ROTARY INFORMATION
The following write-up was published in the Weekly newsletter of the Rotary club of Pittsford, N.Y. on May 18, 2005 Rotary Club of Malone, N.Y. It features our house project. Visit their excellent website at Rotary Club of Pittsford. Click on the link "Newsletter" to access their weekly newsletters.
"It’s always interesting to see what kind of projects other clubs come up with. We had an inquiry on our website this past week from a member of the Malone, NY Rotary Club, John Ray. Interestingly this US club was originally organized with help from the Montreal, Canada club – way back in 1925. John has recently created a web site for his club and it includes a look at a very unique project. This Rotary Club builds homes!
The Malone Rotary Club partners with local BOCES - North Franklin Education Center (NFEC) to build new homes. The club pays for the lot and all materials and the students from NFEC provide much of the labor. This is an important part of their learning experience during their last two years of their high school training at a vocational technical school. The Club borrows money at a local bank to help pay for materials. The club members chip with their labor as well.
They make extensive use of their vocations as members of the club chip in with their specialties – two who manage lumber yards, one who runs a bank, and still others who know how to build houses. It takes about a year to complete. They have completed at least six such homes to date. The finished house is sold on the open market. Some of the profits are used to help finance the next house, and some of the profits are contributed to local organizations and activities that support the ideals of Rotary. The latest new home was started over the winter months at the NFEC. Work onsite started in late April 2005. The projected completion date is the spring/summer of 2006. This is the kind of project you’ll read about in the Rotarian one of these days. Nice work Malone, NY!"
The first Rotary club meeting was in Chicago, Illinois on February 23, 1905.
The first regular luncheon meetings were in Oakland, California, chartered in 1909.
The first Rotary convention was in Chicago in 1910.
The first Rotary club outside of the United States was chartered in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada in 1910.
The first Rotary club outside of North America was chartered in Dublin, Ireland in 1911.
The first Rotary club in a non-English speaking country was in Havana, Cuba in 1916.
The first Rotary club in South America was chartered in Montevideo, Uruguay in 1918.
The first Rotary club in Asia was chartered in Manila, Philippines in 1919.
The first Rotary club in Africa was chartered in Johannesburg, South Africa in 1021.
The first Rotary club in Australia was chartered in Melbourne in 1921.
The first Rotary International convention held outside the United States was in Edinburgh, Scotland in 1921.
Rotary first adopted the name "Rotary International" in 1922 when the name was changed from the International Association of Rotary Clubs.
The first head of state to address a Rotary convention was U.S. President Warren G. Harding in 1923 at St. Louis.
The first Rotary club in Malone, New York was chartered on October 19, 1925.
The first Rotary club banner (from the Houston Space Center) to orbit the moon was carried by astronaut Frank Borman, a member of that club.
Information gathered from weekly newsletters published by the Rotary Club of Pittsford, New York. Visit their excellent website at Rotary Club of Pittsford. Click on the link "Newsletter" to access their weekly newsletters.