Rotary Club of Naperville Celebrates 80 Years

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Celebrating 80 Years

“It is such an important milestone to have reached 80 years.” The Rotary Club of Naperville is celebrating a special anniversary. The club was chartered on March 31, 1941.

“It’s really a sense of pride for myself, past presidents that have led this club before, me and for the new members that have shown such excitement about being a part of a club that has done so much over the years,” said Alma Jones, president of the Rotary Club of Naperville.

The club was founded by four members – Stanley Law, Maurice Haehlen, Charles Schwartz, and Walter Fredenhagen. When it first started out, there were only 15 members. That number has now grown to 115 people wanting to help their community.

Helping the Community

The service organization has held multiple fundraisers, including past events Oktoberfest and Soups On, to help local organizations like Loaves & Fishes and DuPagePads.

More recently, they held a virtual jazz quilt fundraiser in 2020 to benefit 360 Youth Services and NAMI. The club has provided many services, and was actually the first rotary club established in town.

“We were not only the first rotary club in Naperville, but we were the very first service club that was started in Naperville 80 years ago,” said Jones. “So we feel very proud that we started a trend of serving community.”

Online Celebration

To commemorate the milestone, the club is hosting an online celebration on April 1. The Zoom link can be found on the Rotary Club of Naperville website.

A special addition to the 80th anniversary celebrations is the addition of a time capsule with different items from rotary club members. The plan is to open the time capsule in 20 years when the club hits 100 years.

Naperville News 17’s Aysha Ashley Househ reports