Rotary was founded in 1905 by Paul Harris, a Chicago businessman, initially as a friendship group. Because the meetings were rotated around various business offices the name "Rotary" was coined and gradually the movement spread around the world as Rotary International (RI).

The Wanganui North Club commenced the 2017-18 Rotary year (1 July) with 48 members.  It was chartered by Rotary International in 1960, forming part of District 9940, and is one of four clubs in the city of Wanganui. (Population 43,000). District 9940 covers the southern half of the North Island and comprises 60 clubs.  Membership is by invitation and is offered to representatives of each business, profession, or institution through a classification system ensuring a wide cross section of the community is represented.

Hosting overseas exchange students has brought to the Club young people from many parts of the world, and has added to our members’ appreciation of world understanding; an important element of Rotary International.  At home, we have a long record of sponsorship of young people in personal development courses, frequently surprising us in the transformation that a course can achieve in a short time.

Club Officers 2017 - 2018

History

Wanganui North Club

In 1957, Alan Brown, president of Wanganui Rotary Club, suggested in his report to the then District Governor (D.G.) that he felt Wanganui could support a second club.

After a preliminary survey he was appointed by the next D.G. to be a special representative to carry out an extensive survey of the Aramoho and Wanganui East areas and report.

By visiting these areas and noting every business that could support a prospective Rotarian, 76 classifications were identified. A report to Rotary International saw a sanction for the formation of a second club.

Wanganui Rotary Club members granted an amendment to their constitution to release the Aramoho-Wanganui East areas from their territory.

A committee of Wanganui members was set up to get the new club into operation. They then approached men they considered would make the nucleus of a club, inviting them to a meeting where the meaning of Rotary was to be explained. They were asked to submit the names of prospective members. This general meeting was held in All Saints Church Hall, Wanganui East, where President Allan Kitchen and several members of the Wanganui Club spoke on "What is Rotary". Twenty-four charter members were signed up. This was the birth of The Rotary Club of Wanganui North: October 28th, 1959.

The Club charter was presented on Saturday, February 20th, 1960.

Club Officers were:

President; Rev. I.S. Botting, Vice President; E.R. Anderson, Secretary; W.G. Eyre,Treasurer; G. Steel

Club Presidents (Past & Present):

The Founder

Paul Harris, the founder of Rotary, was born in Racine, Wisconsin, USA on April 19th, 1868. He received a Bachelor of Physical Culture and LL.D. degrees from the University of Vermont and an LL.B. from the University of Iowa. He received an honorary Ph.D. in 1933 from the University of Vermont. He was decorated by the Governments of Brazil, Chile, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Peru and France.

Paul worked as a newspaper reporter, a business college teacher, an actor and a cowboy. As a salesman for a marble and granite business he travelled extensively in the USA and Europe.

In 1896 he went to Chicago to practise law. In 1900, after dinner with a lawyer in a residential section of Chicago, he was impressed by the fact that his friend stopped at several stores and shops in the neighbourhood and introduced him to the owners, who were his friends. That experience made him wonder why he couldn't make social friends from at least some of his clients. He resolved to organise a club which would bring together a group of representative business and professional men in friendship and fellowship.

By 1905, Paul had formulated a definite philosophy of business relations. Talking it over with three of his clients - Silvester Schiele, a coal merchant; Gustavus Loehr, a mining engineer; and Hiram Shorey, a merchant tailor - he decided to organise a club with them.

On February 23rd, 1905, they held the first club meeting and the nucleus was formed for the thousands of Rotary Clubs that now exist throughout the world. Paul Harris named this new club "Rotary" because the members met in rotation in their various places of business.

Club membership grew rapidly. Almost every Club member had come to Chicago from small towns and in the Club they found an opportunity for the intimate friendship of their boyhood days.

Paul Harris became president of the Club in its third year and he strove to extend Rotary to other cities, convinced that Rotary Clubs could be developed into an important service movement.

Paul Harris Fellow

An honour bestowed upon a member in recognition of outstanding commitment to Rotary or a significant contribution to the Rotary Foundation.

Current Fellows:

1991       Graeme Meyers, Don Speirs
1997       Cranleigh Chainey, Jim Eyers, Leith Power, Keith Safey, Sid Smith
1998       Bruce W Kennedy
2000       Vince Hart, Des Wink
2002       Colin Slaughter, Bernie Thomas
2003       Mike Green
2004       Garth Barlow, Graeme Carey
2006       Graeme Foster, Roger Law
2009       David Hood, Malcolm Jansen
2010       Brian Smith
2012       Marion Johnston