ROTARY’S BIRTHDAY

Dominion, Volume 22, Issue 131, 27 February 1929, Page 10

ROTARY’S BIRTHDAY

TWENTY-FOUR YESTERDAY

The twenty-fourth birthday of the Rotary movement was celebrated at the Wellington Rotary Club’s luncheon yesterday. In an address, “Rotary’s Birthday, Mr. S. Longuet said it was only in February, 1965, that Paul Harris, the founder of the movement, held a meeting in Chicago with three friends. Since that date it had gradually grown to immense proportions, until at the present day there were 2540 Rotary Clubs in forty different countries of the world, with a total membership of 127,000. Mr. Harris had conceived a group of business men, bound together socially, and it was gratifying to think that after 24 years the ideals he first sought after were now growing nearer and nearer their realisation. Mr. Longuet traced back the formation of the Wellington Club, saying that in 1921 it was founded by Mr. Layston Ralston, now Minister of Defence in Canada, and of the 29 foundation members 18 were still members. - Giving his own personal experience of the movement. Mr. Longuet said that he had made many friendships through the Rotary Club, and those who had travelled all knew how well they were looked after by the clubs in the various countries. “Accordingly,” he added, “the best way in which we can honour the birthday is to endeavour to carry out the Ideals of Paul Harris by making this year of tha slab as .uafliiaUfleA fiuceeaa.!