ABOUT US
Rotary is about much more than gathering for a weekly meal, it’s about bringing people together to create meaningful change.
Rotary brings people together to create lasting change, both close to home and around the world. Founded in 1905, Rotary has grown into a global network of approximately 1.4 million members in tens of thousands of clubs worldwide. Rotary is not faith-based or politically affiliated. It is made up of neighbors, business owners, professionals, retirees, and community-minded people who share a desire to serve others, build meaningful friendships, and make their communities stronger.
Around the world, Rotary members support efforts involving education, clean water, sanitation, healthcare, peacebuilding, and disease prevention. One of Rotary’s most recognized accomplishments is its decades-long leadership in the effort to eradicate polio. That same spirit of determination guides every Rotary club, including ours, as members identify local needs and work together to create practical solutions.
Here in Pacific County, our club places a special emphasis on supporting local youth and families. Through Christmas Angels, community members help provide both wanted and needed gifts to hundreds of local children during the holiday season. Shop with a Cop gives young people an opportunity to spend time with local law enforcement officers while shopping for gifts for their families, creating a positive experience built on trust, kindness, and connection.
We are also proud to invest in the future of local students through college scholarships for graduating Ilwaco High School seniors. Our members support Scouting and other youth programs that encourage leadership, confidence, and personal growth. These efforts help young people feel supported while giving them opportunities to learn, serve, and build strong relationships with positive role models in the community.
Our work extends throughout the Long Beach Peninsula and Pacific County. We collect food for local food banks, participate in beach and roadside cleanups, and support a variety of other projects that respond to community needs. Some efforts are large and highly visible, while others are simple acts of service—but each one is made possible by people who are willing to give their time, ideas, skills, or support.
Our meetings are also a wonderful way to learn more about the people and organizations shaping our area. Guest speakers include community leaders, local professionals, nonprofit representatives, public officials, and others who share useful information, fresh perspectives, and opportunities to become more involved.
You do not need to have special qualifications or a great deal of free time to make a difference with Rotary. You simply need a desire to help. We invite you to attend a meeting as our guest, meet our members, learn more about our projects, and discover how your interests and experience can help strengthen our community. When caring people come together with a shared purpose, meaningful change is possible.
OUR HISTORY
Rotary began with the vision of Paul Harris, a Chicago attorney who founded the Rotary Club of Chicago on February 23, 1905. His goal was to bring professionals from different backgrounds together to exchange ideas, build meaningful friendships, and strengthen their communities.
As Rotary grew, so did its mission. What began as a small gathering developed into an international service organization with a long history of addressing important challenges both locally and around the world.
“Whatever Rotary may mean to us, to the world it will be known by the results it achieves.”
Paul Harris, Rotary founder
That commitment to meaningful action continues today. Within just 16 years of its founding, Rotary had established clubs on six continents. Today, members around the world work together to take on some of humanity’s most difficult challenges.
Rotary has never been afraid to set ambitious goals. In 1979, the organization began its fight against polio with a project to immunize six million children in the Philippines. Since then, Rotary and its partners have helped reduce the number of countries where polio remains endemic from 125 in 1988 to only two today, showing what can happen when people unite behind a shared purpose.
