Rotary Club of Ardmore
The Rotary organization began in 1905 by Paul Harris in Chicago with the idea of getting businessmen together to network and to serve business needs. In April 1917, twelve years after the creation of the first Rotary Club, Ardmore newspaper publisher, H. G. Spaulding, heard about Rotary and realized the need for a civic club in Ardmore. He interested other business and professional men of Ardmore in the idea of starting a Rotary Club.
The Ardmore Rotary Club became Club Number 313 on the Rotary rolls. Its first weekly meetings were conducted at the Shuman Café, then it moved to the Sample Room of the Whittington Hotel to better accommodate the Club members. The Ardmore Rotary Club now meets for lunch each Wednesday at the Dornick Hills Country Club.
In 1989 Rotary Clubs began admitting female members and Teresa Brown became the first female president of the Ardmore Rotary Club in 2001-2002.
The Ardmore Rotary Club has conducted many service projects in Ardmore over the years including hosting 4-Way Speech Contests, construction of new tennis courts at AHS, donations to the junior livestock show, annual tennis tournament, ringing the bell for the Salvation Army and many other activities. Most recently, the Club coordinated efforts with several foundations to build the Ardmore Central Park public bathrooms.The Club also hosts foreign exchange students and recognizes outstanding area high school students as Junior Rotarians.
The Ardmore Rotary Club conducted an annual fundraising event, OctoberFest, for almost a decade; held on a Saturday evening during the month of October. OctoberFest features a German-style meal and musical entertainment and dancing with a live band.