A History of District 7980
- Prior to 1915-16, Rotary Clubs were
not divided into districts, but in that
year, it was decided to do so for the
better administration and service to the
clubs.
- In 1915-16, we were assigned to
District No. 1, the lowest district
number, and remained there until 1918-19
when we became part of District No. 2;
we became part of District 30, made up
of Connecticut, Massachusetts and
Vermont, which was subsequently
renumbered in 1937-38 as District 199.
-
 In
1923, Donald Adams from the Rotary Club
of
New Haven, CT was named 1st Vice
President of Rotary International and
became the 15th President of R.I. for
the year 1925-26. The “Donald Adams
Outstanding Rotarian Award” was
inaugurated in 1976 to honor a member
who represents all around contribution
to the Four Avenues of Service of Rotary
Service. The first recipient was
Bernhardt Erk of Cheshire, who later
became the District Governor in 1980-81.
- Effective March 20, 1938, District
199 was divided into two districts and
our part was included in District 200.
In 1949-50 the boundaries of our
District were redefined as District 292
comprising the counties of Fairfield,
NewHaven, Middlesex and New London, but
in1957-58 we were renumbered 798.
- Charles W. Pettengill of the Rotary
Club of Greenwich, CT was elected to the
Board of Directors of R.I. in 1963 and
then became the 54th President of R.I.
for 1964-65. To honor this achievement,
the “Charles W. Pettengill Outstanding
Club Award” was instituted and awarded
to that club which has distinguished
itself by building an outstanding record
of service in any one or a combination
of Rotary’s Four Avenues of Service
during the preceding three years. The
Rotary Club of New Haven was the first
club so honored.
- Marcel Corbat of the Rotary Club of
Stamford was elected as a Director of
R.I. in 1970 and became 1st Vice
President of R.I. in 1971-72.
Effective July 1, 1991, R.I. added a “0”
to all District numbers, hence we became
District 7980.
- Abraham I. Gordon of the Rotary Club
of Bridgeport was elected Director of
R.I. in 1998 and then moved on to become
1st Vice President of R.I. for
1999-2000. The History of District 7980
continues as time progresses.
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