Rotary’s Hidden Factor for Change 

The growth of Rotary has not always been smooth or steady. In the first couple of years of ROTARY/One, the original club in Chicago, many was the time that Paul Harris would get extremely frustrated and on the verge of disbanding the club. It was during times such as those that Harry Ruggles, the fifth Rotarian, would rise and call out, “Come on, fellows, let's sing!” By the time the last voice had died down, so had the tempers and the frustration level. 

Like clockwork, from those early days into the 1930s, the growth of Rotary clubs and Rotarians grew steadily. Every year, General Secretary Chesley Perry reported to the Board of Directors of Rotary International an increase in clubs and members. Even in the period of World War One, from July 1914 through 1918, there was growth, although it was not as great as it might have been without the conflict. There still was much of the world that hadn’t learned about Rotary. 

That all changed in the 1930s. With the rise of National Socialism in Germany, and the storm clouds of war beginning to boil over all of Europe and part of Asia, Rotary’s growth stopped dead. Soon, it was in retreat. A global conflict began to overwhelm the Rotary movement’s ability to outgrow the losses. Some clubs simply shut down. Some returned their charters. Still others were forced into closing by the governments of their countries. The war ended, but conflicts didn’t. Still, there was much of the world that hadn’t learned about Rotary. 

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