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History
of The Rotary Foundation
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Arch C. Klumph,
1916-17 president of Rotary
International and founder of
The Rotary Foundation
In 1917, Arch C. Klumph, Rotary's sixth president, proposed to the Rotary
International Convention in Atlanta, Georgia, USA, the creation of an
"endowment fund for Rotary . . . for the purpose of doing good in the
world in charitable, educational, and other avenues of community service."
A few months later, the endowment received its first contribution of
$26.50 from the Rotary Club of Kansas City, Missouri, USA.
In 1928, when the endowment fund had grown to more than US$5,000, the fund
was renamed The Rotary Foundation, and it became a distinct entity within
Rotary International. Five Trustees, including Klumph, were appointed to
"hold, invest, manage, and administer all of its property. . . as a single
trust, for the furtherance of the purposes of RI."
Two years later, the Foundation made its first grant of US$500 to the
International Society for Crippled Children. The ISCC — created by
Rotarian Edgar F. "Daddy" Allen — later grew into the Easter Seals
organization.
The Great Depression and World War II both impeded significant growth for
the Foundation, but the need for promoting a lasting world peace generated
great post-war interest in developing the Foundation. After Rotary founder
Paul P. Harris died in 1947, contributions began pouring into Rotary
International, and the Paul Harris Memorial Fund was created for the
purpose of building the Foundation.
That same year, the first Foundation program — the forerunner of the
Rotary Ambassadorial Scholarships program — was established. Then in
1965-66, three new programs were launched — Group Study Exchange, Awards
for Technical Training, and Grants for Activities in Keeping with the
Objective of The Rotary Foundation, which was later called Matching
Grants.
The Health, Hunger and Humanity (3-H) program was launched in 1978, with
the Rotary Volunteers program being created as a part of 3-H in 1980. The
PolioPlus program was announced in 1984-85, and the following year saw the
introduction of Rotary Grants for University Teachers. The first Peace
Forums were held in 1987-88, leading to the establishment of Rotary Peace
Programs. Then in 1989, 1963-64 RI President Carl P. Miller and his wife,
Ruth, donated US$1 million to establish the Discovery Grants program.
Throughout this time, support of the Foundation grew tremendously. Since
that first $26.50 donation in 1917, the Foundation has received
contributions totaling more than US$1 billion. More than US$70 million was
contributed in 2003-04 alone. To date, some 914,792 individuals have been
recognized as Paul Harris Fellows — that is, someone who has contributed
US$1000 or has had that amount contributed in his or her name.
Such strong support and involvement of Rotarians worldwide ensures a
secure future for The Rotary Foundation as it continues its vital work for
international understanding and world peace.
Read also
The Rotary Foundation
Administration
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