Paul Percy Harris was born in Racine, Wisconsin, USA on April 19, 1868, the second of six children of George N. and Cornelia Bryan Harris.
At the age of three, he moved to Walling ford, Vermont, where he grew up in the care of his paternal grandparents, Howard and Pamela Harris. As he would later write, any purposefulness, integrity, or sincerity in his nature was inherited from his grand father; and love of humankind, especially of children, came from his grandmother.
While he was in school, both of Harris's grandparents died, and he spent the five years after graduation traveling around the country and working odd jobs. After arriving penniless in San Francisco in 1891, he worked as a reporter for the San Francisco Chronicle and then as a ranch hand, grape picker, actor, and cowboy. He was also a hotel night clerk in Jacksonville, Florida, and a traveling marble and granite salesman.
A man with varied experiences, he received the Bachelor of Physical Culture and LLD degrees from the University of Vermont and the LLB degree from the University of Iowa. He was later awarded a honorary PhD in 1933 by the University of Vermont.
In 1896, he settled in Chicago and opened a law practice. Paul's friendly nature won him acquaintances at all levels of society. But on Sundays and holidays the 'country boy' delighted in getting out of the city. As he explored the suburbs, he longed for the simple friendship he had enjoyed at his childhood Vermont home.
One summer evening in 1900, he dined with a friend in a suburban neighborhood, and later they went strolling around, stopping in at various places of business. At each place his friend introduced him to the proprietor.
Paul began to think what a good idea it would be to get together such a group of business friends in a social setting. There would be particular advantage if each represented a different trade or profession. He thought of his own clients: Silvester Schiele, a coal dealer; Gustavus Loehr, a mining engineer; Harry Ruggles, a printer.
On the night of 23 February 1905, Paul, Silvester and Gus met, along with Hiram Shorey, a merchant tailor, at Gus's office in the Unity Building in downtown Chicago.
They began to meet regularly, bringing other acquaintances into their 'club'. Paul suggested a few club names, but they finally chose 'Rotary' as they met by rotation at different places hosted by the members. And thus the Rotary club of Chicago came into being.
Truly, one might say that Rotary was born out of a lonely young man's search for friendship. Membership grew rapidly, attracting men who had achieved business success unaided, but Paul always stressed to take in only 'quality' member.
Along with Gustavus Loehr, Silvester Schiele, and Hiram Shorey, he founded the Rotary Club of Chicago in 1905 and was elected its president in 1907.
Club membership grew rapidly. Many members were originally from small towns and found an opportunity for fellowship in the Chicago club. Harris was convinced that the club could be expanded into a service movement and strove to extend Rotary to other communities.
In 1910, he met Jean Thompson during an outing with the Prairie Club, a Chicago-based organization for wilderness enthusiasts. Harris and Thompson married three months later and settled on Chicago's South Side.
In the same year, the National Association of Rotary Clubs was formed, and Harris was elected its first president. He held the office for two years and afterward became president emeritus, serving as the public face of the organization and promoting membership extension and service around the world.
In addition to his work with Rotary, Harris was involved in other civic organizations, including the Chicago Association of Commerce and Industry, City Club of Chicago, Chicago Bar Association, Prairie Club, and Easter Seals. He was also recognized by the Boy Scouts of America and honored by the governments of Brazil, Chile, the Dominican Republic, Ecuador, and Peru.
Harris died at the age of 78 on January 27, 1947, leaving a rich legacy of fellowship, professionalism, service, and friendship. His passing also sparked an outpouring of donations to The Rotary Foundation from all over the world, allowing the Foundation to greatly expand its programs and services.
Source: Rotary International
Paul Harris Fellows
Donations to the Rotary Foundation support a wide variety of programs. Donors of $1,000 to the Annual Programs Fund, Polio Plus, or the Humanitarian Grants program, or people who have that amount donated in their name, can be recognized as Paul Harris Fellows.
Our Club is very proud to support the fine work of the Rotary Foundation. In addition to encouraging our members to donate directly to the Foundation through the "Every Rotarian Every Year" program, the Club donates from Club funds each year in the name of a Rotary member or outstanding non-Rotarian community member who exemplifies the goals of Rotary.
We are very proud of the 17 active members who are recognized as Paul Harris Fellows, one of whom is a Multiple Paul Harris Fellow and one who is also a Rotary Foundation Benefactor. These members are
| Roger Reinemann (Sep 1992) - Rotary Foundation Benefactor Brian Monroe (Jun 2006) - Multiple Paul Harris Fellow |
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| Andy Moss (May 1998) Bill Wandsnider (Nov 2000) Dick Dieffenbach (Jun 2002) Alice Sedgwick (Jun 2003) Wally Sommers (Jun 2003) |
Steve Peterman (May 2004) Ken Zganjar (May 2005) Deb Simpson (Aug 2005) Bob Holzrichter May 2006) Bob Blazich (May 2007) |
Lynn Streeter (May 2008) Lee Szymborski (May 2008) Gordon Hetzel (Dec 2008) Carole Blaney (Apr 2009) Roger Gronwick (May 2009) |
This year we also recognized an outstanding non-Rotarian, Dr. Bruce Newman, for his service with the Guatemala Medical Relief Project. Dr. Newman was honored as a Paul Harris Fellow at our Changing of the Guard dinner in July 2009.
Over time, a number of our members have moved on with their lives. Although they have left the Club for retirement or new challenges, we are always pleased when they can join us for events and activities. We are pleased to recognize them here as members who gained their Paul Harris Fellow recognition during their time as members of the Club.
| Roanne Barnes Rich Bub Mike Fletcher Jean Hill |
Amy Sterkenburg Deb Turk Dorothy Wahner |
For further information, read the Paul Harris brochure available through the Rotary International website at http://www.rotary.org/RIdocuments/en_pdf/099en.pdf.