History

The Roxboro Rotary Club, sponsored by the Oxford Rotary Club, was founded in 1924 with J. W. Noell elected as the first President. Mr. Noell was the oldest active newspaperman in North Carolina for many years that died at the age of 99.

All of the 17 charter members are now deceased. Of the original charter members, some of our more outstanding leaders and past Presidents were as follows:

J. W. Noell,
J. A. Long,
George W. Kane, and 
Dr. Jack Hughes.

Wallace Woods, now deceased, was President of our club for the year 1943-44, maintained a perfect attendance record for 34 years, and was District Song Leader for approximately 10 years. His Rotaryann, Mable, was the Club's pianist for 39 years. We truly appreciated her love and devotion to our club. Mable was a Paul Harris Fellow.

After organizing in 1924, Roxboro Rotary was the only civic club in Roxboro for approximately 10 years until the Roxboro Kiwanis Club was formed. We met for many years at the old Hotel Roxboro where Mr. Karl Burger, one of our members supervised the excellent meals served to us. The tradition of delicious food continued as we were served by Mrs. Lois Newman along with other ladies in Long Memorial United Methodist Church. They "catered graciously to our every need for many years". We then moved to a commercial location where we continue to be served every Thursday at lunch.

Roxboro Rotary, from its beginning in 1924, has been interested in civic improvement and has supported those projects that would benefit out community of Person County. Some of these projects are listed below:

     1. Served as a Chamber Of Commerce in numerous
     community activities in the late 1920's and
     early 1930's, including assisting in obtaining
     improved roads to Hurdle Mills and other communities
     in Person County.

2. Assisted in the building of a community house on Chub Lake Street prior to 1935, which later be-came the Person County Public Library Building and later housed the offices of The Employment Security Commission.

3. Jointly sponsored with the Roxboro Kiwanis Club the organization of the Roxboro Chamber of Commerce in 1935.

4. Co-sponsored, with the Roxboro City Manager and the Roxboro Chamber Of Commerce, an overall plan leading to the numbering of houses and re-naming and marking of streets in Roxboro to facilitate the more accurate delivery of local mail.

5. Organized a Crippled Children's Clinic and employed a Dr. Cole from Greensboro to assist local doctors who found and reported needy cases. Arranged for children's transportation to a hospital in Gastonia when necessary. Along with local doctors, sponsored several clinics to have children's tonsils removed, helped to secure space for hospital beds and cots in the local hospital, and generally assisted doctors in their work with children.

6. Sponsored the first Walking Blood Bank donor program in Person County. Instrumental in getting Public Health Service more active in Person County.

7. Sponsored March of Dimes Campaigns to, combat the deadly disease, Polio, which claimed many of our children. Our club sponsored the National Foundation's work and serves in an administrative capacity regarding Person County's share of collected money, giving each year a number of scholarships to students taking health related subjects such as some types of medicine, nurses training and other fields relating to work with the handicapped. Certain types of equipment needed by our local hospital have been donated through this fund.

8. Acts as administrator for certain funds and stocks donated to the club and which are used in aid to students through loans beyond the high school level.

9. Sponsored many activities relating to the Boy Scouts of Person County in the Cherokee Council, supplying them with donations to fund certain projects and programs.

10. Sponsored the first football team at Roxboro High School named "The White Phantoms". The Club purchased their first uniforms and other equipment needed. The coaching was done by Eddie Hill, Manager of A. T. Baker Company who played football at Cornell University and by Rev. P. Carey Adams, Pastor of the Roxboro Presbyterian Church. Rev. Adams was a graduate of Hampden-Sidney College in Virginia and was captain of the football team during his senior year.

11. Worked to improve economic life in Person County through improved agriculture technique and the establishment of new markets for farm products, having for many years an Annual Farmers Night to honor this fine group within our community.

12. Established and maintained in recent years the outstanding policy of student exchange, both in relationship with our Rotary District, and as an individual club on a local level. During the 56 - 57 time frame, Jimmy Warren participated in this program on a 1 year scholarship to Scotland.  During the spring of 1969 we sent Doug Gray, who has since become a Rotarian, to Australia and New Zealand for 2 months in a Rotary Exchange Program. Our club also sent Richard Wrenn to England in 1972 in the same type of program. Other Club members that have participated in the Group Study Exchange include Riley Oakley (Korea) and Stan Morton (Africa).  We have acted as host for two such groups since, one from Australia and one from England. We have sent abroad many of our own local students and been host for many more from other countries.

Even more important than the various projects and activities which our club has sponsored over the years is the club's attitude - maintained and personified by its individual members, who are dedicated to the ideal of building bridges of friendship through Rotary with "Service Above Self".

From our small beginning in 1924 with 17 men devoted to these ideals of Rotary, we have, grown in numbers and stature to a club with 76 consecutive years of meeting together in fellowship. This same fellowship, of which we are so proud, enables us to do great things together.

And so as we look back over the years we can rest assured that Roxboro Rotary Club has found over these years, work to be about in the service of our community and our fellow man. The work accomplished has left a lasting mark of our existence on this county and its people. We need to continue this work for even more years, as we go forward to engage in the affairs that demand of this long established club, "Service Above Self".

 

 

 

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