Celebrating 100 Years of the Rotary Club of Chicago's Service

CELEBRATING 100 YEARS OF THE ROTARY CLUB OF CHICAGO'S SERVICE -- (House of Representatives - January 25, 2005)

The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Davis) is recognized for 5 minutes.

Mr. DAVIS of Illinois. Mr. Speaker, on February 23, 1905, Paul Harris, a Chicago attorney, invited three friends to a meeting: Sylvester Schiele, a coal dealer; Hiram Shorey, a merchant tailor; and Gustavus Loehr, a mining engineer. All four men gathered in Loehr's business office in room 711 of the Unity Building at 127 North Dearborn Street in downtown Chicago, which is my district. They discussed Harris' idea that business needed to meet periodically to enjoy camaraderie and to enlarge the circle of business and professional acquaintances.

The club met weekly. Membership was limited to one representative from each business and profession. Though the men did not use the term ``rotary'' that night, that gathering is commonly regarded as the first Rotary Club meeting. The name ``rotary'' was suggested later on by Paul Harris as meetings were rotated from office to office in the early days of the organization.

During the early days, the Rotarians realized that fellowship and mutual self-interest were not enough to keep a club of busy professionals meeting each week. Reaching out to improve the lives of the less fortunate proved to be an even more powerful motivation. The Rotary commitment to service began when the Rotary Club of Chicago donated a horse to a preacher so that he could make the rounds of his churches and parishioners. A few weeks later, the club constructed Chicago's first public lavatory. These actions of service and improvement of communities continued in 1967 to support the pediatric program at the Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago.

Of course, through the years, these services have continued and they have continued to make valuable contributions to the most needy members of our society.

So, Mr. Speaker, I warmly congratulate the Rotary Club of Chicago for 100 years of service, making a difference in the lives of the less fortunate and showing the true commitment of business leaders to strengthen our local and global communities. I wish the club another 100 years of service and Tuesday lunches in downtown Chicago.

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