Ann Arbor Rotary Club: Serving the community for nearly 100 years
Ann Arbor Rotary Club members cook dinner for guests at the Ronald McDonald House.
Ann Arbor Rotary Club
Led by Dr. Theron S. Langford, members included Rev. Lloyd C. Douglas, pastor of the First Congregational Church; Harlan H. Johnson, editor of the Ann Arbor Times News Co.; Charles A. Sink, secretary of the School of Music; Shirley W. Smith, secretary of the University of Michigan; and ten other members. The regular weekly luncheon meetings were held at the Catalpa Inn, at the corner of Ann Street and Fourth Avenue.
In 1917, the U.S. entered the First World War, and several of the members enlisted in the services. One of them was A.C. Pack, who became a colonel in the Army, and one of the first appropriations ever made by the club was $125 for a riding horse for Col. Pack. The club also showed its international orientation early by voting to donate $182.50 for the support of five French war orphans and $100 for relief work among the soldiers of France.
Today, the club boasts more than 300 members, both male and female. The club is quite proud of its record with respect to admitting women. It was one of the first Rotary Clubs to admit women, even before Rotary International allowed women to join.
With regard to service, the club's focus is both local and international, and because it has such a large membership, it can tackle quite a few projects. Locally, the club sponsors many college scholarships, plants trees in local parks, and grants about $50,000 a year to local nonprofit groups.
One of the local programs that the club is most proud of is the STRIVE program. The STRIVE program awards $15,000 in scholarships to students of Stone School, allowing them to attend Washtenaw Community College. Students attend Stone High School because they were not succeeding at traditional high schools.
The STRIVE program not only funds the college scholarships, but pairs up prospective recipients with club members who volunteer to be mentors. Mentors meet with the students during scheduled lunch sessions and sometimes outside of school hours, and help the students with their current studies and with the college application process. After setting up the mentoring program in 2008, the scholarship utilization rate increased from less than 50 percent to about 80 percent.
To raise funds for the STRIVE program and other local projects, the club holds a Golf and Tennis Outing each September. This year, the Golf and Tennis Outing will take place on Monday, September 12. After an enjoyable afternoon on the links or on the tennis courts, there's a silent auction and dinner. For more information on this event, you can visit the club's website.
The club is also quite active in international projects. In recent years, the club has participated in many international service projects including a computer education program in the Philippines, a jobs training program in Brazil, and a clean-water project in Mexico. Local funds, as well as funds from the Rotary International Foundation were used to fund these projects.
The Ann Arbor Rotary Club is proud of its record, and is looking forward to continuing its service to our community. For more information on the Ann Arbor Rotary Club, visit www.annarborrotary.org. You can also leave a comment here, or send an e-mail to dan@danromanchik.com.