history

    The Goldsboro Rotary Club sponsored the organization of the Mount Olive Rotary Club and Lionel Weil represented Rotary District 773 Governor G. Franklin Lentz in its organization. The organization meeting met in the office of Mount Olive physician Dr. C.C. Henderson on December 13, 1923. Faison Witherington was elected the first president. Dues were $5.00 a month and the initiation fee was $25.00 Charter night was February 14,1924 and was held in the meeting hall over the picture show on East Main Street.   Charter members were Albert Byrd, Arnold Byrd, Rev. William (Bill) Baker, Mosely Davis, L.G. (Lem) Geddie, Dr. CC Henderson, Henry Knowles, DK Dan Kornegay, WH (Hamp) Kornegay, W.E.(Hooty) Lewis, William(Bill) McGee, Albert Oliver, Emmette Pope, Dr. W.A. Potts, E.N.(Edgar) Ricks, Thad Thigpen, S.L. (Sam) Warren, and Faison Witherington. The Mount Olive Rotary Club was the 150th member of Rotary International since its inception on February 23, 1905. Rotary International today has 29,968 member clubs with 1,176,169 individual club members in 163 countries.

      It was decided during the first year of the Mount Olive Rotary Club to sponsor the Boy Scout movement in Mount Olive. The Club continues that effort through support of BSA Troop #34 and Club member David Curtis is the current Troop 34 ScoutMaster.

      The Mount Olive Rotary Club has met in Dr. Henderson's office over the theater, in the back of Dr. Herring's office, in the back of Lewis' Drug Store, the basement of Steele Memorial Library, Teenage Building, the Education Building of the Methodist Church, and in the Southern Belle restaurant where it continues to meet today.

      The guest speaker for the 25th anniversary in 1949 was Ervine W. Cubine. In 1974 the 50th anniversary speaker was Charles L. McCuller and in 1999 the 75th anniversary speaker was Charles M. Kraft. James E. (Jimmy) Williams presided as Master of Ceremonies for the 50th and 75th anniversary programs.

      Twenty seven years of perfect attendance was achieved from joining the Club in 1941 through 1975 by W.K.(Hooty) Lewis. Today, Hooty has thirty six years of perfect attendance in his sixty years as a Club Member and is the only family member of a Charter member in the Club.

      Dorothy J. Dail served as Club pianist for over thirty years before becoming the first woman member of the Club.

      The Mount Olive Rotary Club was instrumental in helping to build the Steele Memorial Library in Mount Olive and in helping to establish Mount Olive College and the Mount Olive Rescue Squad. Projects throughout the years have included; a Minstrel Play, Womenless Weddings, annual Teachers Nights, and visits to our Scouts at Camp Tuscarora. The Club provided funds for the tornado relief in 1984, the Polio Plus Project of Rotary International and for the establishment of the new Camp Tuscarora. The Club sponsors the annual Distinguished Service Award for Boss of the Year with the Mount Olive Jaycees and helps sponsor the Mount Olive Exchange Club's annual 4th of July fireworks display. The Club is a member of the Mount Olive Area Chamber of Commerce and the Mount Olive Committee of 100. The Club sponsors a youth recreation baseball team and makes donations to the Boy Scouts of America, the Girl Scouts of America, BSA Troop 34, The Boys and Girls Home, The Mount Olive Boys and Girls Club, the Goldsboro Rotary Clubs Twiford Scholarship, the Mount Olive College Trojan Club, the Michael Martin Golf Tournament, and the Southern Wayne High School Patron Saints. Major Rotary District 7720 projects the Club is involved with include, Coins for Alzheimer's Research Trust (CART) project, donations to the Foundation of Rotary International, annually sponsoring two high school students to the District Rotary Youth Leadership Awards(RYLA) Conference and by sponsoring a Four Way Test Essay Contest at the Mount Olive Middle School.

      As a memorial to James A. Batson of Mount Olive, Rotary District Governor 1958-1959, the Mount Olive Club established in 1961 the Rotary Memorial Loan Fund at Mount Olive College. Renamed the Mount Olive Rotary Endowed Scholarship in 1996, the fund has grown to $18,065.00 by 2001.

      Under the leadership of Club president Donald (Sprunt) Hill in 1996 the Club founded an annual dinner auction project. Proceeds from these dinner auctions have enabled the continued financial support of all Club projects as well as resulted in more than $12,000 in donations to the Waylin Area Foundation's Physician Recruitment Project. Dinner Auction proceeds also enabled a $2500 donation to the Kid's World Project in Westbrook Park in 2000, annual donations of $1000 to the Mount olive Rotary Endowed Scholarshiup and a $1000 donation to the Mount Olive Recreation Development Fund in 2001.

      The Mount Olive Rotary Club sponsored Sally Ann Simmons Smith as a Rotarey Ambassadorial Scholar to Belgium in 1958-1959. Other Club sponsored Rotary Ambassadorial Scholars have been brother and sister, Curt Williams an 1991-1992 to France and Australia and Wendy Williams ai 1999-2000 to Spain.

      In 1976 the Club raised $1000 as the Tri-Centenial Fund Project to be invested for maturity in 2076 with a possible $2 million for the Town of Mount Olive.

      Current dues are $75 a quarter and the initiation fee remains $25. Rotarians are expected tp attend at least 30% of the meetings of one's own club in each six-month period, attend or make up 60% of club meetings each six months and to not fail yo attend or make up four consecutive club meetings. Rotarians will also be asked to serve on club committees and projects, to serve as officers and to sponsor speakersa for the weekly club programs.