100 Years: The Rotary Foundation
Posted by Rich Kaye on Aug 09, 2016
To a young set of parents in Afghanistan, it was a life-saving immunization for their five-month-old son. To a woman with seven children in Malaysia, it was a loan to start a sewing business that enabled her to feed her children. To North Koreans, it was an ambulance that equipped a hospital to be able to take care of them. To thousands of college students in almost every country on earth, it was the chance to study abroad, with all expenses paid, and learn their educational specialty up close and personal.
Ask anyone who has been touched by The Rotary Foundation what it is and every answer will be different. Ask anyone who has been touched by The Rotary Foundation just how important it is, and every answer will be identical.
The Rotary Foundation was born as an endowment fund in 1917, the brainchild of RI President Arch C. Klumph. It was reborn 12 years later in the form we know today, The Rotary Foundation of Rotary international. However, it wouldn’t be until after the passing of Paul P. Harris in 1947 that TRF would reach the financial health and world importance that it enjoys today. Technically speaking, it is a not-for-profit corporation that supports the efforts of Rotary International to achieve world understanding and peace through international humanitarian, educational, and cultural exchange programs. It is supported solely by voluntary contributions from Rotarians and friends of the Foundation who share its vision of a better world.
Its expenses are borne solely by the interest earned on its contributions over a three year period. As an endowment fund for Rotary "to do good in the world," its initial contribution was $26.50 in 1918. When it became The Rotary Foundation in 1928, it had a value of $5,739.07. In the most recent year for which we have audited figures, the Foundation had more than $268,903,000 million contributed in 2014-15. On June 30, 2015, our Foundation had net assets of $946,021,100.
Our Club has played a proud role in making this happen. In the year just ended on June 30, 2016, we contributed in excess of $209,993 and have, in our 31 year history, contributed a total of $1,596,921.
But, that's not what The Rotary Foundation is all about. Its event-filled 100 years has been a story of Rotarians learning the value of service to humanity, and the citizens of the earth benefiting from that service.