History

“Whatever rotary may mean to us, to the world it will be know by the results it achieves”

– Paul P. Harris

Our 1.2 million member organization started with the vision of one man Paul P. harris. the chicago attorney formed one of the world’s first service organizations , the rotary club of chicago, on 23 february 1905 as a place where professionals with diverse backrounds could exchange ideas and form meaningful, lifelong friendships. rotarys name came from the groups early practice of rotating the meetings among the offices of each member.

OUR ONGOING COMMITMENT

Rotarions have not only been present for major events in history we’ve been a part of them. From the beginning, three key traits have remained strong throughout rotary

We’re truly international. only 16 years after being founded, rotary had clubs on six continents. Today we’re working together from around the globe both digitally and and in person to solve some of our worlds most challenging problems.

We preserve in tough times. During WWII, rotary clubs in Germany, Italy, Spain, Austria and Japan were forced to disband, Despite the risks, many continued to meet informally and following the wars end, rotary members joined together to rebuild their clubs and their countries.

Our commitment to service is ongoing. We began our fight against polio in 1979 with a project to immunise 6 million children in the Philippines. By 2012, only three countries remain polio-endemic down from 125 in 1988.

Notable Rotorians

Rotorians are your neighbors, your community leaders and some of the worlds greatest history makers