These meetings are held at the Rochester Community House, located at 816 Ludlow, Rochester, Mi on the west side of the Rochester Municipal Park.
To Become . . . The organization of choice for young people, providing direction and leadership to our community
To provide young people the opportunity to develop personal and leadership skills through local community service and organizational involvement while expanding the Jaycee movement.
The concepts and beliefs of the Jaycee organization are embodied in the Jaycee Creed written by C. William Brownfield:
We believe:
That faith in God gives meaning and purpose to human life;
That the brotherhood of man transcends the sovereignty of nations;
That economic justice can best be won by free men through free enterprise;
That government should be of laws rather than of men;
That earth's great treasure lies in human personality;
And that service to humanity is the best work of life.
Shaping the future by developing leaders today
The Rochester Area Jaycees always have projects and events in the works. Some are designed to benefit the community. Other projects will benefit the individual member. As a member, you will have access to training sessions and events developed exclusively for the Jaycees.
The Rochester Area Jaycees have been a part of the community since 1958. Young people between the ages of 21 and 40, from all walks of life, have discovered the unique benefits the Jaycees have to offer.
Whether you are looking to participate once a month or once a year, it’s entirely up to you! Members have the opportunity to:
• Become more involved in the community
• Learn new skills
• Network
• Develop professional skills
• Attend social gatherings
• Help raise money for charities
• Meet people and make friends
We would like to extend an invitation to you to come and participate as a guest. It offers you a chance to meet and get to know us.
Please contact [email protected] for more information, or stop by our General Membership Meeting to see first hand what we are all about.
District, Region, and State
Each Jaycee chapter is a part of a local district and a larger region within the state. We are part of:
See what the National Jaycees Say:
The United States Junior Chamber (Jaycees) gives young people between the ages of 21 and 40 the tools they need to build the bridges of success for themselves in the areas of business development, management skills, individual training, community service, and international connections.
Established in 1920 to provide opportunities for young men to develop personal and leadership skills through service to others, the Jaycees later expanded to include women, reflecting the growing influence and leadership of women in America.
For the past 83 years, Jaycees have been a force for good in America and around the world. Jaycees helped establish AirMail services in America with Jaycee Charles Lindbergh, and have raised millions of dollars for causes such as the Muscular Dystrophy Association and the March of Dimes. They have built parks, playgrounds, hospitals, ball fields, and housing for the elderly while conducting service and support programs in thousands of communities nationwide.
Jaycees can be found in all walks of life: governmental leaders such as past Presidents Bill Clinton & Gerald Ford, business tycoons such as Domino’s Pizza mogul Tom Monaghan, registered nurse and former Miss America Kaye Lani Rae Rafko-Wilson, sports heroes like basketball great Larry Bird – name the field and Jaycees can be found at the forefront.
With the focus of the nation on volunteerism, from the smallest towns to the largest cities, the Jaycees are enlarging areas of opportunity for young people.
“a constructive action organization of young persons who devote a portion of their time to community service in the public interest, developing young persons as leaders in their communities.”The purpose of the Junior Chamber is:
(Taken from The U.S. Junior Chamber Bylaws Manual)
“to promote and foster the growth and development of young persons’ civic organizations in the United States, designed to inculcate (to teach and impress upon) in the individual membership of such organization a spirit of genuine Americanism and civic interest, and...to provide them with opportunity for personal development and achievement and an avenue for intelligent participation...in the affairs of the community, state, and nation, and to develop true friendship and understanding among young persons of all nations.”
(Taken from The U.S. Junior Chamber Bylaws Manual)
Simply put, the purpose of the local chapter is to become a force for good in the community, determining community needs and providing solutions by planning and facilitating community service projects. In the act of serving, members receive hands-on experience, which translates to the enhancement of personal growth and the development of valuable leadership skills. This is the total Junior Chamber Concept.
You know how sometimes if you ask twenty people why they do something, you will get twenty different answers? That is also true when we ask members why they joined the Jaycees. These are the most popular answers:
This isn't surprising since Rochester is a dynamic community and there are always a lot of new people in town.
Where else would you have the opportunity to do such diverse things as take under privileged children shopping during the holidays, plan and run safety education for children over the summer, and deliver Easter baskets to seniors?
Your participation depends on your schedule, not ours. You get out of the organization what you put into it and more. You decide what you want that to be.
How many times have you heard "it's not what you know, but who you know"? As Jaycees, we have many opportunities to interact with the movers and shakers of this community including a variety of community and business leaders. Our members also come from many different industries and professions and are a great group of people to get to know.
Do you want to prove that you have project management skills? How about telling your employers that you planned and carried out an event in which 20,000 people were in attendance? For people who want to make a more formal commitment, members have the opportunity to run for the Board of Directors so they can take a more active role in the planning, running and direction of the organization.
We encourage people to stretch their comfort zones and take on things they've never done before. From news writing to finance to marketing, our members are always taking on new roles and learning new skills. We also offer many one-day events to teach people things like CPR, Internet basics, car maintenance and a whole host of other things.
You can join the Jaycees several ways, but it's really simple. As long as you are between the ages of 21 and 40, you are eligible to join.
Dues are $60 per year and we need your name, address, phone, email, and birth date along with the dues to get you signed up as an official member. You can contact the Rochester Area Jaycees by email at [email protected] or mail at PO Box 80161, Rochester, MI 48308-0161. If you would like to check us out before joining, you can come to any of our events, including our monthly meetings.
The U.S. Junior Chamber founder Henry Giessenbier’s vision of providing young people with leadership through community service can be broken down into five Areas of Opportunity. The Michigan Jaycees classify all of their projects by commissions which are then grouped in these areas of opportunity. These areas are overseen by a Vice President. In Rochester, we have four VP positions to oversee five areas of opportunity as follows:
Individual Area of Opportunity
International Area of Opportunity
Management/Business Area of Opportunity
Membership Area of Opportunity
Here are the signature projects that the Rochester Area Jaycees run every year. Please view our calendar for a full list of events.
We provide special deliveries for seniors in the Meals on Wheels program through the Older Persons' Commission. They include Hearts for Seniors for Valentine's Day and Senior Easter Baskets.
We have a team in the Relay for Life of Greater Rochester. We do multiple fundraisers prior to the event, including a Tastefully Simple Party. This year, we also raised money by selling tickets to a Detroit Tigers game.
Safety Town: The Rochester Area Jaycees' “Safety Town” program teaches pre-kindergartners various aspects of life safety. This summer program seeks to reduce childhood injury by introducing four-, five- and six-year-old children to basic safety concepts through the use of interactive experiences. Please visit our Safety Town Page for more information.
At Heritage Days, the Saturday and Sunday of Memorial Day Weekend, the Rochester Area Jaycees host an entertainment area for kids and adults. The Jaycees use Summit Rock Wall Adventures as its fund-raising tools for this festival. This year, we also added a dunk tank!
For over 40 years, the Rochester Area Jaycees have held a Haunted House – the Tunnel of Terror – in the parking lot of the Rochester Municipal Park in downtown Rochester. The Haunted House runs every Friday and Saturday throughout the month of October. We always look for volunteers to help with ticket-taking, guiding people through, and “monsters” (scaring the living daylights out of people!). The Tunnel of Terror is a major fundraiser for our chapter and it’s also a great tradition in our community. We also do a “Friendly Monster” tour for kids one of the Saturday afternoons. Please visit our Tunnel of Terror Page for more information
Every year we team up with the Rochester Area Neighborhood House to bring Christmas cheer to Children and their families who may not otherwise be able to celebrate Christmas. Through the RANH we find about 30 children to take shopping at Meijer for gifts for their family. Then the children board shuttles and to the Older Persons' Commission where they wrap the gifts for their families, have pizza, and participate in arts and crafts. Then, to culminate the day’s festivities, the children are visited by Santa and receive presents from Santa.
Rochester Area Jaycees
P.O. Box 80161
Rochester, MI 48308-0161
Rochester Regional Chamber of Commerce
C.O.R.E. Community Organization Resource Exchange
Rochester Hills Public Library - Community Info