I am a Rotarian and it has been such a terrific organization for me in expanding my network of colleagues around the world. It was the first service club that was formed on February 23 1905 by an attorney, Paul Harris in Chicago who wished to capture in a professional club the same friendly spirit he had felt in the small town of his youth.
I can relate–I may live in New York now and for my adult life,however I grew up in Albion, Illinois with a population of 2000 people where my wonderful father was the ‘town doctor’–having arrived from New York after medical school to raise his family in the heartland! I knew about the Rotary through my childhood, yet it was on a trip to Africa that I met several very prominent business people from Tennessee and California that spoke very highly of the Rotary.
The group I belong to in New York is great–with a diverse population and every time I attend a meeting, we have guests from all over the U.S. and the world.
Just in the last two years, I have attended Rotary meetings and spoke in India and Egypt. There are always opportunities to drop in and visit and people are so kind and friendly.
You might wonder how the Rotary got its name–it used to meet in different members offices- so they were rotating locations!
The motto of the organization is "Service Above Self".
We have terrific members and some of our members included Albert Schweitzer and Dr. Norman Vincent Peale.
Today, 1.2 million Rotarians belong to over 32,000 Rotary clubs in more than 200 countries and geographical areas and keeps growing.
Look up the Rotary in your community and stop by for a visit–you will be glad you did.