The Rotary Club of Stratford

Rotary Centennial Celebration February 24, 2005

Highlights and Tidbits from our History

By Sharon Malvern

Like the 32,000 other Rotary clubs around the world, the story of the Stratford Rotary Club is an exemplary record of Rotarians serving humanity through their support of numerous worthwhile projects on the local, national, and international fronts. Indeed, the history of our Rotary Club over the past 82 years is intertwined with the history of our community and of the world. Although changes have occurred in the methods of fundraising and the projects to which Rotarians contribute their time, talents and money, one element is constant – the ideal of service above self.

Let me take you on a journey through the past eight decades of the Rotary Club of Stratford- pausing just briefly on some of the highlights. There is much, much more…but even in this time capsule you’ll recognize the themes and traditions that make our club what it is today.

The beginnings of Rotary in Stratford can be traced to Robert Weatherstone, a freight agent for the Grand Trunk Railway. When he was transferred to Hamilton, he joined a Rotary Club there and suggested Stratford as a suitable site for the establishment of another club.

He returned to Stratford with the Hamilton Club president, where they met with a number of prominent residents- including Dr. David Smith, and David M. Wright, president of McLagan Furniture Co. They were both receptive to the idea of an organization dedicated to the betterment of mankind, as Dr. Smith had seen the devastation of World War I first-hand and Wright had suffered from polio as a child.

They held an organizational meeting with other Stratford business leaders, had their charter approved by Rotary International ( given that name in 1922) and held a charter night on May 30, 1922, Stratford was club number 1197 in the 17-year old organization. The Rotary Club of Stratford had 22 charter members.

Their first project was to purchase memberships in the Young Men’s Christian Association for a pair of young, needy brothers. The second was to establish a fund for assisting the poor. And they decided also to help the YMCA by purchasing a movie projector for use by the program staff. That was the start of a long relationship with the Y as the meeting place for Stratford Rotarians for sixty years, starting in 1932.

The precedent was set for helping the needy and working in partnership with local organizations, both of which have been strong traditions throughout our history

The first luncheons, catered by George Brown, were held in the dining room of the Avon Hotel.

By its 25^th birthday in 1947, the Club had grown to 88 members, and celebrated its silver anniversary at the Masonic temple.

In 1972, when the club was 50 years old, it celebrated at a dinner and dance at the Victorian Inn. The district governor in attendance on that occasion was our own Oliver Gaffney.And the last surviving charter member, Morgan Riddell was present.

By the time Rotary came to Stratford, RI had established two primary objectives for funding- crippled children and boys’ work, later to become youth services.

The Stratford Club enthusiastically embraced the cause , and as a result Perth County became the first Ontario County to organize crippled children’s work. The Stratford Club sent representatives to a meeting of 10 Rotary Clubs interested in helping crippled children- their get-together became the founding of the Ontario Society for Crippled Children, later to become the Easter Seal Society.

Stratford Rotarians were determined to help every crippled child in the county. Fund-raising efforts began- one of which was a moving picture show.

The first clinic in Stratford was held in August 1923 – a county-wide appeal brought 106 children to the special clinic. The second, in 1929 attracted 145 children, 25 of them from Huron County.

At this time, there were about 10, 000 crippled children in Ontario. In its first seven years, the Stratford Club raised and spent $22, 195 on crippled children. When the OSCC started its Easter Seal fundraising program in 1947, Stratford Rotarians handled the drive in this area, and continued to do so until 2001. By 1992, the club had produced over $500,000 in Easter Seal contributions.

That tradition of assisting disabled children has continued to this day too, with Rotary’s support of Woodeden, the summer camp and treatment centre established by the OSCC near London in 1946. Most recently, in 2002, the club purchased and renovated a house at 32 McManus Road, Stratford for the Rotary Respite House, which will provide short-term care for children with such medical conditions as cerebral palsy, muscular dystrophy, Down syndrome and others. Parents and care-givers have a much-needed break while children enjoy staying at the residential facility, operated by Family Services Perth/ Huron, Rotary’s partner in the most ambitious project in the Club’s history.

As well, physically disabled children and adults are regularly granted funding for special equipment.

We also support PolioPlus, the eradication of polio world-wide, initiated by Rotary International.

The Rotary Hallowe’en Frolics, all proceeds from which went to the needs of crippled children and boys’ work, started on Oct. 31 1923 ( in a blinding snowstorm). The project was founded by newspaper man Charles Dingman, and the Beacon Herald carried stories about children who were helped by Rotarians’ efforts. The club’s longest-running fundraiser, a collection of games, dances, and raffles, became an annual Stratford institution, lasting through 1981. In 1974 the prize was a car or $3500 cash, won by Fran Culliton. Mayor Keith Culliton was quoted as saying, “I don’t know about the car but we could sure use the money.”

The Club got into the property business with Camp Kitchigami, about 9 k south of Goderich on Lake Huron, when it purchased the property in 1926 .

It was used by the Y, Perth Regiment, Boy Scouts, CGIT, sea cadets and other groups, at first in tents, and later in bunk houses. Costs of the camp were high, however in volunteer hours and money; maintaining the facility cost the Club over $80,000. By the last camp in 1962, the club decided to sell the property. But the club did not get out of the camp business altogether; since those days, the club has spent thousands in funding underprivileged kids to attend a variety of camps. Today our Rotary volunteers drive children from the Children’s Aid Society to summer camps throughout the season.

Kitchigami was one of three properties owned by the Rotary Club of Stratford; the second was a farm it inherited; and the third of course, is the Rotary Respite House, recently purchased and renovated.

Another Rotary commitment has made Rotary and hockey as synonymous as Shakespeare and theatre. When James (Mac) MacQueen came to Stratford as program director of the YMCA in 1924, the Rotary-Y hockey connection was made, and Rotary helped to pay for sweaters and ice time. Few Stratford boys in the last 80 years have not been part of the initial Rotary-Y School Hockey League, which later became the Rotary Minor Hockey. Rotary provided funds over the years for ice time, and contributed heavily toward the improvement of the Coliseum – including an ice plant- in 1971. as well as an electronic scoreboard. In the mid-80’s more money was contributed when the Stratford Agricultural Society embarked on further expansion and improvement.

Dr. John Pyper, Rotary President in 1971-2 got the club into the business of minor hockey tournaments in 1973. After much effort, he got a mixture of Rotarians and Stratford Minor Hockey Association members together,and the hockey tournaments began. The first 5-day effort drew 570 players – and continues to the present. Then as now it demands a lot of volunteer hours and commitment, but it raises funds- split 50/50 between the 2 groups, helped by the Big Six Draw. Teams come from all over Ontario , the US, and sometimes other countries.

Another popular sports event initiated by Rotary was the Sports Celebrity Dinner, which began in 1978 at the Royal Canadian Legion, which attracted well-known greats from baseball, hockey, and many other sports.

Stratford Rotarians have supported education in this community in a wide variety of ways. Rotary , for example, paid for band instruments for the Stratford Collegiate back in 1928. Bob Patterson, brother of Festival founder Tom Patterson, became a Rotarian in 1943 just before he went to war with the Perth Regiment. He was killed in 1944,. A trophy in his name has been presented at SCSS recognizing students with exemplary leadership and sportsmanlike qualities. At NWSS the T.J. Dolan award is presented annually and at St. Michael Catholic SS the Dr. David Smith award- each for $500, each in memory of a Stratford Rotarian. Also,the Dr. David Smith Awards, ($1000 per year four-year scholarships) are given to six students per year.

Every year since 1958, under the auspices of Jack Hamilton, Rotarian and former principal, honour students have been celebrated at the annual Honour Dinner- now students from SNWSS and St. Michael join student ts from the original Collegiate- SCSS. The occasion is always marked by a keynote address- notable speakers include Robertson Davies, Michael Langham and Arnold Edinborough.

Since 1972, Stratford Rotary has operated the student exchange program, designed to promote world understanding. Dozens of students have been sent to other countries from Stratford, Elizabeth Smythe who went to Sweden, being the first. We have hosted numerous students with Rotary families too, the first from Bolivia.

The Club also sponsors the Interact Club, which was founded at Stratford Central Secondary School in 1997.Its members carry out service projects in the community and beyond, and help with Rotary fundraisers.

Other educational endeavours include career days in various forms, the Seminar for Tomorrow’s Leaders which began in 1961 by the London Rotary Club- we send students every year-, and the Ottawa Adventures in Citizenship program started by the Ottawa Rotary Club. (Matthew went) which takes students to the nation’s capital for a week-long program.

In 1955, the Rotary Club of Stratford Charitable Foundation was established, enabling the club to appeal to the community, and issue receipts for tax purposes.

Stratford Rotarians were helped by women’s groups from the very beginning. The Rotary Anns grew out of a gathering at the home of Jim and Florence Preston after the Farmer-Rotary Picnic in July 1945. Wives of Rotarians automatically became Rotary Anns . They helped with Rotary events and held Christmas parties for CAS children, but the group folded in the late 1970’s.

The Inner Wheel, founded in England in 1924,by Rotary wives, came to Stratford in 1989, with Edna Mae Markham as chair.

And since 1996, women have been accepted into the Stratford Rotary Club as members, Elizabeth Gaffney being the first.

Some tidbits of interest:

Doug Page introduced Happy Bucks in 1978.

The Rotary Club of Stratford has sponsored five new clubs: St. Marys, Woodstock, Tavistock, Goderich, and Festival City.

Today, in our 83^rd year, with 135 members, the Rotary Club of Stratford raises funds through a variety of annual projects, including a pre-Christmas Arts and Crafts Show, a Country Auction, a Rural Urban Night, collecting admissions at gates for the Stratford Fall Fair and the Pork Congress, Bingos, Nevada Tickets, and Dragon Boat Festivals.

Since its inception in 1996, the Stratford Rotary Dragon Boat Festival has played host to over 600 teams, 14,000 paddlers, and made over $250,000 that the club uses to help people in need. This unique celebration has become a model for other communities, as 16 other Rotary clubs have developed their own Dragon Boat Festivals with the assistance of Stratford Rotarian organizer Kevin McCann.

Besides the monies used to support youth, sports, and handicapped children, substantial financial support has also been given to the Stratford General Hospital, the YMCA, the City of Stratford Beautification project, Stratford Summer Music, Gallery Stratford, the Avon Theatre, and the Stratford Festival’s Act III project- for the installation of an elevator for the handicapped.

Among others, agencies such as the Ontario Society for the Deaf, the Muscular Dystrophy Association, the Canadian Arthritis Association, the Canadian National Institute for the Blind, and the Canadian Mental Health Association have been the beneficiaries of Rotary funds over the years.

Hands-on projects include weekly clean-up of the Stratford parks system during the summer months, weekly delivery of food to the House of Blessing food bank, and assistance with community projects like Habitat for Humanity and the Special Olympics.

Stratford Rotarians are also active on the international front: Stephen Candler initiated a wheel-chair enterprise in Zimbabwe, George Schroeder successfully initiated a micro-loan project in Zambia, and several Rotarians helped build schools and a road in Guatemala, as well as helping with the VOSH (eyeglasses) program.

Our Centennial projects consist of A Day of Giving (helping seniors and the disabled with household tasks), Rotary Reads (placing bookcases and children’s books at eight sites in Stratford), Arbour Day (planting 100 trees in the Old Grove) and video-taping our longest-serving members as they recollect Rotary’s past.

As we celebrate the 100^th birthday of Rotary International, we also celebrate the history of our own club, as every week and every year we carry out the ideals of fellowship and service that were born in Chicago in 1905.