Organized as a service club April 1, 1922, the Monroe Rotary Club is the oldest service organization in Union County. A group of Charlotte Rotarians, headed by John W. Fox, helped the local club organize, which along with thousands of other similar clubs throughout the world comprised Rotary International. The first president of the local club was Dr. Charles C. Weaver, Pastor of the Central Methodist Church.

Following the standard of Rotary International, the Monroe Rotary Club  invited women into its membership in 1988.

Clubs We Have Sponsored

The Monroe club has sponsored or assisted four other clubs to organize; Monroe Breakfast, Marshville, Union West and the Waxhaw Breakfast club.

Projects

Since its inception members of the Monroe club, in keeping with the Rotary International’s theme Service Above Self, have worked to accomplish worthwhile community projects. In it its first year the local club adopted as its first community project, AID TO CRIPPLED CHILDREN. This project became such a remarkable success that it became a model for the state and later for the nation.

Each year, in keeping with Rotary’s motto: Service Above Self, the local club is involved in various projects which contribute to the overall well being of the community. Over the years, the club has been involved in sponsoring Boy Scouts, the International Exchange Program in which selected participants from a foreign country interchange school years with a similar number of U. S. students to their respective country, Student Driving program in Union County, providing mouth guards for members of the Monroe High School football team, assisting in the establishment of the Career Guidance Program in the high schools, awarding scholarships for deserving students to attend Wingate University, sponsoring a Football Team in the Little League, financing deserving High School students’ attendance at a summer Leadership Camp in the N. C. mountains, being involved on a reciprocal basis as host for group of foreign business men and women to this country, sponsoring InterAct clubs in the local high schools, and contributing to local charities such as Loaves and Fishes, Habitat for Humanity, United Way, and Crisis Assistance.

Among the meaningful projects initiated by the local club was the Students Guidance Counseling program in our local high schools. This is now a permanent fixture in our schools. We are quite proud of our Honduras Relief Project in partnership with JAARS.