The Rotary Club of Gilroy celebrated its 100th year milestone on Oct. 21 with the reading of a letter written by the founder of International Rotary, Paul Harris in October 1925.
To put a historical context on the milestone, a reporter for the Gilroy Advocate (precursor to the Gilroy Dispatch) in Oct. 31, 1925, wrote:
“Paul Harris, the founder of International Rotary, accompanied by his wife, and Mr. and Mrs. Harvey Johnson of Chicago, will be in Gilroy Sunday evening November 1, at the Hotel Milias. The party will remain overnight and proceed the next day to Fresno and then on to Los Angeles and back to Chicago.
“Mr. Harris has notified the local officers that he would like to meet them at 6:30pm at a dinner with the directors, members and their wives. This is an unusual honor for Gilroy and the local Rotarians are certainly to be congratulated on having this opportunity of meeting the founder of a great international club.”
According to Gilroy Rotary President, Karen Aitken-Bernosky, “Gilroy has a rich history, and the Rotary Club of Gilroy has been pivotal in bringing commerce and community together with service as its main focus, investing $1.5 million-plus to support youth.
“This year’s project, ‘Trees to Read Under’ is one more way Rotarians are leaving a legacy in our community with new library books, shade trees at schools, and new benches for our students. We are proud of our history and the mark we have made on Gilroy.”
For more information on Trees to Read Under, go to gilroyrotary.org and click Trees to Read Under or contact Karen Aitken-Bernosky at Ka**********@***il.com. Checks may also be made payable to the Gilroy Rotary Endowment and mailed to P. O. Box 1912, Gilroy, CA 95021.
The Endowment is a 501C3 Foundation, and all contributions are tax deductible allowable under State and Federal statute.
