Tag: GeneralHistory

Why the rotary year begins on the first of July by 1 july 2015 rotary’s first fiscal year began the day after the first convention ended. This is the group photo of the convention of the rotary clubs of America held in rotarys birthplace, Chicago, in 1910. 1910, ever wonder why the rotary year begins…

Why and How was The Rotary Foundation scholarships initiated in 1947 1 November, 2016November 2016 is“The Rotary Foundation Month”. The year 2017 will be the 100thAnniversary of The Rotary Foundation of Rotary International, and will also be the 70thyear of the establishment of The Rotary Foundation scholarship program. Offering scholarships for overseas advanced studies improved…

The First Meeting of Rotary The 23rd February each year marks the anniversary since the Thursday of 23 February 1905 when Paul Harris, his friend and client Silvester Schiele, friend Gus Loehr and acquantance Hiram Shorey met in Gus’s office in the Unity Building in Chicago, USA, in Room 711. Here is the account in…

The Rotary Call Name–First Name or Nickname 23 February, 2014It is very common, whenever you are going to fill in the registration form for convention or conference, you will be required to: “Enter your name as you wish it to appear on your convention badge. Please mark your Rotary call name (Nickname) in the space…

The World in 1945 when Rotary 40 Years Old 23 February, 2015 The year 1945 was the 40th Anniversary of Rotary since its inception in 1905. Rotary Clubs in all parts of the world enthusiastically observed the 40thbirthday of the founding of Rotary on 23rd February. Anniversary highlight was an international broadcast, participated in by…

[The Rotarian] February 1938.. It all happened in Chicago back in 1905. The young engraver was Montague M. Bear, you can meet him any Tuesday night at the Rotary Club of Chicago. The group of young businessmen in the hotel suite was the worlds first Rotary lub in one of its earlies sessions. The lean…

Harry Ruggles: he taught Rotary to sing In early 1920, in a letter to Silvester Schiele, one of the original four members of the Rotary Club of Chicago, Rotary founder Paul Harris wrote: “As I look back over the field of early events, the work of Harry Ruggles so completely overshadows all others in connection…

The 30 Years of Women in RotaryBy Herbert K. Lau(劉敬恒) (Rotary China Historian)1July 2019July 2019 marks the 100th year of Rotary in Shanghai, as well as in Greater China. In these 100 years, Md.Terri Lau (劉麗賢), a Hong Kong native Chinese, is the third woman to serve president of Shanghai Rotary Club (上海扶輪社)in 2019-2020. However,…

Women Serving Rotary8 March, 2017 –International Women’s DaySome very significant programs of Rotary service are conducted not by Rotarians but by organizations of Rotarians’ wives and other female relatives associated with Rotary clubs around the world. Generally organized before Rotary clubs admitted women to membership since 1989, these groups served, and continue to serve, as…

Rotary in China by Christopher Bo BramsenTuesday, 20 February 2001(Note by Editor: Christopher Bo Bramsen was a member of the Rotary Club of Copenhagen, Denmark, and is the RoyalDanish Ambassador to China, concurrently to Mongolia and North Korea. This article is the key-note speech delivered at the 70th Anniversary Meeting of The Rotary Club of…

Rotary International early policies paving Rotary’s Road back to China 敬恒) By Herbert K. Lau (劉敬恒) (Rotary China Historian) (剖 1 December 2014 This article aims to give readers some historical facts on the Vision vision of our Rotary leaders about of thirty years ago, and how was their wisdom put through in contrast to…

Peace and Conflict Prevention/Resolution Month Paul P. Harris planted a Tree of Friendship in Shanghai 1935 1 February 2018 “Imagine all the people living life in peace …” John Lennon. FEBRUARY is designated《Peace and Conflict Prevention/Resolution Month》on the Rotary calendar, since 2015, in lieu of the previous observation《World Understanding Month》. The month also includes the…

Some ‘Famous Firsts’ in Rotary by Herbert K. Lau (劉敬恒) (Rotary China Historian) 1 January 2015 Was Paul Harris the first president of a Rotary Club? NO Was Paul Harris the first president of Rotary International? YES There is an easy explanation to this apparent contradiction. Although Paul Harris was the founder and organizer of…

Flag and Banner of Rotary International1 September2013The Old FashionAn official flag was formally adopted by Rotary International at the 1929 InternationalConvention in Dallas, Texas, United States. The Rotary flag consists of white field with the official wheel emblem emblazoned in gold in the center of the field. The four depressed spaces on the rim of…

Golden Anniversary of Rotary International in 1955 23 February 2015 Today is the 110th Anniversary of Rotary International since its inception in 1905. Certainly, 60 years ago today, there was the Golden Anniversary. Commencing the year of 1954-1955, Golden Anniversary congratulatory messages from heads of State flew in Rotary International from all parts of the…

End Polio Now–The First National Immunization Days in China 1993-941 October 2016 October 24 is Rotary’s World Polio Day 2016. Twenty plus years ago, there were the first National Polio Immunization Days in China, which made China reached 100 million children in historic immunization campaign. On December 5, 1993, the People’s Republic of China launched…

General History of Rotary International1 January 2017 In its early years, Rotary clubs served as a respite for their members from the rampant corruption and fraud of the day. After a few years of conducting business with their fellow club members, Rotarians understood that one of the organization’s great strengths was the unusually high ethical…

The First Council on Legislation of Rotary International in 1934 Who was the first China’s representative attended this Council? 1 September 2014 The last Council on Legislation of Rotary International (RI) was met in 2013. The next will be held in spring of 2016, and would be followed by the next in 2019. But the…

Rotary International Presidential Themes 1 July 2017 Each January, as Rotary district governors-elect convene at the International Assembly for training and fellowship, they can be certain of two things: a lot of take-home reading and the announcement of a new presidential theme. The tradition of crafting a theme is credited to 1949-50 Rotary International President…

The Rotary Mottos Created by Whom and When 1 February, 2017 What is a motto? One dictionary definition reads: “a maxim adopted as a principle of behavior.” When Rotary was formed in 1905 on a firm principle of behavior, it had no motto. But the actions of its growing membership soon molded not one, but…