FINAL CHAPTER - CELEBRATING 100 YEARS OF SERVICE – THE ROTARY CLUB OF CANTON – 1975-1980+

Highlights of the year included a near clean sweep of district honors including the capturing of our club’s fifth consecutive Governor’s Cup. Canton won 1^st Place awards in Club, Vocational, Community and International Avenues of Service.

 

Membership increased this year from 302 to 311 members and seven new Paul Harris Fellows were added. We won the highest attendance award with an average of 90.15% throughout the year. Canton also won the membership development Award for a net gain of 9 new members and Best Club Bulletin for The Rotogram.

 

Assistance was provided for two World Community service Projects including funding for books and school equipment in the Philippines and funding for hospital beds in Brazil.

 

Member Dick Giffen served as leader for a Group Study Exchange team to Kobe Japan.

 

Other major projects this year included providing funding for construction of handicapped accessible sidewalk ramps for wheelchair-bound people and $3,000 for the Restoration of the McKinley Monument, our #1 Bicentennial Project.

 

Canton Rotary hosted the District Conference at Imperial House Hotel and the Canton Cultural Center. Honored guest was Robert A. Manchester II of Youngstown who was president-elect of Rotary International. 775 attended the conference. Myron Fromm and Dale Holwick served as Sergeant-at-Arms. Over 100 Canton Rotarians volunteered their time at the conference.

 

All continuing major projects were carried forward successfully including Vocational Information Day, Handicapped Boy, Girl and Cub Scouts and intensive participation in the Rotary International Youth Exchange Program.

 

This year’s emphasis was on the theme of “Involvement”. Two major committees Handicapped Scouts and International Youth Exchange received special effort at revitalizing these activities. Under chairman, Gene Hamilton, a complete scouting program was provided for Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts, Cub Scouts as well as a newly formed Explorer post for teenage boys and girls. A goal of the new Explorer program was to provide vocational guidance for these young adults. Our club members installed equipment and facilities to accommodate the scouts’ special needs. Our Girl Scout Troop attended Great Trail Girl Scout Camp near Minerva for the first time. Every new member of our club this year was automatically assigned to the Handicapped Scout Committee and the influx of new manpower was a great boost to our scouting program.

 

Under future president Don Coen, the Youth Exchange Program hosted eight (8) students and sent ten (10) students from this area overseas for a year of study and cultural exchange.

 

Our club captured the Governor’s Cup for the sixth consecutive year.

 

A seventh consecutive Governor’s Cup was awarded to Canton Rotary this year taking First Place in all four Avenues of Service, Club, Vocational, Community and International. We were also presented with the seldom awarded “Special Achievement Award” for this club’s handicapped Scout Program which over its history has expanded from 60 to 125 annual participants.

 

During this year the club published a complete new membership “Open Classification” List to put a spotlight on new member proposal opportunities.

A Past Presidents’ Council was established and the club by-laws were amended.

 

In cooperation with Alliance Rotary, our club sent 125 pairs of eye glasses to Bolivia.

 

New club flags/banners were introduced prominently depicting the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

 

Four new Paul Harris fellows were added and we hosted six foreign exchange students.

 

Pancake day, Vocational Information day and International Night all functioned perfectly.

 

Tragically, this fine Rotary year was marred by the senseless murder of Canton Rotarian and club board member, Dr. Richard ‘Dick” Chambers. Dick was killed while attempting to protect his wife from assailants on a Cleveland street while stopped at a traffic light.

 

So concludes the first sixty-five years of History of the Rotary Club of Canton.

 

Rounding out the remaining 35 years of Canton Rotary History, individual annual reports have been submitted and published previously during this year in the Rotogram from fifteen Past Presidents : E. Jason McCoy 73-74, John R. Werren 78-79, Donald C. Coen 81-82, Robert L. Carr 82-83, C. Richard Smith 83-84, J. Daniel Matthews 84-85, Michael J. Gregorek 92-93, Robert E. Pattison 95-96, Joseph R. Halter, Jr. 96-97, Dennis S. Fulmer 97-98, Scott P. Sandrock 98-99, Virginia R. Neutzling 02-03, Daniel J. Fuline 04-05, Frederick J. Spring 05-06, and John A. Barkan 06-07. I am grateful to each one of them for the taking time to memorialize their year as president of this outstanding service club and for sharing their memories with all of us during this, our 100^th year of service.

 

My paternal grandfather, George B. Matthews, was a charter member and third president of the Barnesville, Ohio (Belmont County) Rotary Club. I sponsored my father, Robert J. Matthews, into Canton Rotary in 1977, my brother Robert in 2009 and my wife, Suzette in 2013. Robert and Suzette have maintained perfect attendance thus far during their membership. I’m proud of them both! Both of my grandfathers, parents, wife, and two sons, Ted and Jeff, are Paul Harris Fellows. Daughter Maria will be soon. If I seem proud of my association with Rotary it is because I am, very proud, to be a member of this finest of service organizations.

 

As I compiled and shared these weekly tidbits of Canton Rotary history with you I have been both reminded and educated about the depth and breadth of Canton Rotary’s service reach since 1915. Many service projects have come and gone and some have endured and survived the test of time like Handicapped Scouts, Vocational Information Day, International Youth Exchange, World Affairs Institute, Four Way Speech Contest, Speech & Hearing Clinic, Philomathean Society and yes, even Pancake Day!  

 

Our Paul Harris Fellow Fellowships have increased over the years, now probably totaling around 500. Paul Harris Awards are simply a recognition of our members’ commitment to funding international service projects through Rotary. What an incredible way to leverage our resources and provide basic, tangible services like Polio vaccinations, fresh water, educational materials and medicines to needy people around the world.

 

As I recall a few of the many, many Rotarians who have had a great influence on me, one name stands out, Joe Guenther. Joe was president of our club my first full year in Rotary (76-77) and I couldn’t have asked for a better Rotary guide and mentor than Joe. He was a no nonsense, passionate, action-oriented, common sense driven, “do-gooder” who had little time or tolerance for “wafflers” and “knife and fork” Rotarians. He was direct to the point of bluntness but you never wondered what he meant or where his heart was. Joe didn’t just “ask” you to do something for Rotary, he “told” you that you were going to do it, and saying “no” was not an option.  “You’re going to help out at the Handicapped Scouts Party and you’re going to bring your kids too so they can help.” “You will host an exchange student and you’ll be glad you did.” “Of course you’ll play in the golf outing and you’ll thank me later ‘cause you had such a good time!” Of course Joe was right. Joe both scared me and excited me with his no-holds-barred enthusiasm and drive. He made me, and many others, maybe even you, a better Rotarian and a better person. Thank you, Joe!

 

If Canton Rotary is to thrive over the next 100 years, it is up to each one of us, now members, to plant those seeds of future service greatness by committing to propose as many new good members as possible while we are still able to do so. Think about business and professional people you know who would make good Rotarians and give them a chance to enjoy Rotary as much as you have. Don’t be shy, Joe wouldn’t like that. Scour your contact file, your vendor and customer list, your company or organization leadership list, Leadership Stark County, Chamber of Commerce, Country Club members, church members, maybe your spouse, son or daughter and everyone you know who might just be the next Joe Guenther for our club. Then talk with them, invite them to a luncheon, share your enthusiasm for Rotary with them and propose them for membership. When they join, stay close to them and make sure they get involved and catch the Rotary fire. To be truly great and effective, our club needs to grow, and if it is to be, it’s up to you and me to make it so.

 

Thanks for letting me share just a bit of the first 100 year history the Rotary Club of Canton with you, and “Happy 100^th Anniversary” to “The Finest Rotary Club in the World!” 

 

Respectfully,     

Dan Matthews