I was honoured to receive the Paul Harris Award for “Humanitarian Service to Society” at  the Rotary International Sydney CBD Branch meeting held on Monday 17 February.  On that night Rotary International has celebrated its 109th Anniversary by presenting unsung heroes in the community with Paul Harris Recognitions.

The Paul Harris Award is named after the Rotary International founder Paul Harris. The world’s first service club, the rotary Club of Chicago was formed on February 23rd, 1905 by Paul Harris, an attorney who wished to capture in a professional club the same friendly spirit he had felt in the small towns of his youth. The Rotary name derived from the early practice of rotating meetings among members’ offices. Rotary’s popularity spread, and within a decade, clubs were chartered from San Francisco to New York to Winnipeg Canada.  By 1921, Rotary Clubs had been formed on six continents, including Australia, with Melbourne and Sydney being first clubs chartered in this country.  The organisation adopted the Rotary International name a year later.   As Rotary grew, its mission expanded beyond serving club members’ professional interests. Rotarian began pooling their resources and contributing their talents to help serve communities in need. The organisation’s dedication to this ideal is best expressed in its motto” Service Above Self.

In order to make the Paul Harris recognition, the Sydney CBD Club Rotarians have had to donate US$1000 per recognition to the Rotary International to carry out its excellent worldwide humanitarian programs.