Rotary Facts

Rotary is an organization of business and professional leaders united worldwide, who provide humanitarian service, encourage high ethical standards in all vocations, and help build goodwill and peace in the world.

Rotary is the world's first service club. The first Rotary club was founded in Chicago, Illinois, USA on February 23, 1905

Rotary is some 1.2 million service-minded men and women belonging to more than 28,000 Rotary clubs in virtually every nation in the world.

Rotarians meet weekly for fellowship and interesting and informative programs dealing with topics of local and global importance. Membership reflects a wide cross-section of community representation.

Rotarians plan and carry out a remarkable variety of humanitarian, educational, and cultural exchange programs that touch people's lives in their local communities and our world community.

Rotary is The Rotary Foundation, which each year provides some US $90 million for international scholarships, cultural exchanges, and humanitarian projects large and small the improve the quality of life for millions of people. Rotary is widely regarded as the world's largest provider of international educational scholarships.

What is the 2010-2011 theme?

Each new Rotary year, July 1st, the incoming President of Rotary International chooses a theme that will represent his focus for the coming year.

This year the theme selected by new RI President Ray Klinginsmith, of Missouri, USA, is “Building Communities – Bridging Continents”. As President Klinginsmith states: “I hope you agree that these four words aptly reflect who we are, and what we do, as Rotarians. We are a unique and a premier organization — certainly one of the best in the world. We build the spirit and resources of our local communities in an important way, and we are the best in the world at linking people of goodwill around the globe and then gaining their cooperation and support to make the world a much better place to live and work. In the words of Ed Cadman, “Rotary is unity without uniformity.” We are indeed fortunate to be Rotarians!”