The Birth of The Hong Kong Island West Rotary Club in 1954

The Rotary Club of Hong Kong Island West was officially admitted to Rotary International on April 12, 1954, as the fourth Rotary club in colonial Hong Kong. Founded under the guidance of China Administrative Advisor George E. Marden and with its charter presented by Rotary International President’s Special Representative Charlie Wei Tsen-Fu, both former Shanghai Rotarians, the club held its first official meeting on March 26, 1954. The inaugural provisional meeting took place at Golden Dragon Restaurant on April 2, led by Charter President Fung Hon-Chu, a respected businessman and community leader. It was the world’s first Cantonese-speaking Rotary club and later sponsored one of Asia’s earliest Rotaract clubs in 1968 at United College, Chinese University of Hong Kong. Fung Hon-Chu was honored with an OBE in 1965 for his significant civic contributions to Hong Kong.

O Rotary Club de Hong Kong Island West foi admitido oficialmente no Rotary International em 12 de abril de 1954, como o quarto clube Rotary em Hong Kong colonial. Fundado sob a orientação do Conselheiro Administrativo da China, George E. Marden, e com sua carta concedida pelo Representante Especial do Presidente do Rotary International, Charlie Wei Tsen-Fu, ambos ex-Rotarianos de Xangai, o clube realizou sua primeira reunião oficial em 26 de março de 1954. A reunião provisória inaugural ocorreu no Golden Dragon Restaurant em 2 de abril, presidida pelo Presidente fundador Fung Hon-Chu, um empresário e líder comunitário respeitado. Foi o primeiro clube Rotary falante de cantonês no mundo e mais tarde patrocinou um dos primeiros clubes Rotaract da Ásia em 1968 na United College, Chinese University of Hong Kong. Fung Hon-Chu recebeu a condecoração OBE em 1965 por suas significativas contribuições cívicas a Hong Kong.

香港西岛扶轮社于1954年4月12日正式成为扶轮国际会员，成为殖民时期香港的第四个扶轮社。该社在中国事务顾问乔治·E·马登（George E. Marden）指导下成立，社章由扶轮国际主席特别代表、前上海扶轮社会员魏振福（Charlie Wei Tsen-Fu）颁发。扶轮社首场正式会议于1954年3月26日举行，4月2日在金龙酒家召开首次临时会议，由首任社长、著名商人兼社区领袖冯汉柱主持。它是全球首个以粤语为主要语言的扶轮社，并于1968年在香港中文大学联合书院赞助成立了亚洲最早的扶青团之一。冯汉柱于1965年因其在香港的杰出公共服务获封OBE勋章。