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(ARA) - It’s a familiar sight to anyone who has ever taken a family vacation by car: the blue and gold wheel of Rotary International. The emblem is displayed prominently near the welcome signs of communities coast to coast, and with more than 7,600 Rotary clubs in the United States alone, that’s a lot of exposure. And it’s not just a U.S. phenomenon. Rotary now has more than 32,000 clubs in 166 countries with a total membership of over 1.2 million men and women, making it one of the largest and most successful volunteer service organizations in the world.
This year, Rotary International celebrates its 100th birthday, demonstrating the continuing need for an organization that brings together business and professional leaders within a community for the purpose of helping others. In its first century, Rotary evolved from a small, business-focused club in downtown Chicago into an international humanitarian organization committed to improving lives and promoting world peace and understanding. Rotary is nonpolitical, and its members represent virtually every ethnic, cultural, and religious background present in the world.
Rotary’s top priority during its centennial year is to stop the spread of polio, a crippling and sometimes fatal disease that still threatens children in parts of the developing world. Rotary is the major private-sector partner in the Global Polio Eradication Initiative, one of the most ambitious public health campaigns ever. The initiative’s other spearheading partners are the World Health Organization, UNICEF and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Rotary has contributed more than $500 million and thousands of volunteers to the polio eradication effort, and the results are impressive. More than two billion children in 122 countries have been immunized, and the number of cases has been slashed by 99 percent. In the 1980s, polio infected about 1,000 children every day. Last year, fewer than 1,500 cases were reported worldwide.
“We have been leaders in the global fight against polio, saving millions of children from this crippling disease,” says Rotary’s international president, Glenn E. Estess Sr., of Birmingham, Ala. “It is our birthday gift to the children of the world.”
Other Rotary projects and programs advance literacy, alleviate hunger, provide safe water, improve health, assist AIDS victims and their families, and protect the environment. As the 2005 centennial year began, Rotarians worldwide mobilized to provide immediate, transitional, and long-term assistance to South Asian communities devastated by the deadly tsunami of December 2004.
In 2002, Rotary teamed with seven universities around the world to launch a master’s degree program in peace and conflict resolution aimed at training the next generation of world leaders and peace advocates. Each year, the Rotary Centers for International Studies admit up to 70 scholars.
In contrast to its stature today, Rotary began modestly in 1905, when Paul Harris, a young attorney new to Chicago, strived to recreate the spirit of camaraderie he experienced growing up in small towns at the turn of the last century. The first Rotary club formed when Harris and three business acquaintances with similar backgrounds convened for an evening meeting in downtown Chicago. Fittingly, Rotary will celebrate its centennial in its hometown during the annual convention, set for June 18 to 22 at Chicago’s McCormick Place.
As Rotary enters its second century, its worldwide membership is proud of its past and optimistic about its future.
“Few organizations reach their 100th year, illustrating the tremendous need for Rotary,” says Estess. “We must continue to dedicate ourselves to world peace, promote high ethical standards, and seek new opportunities for service. We have incredible potential to change the world.”
To learn more about Rotary International and its programs, visit www.rotary.org.
Courtesy of ARA Content
