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Did Ya Know     –    Definition of Rotary & The Flag

By Cliff Dochterman
1992-93 President
Rotary International

When someone asks you “What is Rotary”;  what do you say ?

Cliff Dochterman first published a list of short articles about Rotary, in the weekly bulletin of his North Stockton, California club.   That was well before he became  president of Rotary International for the year 1992-93.

 Originally called "Did Ya Know?"  the pieces were prepared to share interesting facts about Rotary with members of his club.  I will periodically discuss some of them.   FOR EXAMPLE:

Did Ya Know ? -  THE DEFINITION OF ROTARY

How do you describe our  organization.?  There are  many characteristics of a Rotary club as well as the activities of a million or so Rotarians..

In 1976 the R. I.  Board of Directors was interested in creating a concise definition. They turned to a  Rotary Public Relations Committee and requested that they prepare a one-sentence definition .

 After numerous drafts, the committee presented this definition, which has been used ever since.

"Rotary is an organization of business and professional persons, united worldwide, who provide humanitarian service, encourage high ethical standards in all vocations and help build goodwill and peace in the world."

Those 31 words are worth remembering when someone asks, "What is a Rotary club?"

In fact, I’ll repeat them:

"Rotary is an organization of business and professional persons, united worldwide, who provide humanitarian service, encourage high ethical standards in all vocations and help build goodwill and peace in the world."

Did Ya Know  - THE OFFICIAL ROTARY FLAG

The official flag, which we use today, was formally adopted by Rotary International at the 1929 Convention in Dallas, Texas.

An earlier  version was   flown in Kansas City, Missouri, in 1915. In 1922 a small Rotary flag was carried over the South Pole by Admiral Richard Byrd, a member of the Winchester, Virginia, Rotary Club. Four years later, the admiral carried a Rotary flag in his expedition to the North Pole.

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