The evening was to celebrate the contributions of our members to the Rotary Foundation through our unique “Paul Harris Circles” program. Mary acknowledge the PHF recognition event was originally started by our own William C. Lakso.
The PHF recognition is given based on a $1,000 contribution to the RI Foundation over a period of ten years. Each year a name is drawn to receive the PHF recognition. At the end of the life of the circle, all ten people in the circle become recipients of a PHF.
Chair Mary Whitney welcomed Honorees, Rotarians, and guests including DG Karin Gaffney
The RI Foundation is a registered charity that supports the efforts of RI to host many programs worldwide. The programs enhance fried ship and understanding and it provides opportunities, food, water, health care and shelter for millions of people.
By being a club that totally supports RI Foundation we are a club that promotes the Four Way Test to the fullest. RI’s mission statement is to provide service to others which is to promote high ethical standards and advance world understanding, goodwill and peace through its fellowship of business, professional and community leaders.
When Paul F. Harris started the Rotary Club he felt businessmen could get together not just socially but to do charitable works for people who were in need. They knew that to help others they had to raise money to accomplish any project so they started to have fund raisers to do this. Rotary has come to the aid of many people in times of crisis whether it be in our own city or anywhere else in the world. From that fist meeting in Chicago the Rotary Club became an international club; “Rotary International”.