History of Rotary Clubs in North Carolina
The Rotary Club movement began in 1905 in Chicago, Illinois, when Paul P. Harris, a young attorney, brought together a group of business and professional men in an effort to recapture the friendliness and fellowship many had known growing up in small towns. Harris named the club “Rotary” because members met in rotation at their various places of business.
A second Rotary Club organized in San Francisco, followed by clubs in Oakland, Seattle and Los Angeles. Rotary ventured east with the founding of the New York club, Rotary’s sixth on August 14, 1909. North Carolina’s first club formed in Raleigh on August 1, 1914, becoming the 124th club. The Wilmington club, the state’s second, organized on April 1, 1915, making it Rotary International’s 150th club. Nearly all 230 North Carolina clubs are descendants of the Richmond (Virginia), Raleigh or Wilmington clubs.
Rotary began organizing into districts, first called “divisions” in 1912. Each district is governed by a District Governor. North Carolina’s earliest clubs (1915-1918) were in District 4, which included the southeastern part of the United States south of Washington, D.C. and Maryland. In 1918, the Rotary Clubs of Virginia, North Carolina and South Carolina were grouped together to form District Number 7. Howard E. Ronthaler, Winston-Salem (1918-19), Roger W. Davis, Charlotte (1919-20) and Roger Moore, Wilmington )1922-23) served as District Governors in District 7.
In 1923, North Carolina and Virginia were reorganized into District Number 37, and by 1926, the number of clubs organized in North Carolina was sufficient to form a district within the state, creating District 57. Enough clubs existed in the Piedmont and Eastern areas of North Carolina in 1937 to form two districts. By 1946, North Carolina was divided into four districts. On 1 July 92, North Carolina was divided into six districts: 7670, 7680, 7690, 7710, 7720 and 7730.
The following Past District Governors from North Carolina have served as Directors of Rotary International:
1926-27 M. Eugene Newsom, Durham
1928-29 S. Wade Marr, Elizabeth City
1929-30 David Clark, Charlotte
1930-31 M. Eugene Newsom, Durham
1934-35 Robert F. Phillips, Asheville
1940-41 Joseph Sandifer, Hendersonville
1944-45 Thomas R. Hood, Dunn
1948-49 Charles G. Tennett, Asheville *
1953-54 Luther H. Hodges, Chapel Hill
1962-64 Cecil W. Gilchrist, Charlotte
1966-67 Luther H. Hodges, Chapel Hill
1972-74 James E. Lambeth, Thomasville
1993-94 Barrie Davis, Zebulon
2004-06 Kenneth Morgan, Chapel Hill
*served as Director/First Vice-President
Over the years, three Past Directors of Rotary International from North Carolina served as President of Rotary International:
1929-30 M. Eugene Newsom, Durham
1957-58 Charles G. Tennent, Asheville
1967-68 Luther H. Hodges, Chapel Hill **
** Luther Hodges is a former Governor of North Carolina
Rotary International unites business professionals worldwide in efforts to promote humanitarian service, to encourage high ethical standards in all vocations and to help build goodwill and peace in the world. More than 1.1 million Rotarians belong to over 25,800 clubs in more than 182 countries and geographic regions. North Carolina lists some 13,800 Rotarians in 230 clubs.
North Carolina Rotarians joined forces in the mid-1960′s to build the Rotary Cottage at Boys and Girls Homes of North Carolina on the 42-acre campus on the shores of Lake Waccamaw. The cottage was officially dedicated in May, 1966 at a construction costs of $72,052.13. Support of the cottage is an ongoing project.
In 1985, North Carolina Rotarians responded to the international challenge by The Rotary Foundation of Rotary International for the Polio-Plus campaign to eradicate polio by the year 2005 – Rotary International’s 100th Anniversary. More than $230 Million was raised in this campaign among fellow Rotarians worldwide. This
massive immunization effort, aimed at improving the health of the world’s children, is one of many Rotary International programs made possible by the individual contributions of Rotarians through The Rotary Foundation.
Other Rotary Foundation programs supported by Rotarians across North Carolina and around the world include ambassadorial scholarships and group study exchanges enabling men and women worldwide to live in and learn about another country; the 3-H Program (Health, Hunger and Humanity) allocating funds and volunteers to work in large-scale humanitarian projects; and special grants to support educational or charitable projects of Rotary Clubs and districts that benefit non-Rotarians in other countries.
Many North Carolina Rotary Clubs organize and support Interact Clubs at the secondary school level (ages 14-18). Interact Clubs provide opportunities for young people to work together in world fellowship dedicated to service and international understanding. Some Rotary Clubs organize Rotaract Clubs for young adults (18-29). Rotaract organizations offer young men and women occasions to enhance their knowledge and skills to assist them in personal development; to address the physical and social needs of their communities; and to promote better relations among all people worldwide through a framework of friendship and service.
Rotary’s motto is “Service Above Self” and “He Profits Most Who Serves Best”. Rotarians in North Carolina join their counterparts across this country and around the world to advance international understanding, goodwill and peace through worldwide fellowship and service to their fellowman.
This information is reprinted from an article by Sue Cause of The Rotary Club of Wilmington, NC USA. Resource materials provided by PDG Herman Blizzard, PDG John T. Capps III, and PDG Everett Padgett.
