Community Service - The Third Avenue
Rotarians recognize the importance of giving back to the community. After all, the Rotary moto is "Service Above Self". Every Rotary club and every Rotarian assumes a responsibility to find ways to improve the quality of life for those in their communities and to serve the public interest. This ethic was started by attorney Paul Harris who founded Rotary. As a young attorney in Chicago, Paul Harris sought to capture in a professional club the same friendly spirit he had felt in the small towns of his youth. The first Rotary Service Project this professional club sponsored was the construction of what was then termed a "public comfort station" (i.e., public restroom) in downtown Chicago in 1907.
Service defines Rotary's character; whether local or international, it promotes Rotary's appeal and visibility in the community, and is the reason Rotary continues to grow. The avenue of Community Service responds to the needs of the local community. The Rotary club of the San Clemente Sunrise works to determine top priorities for service projects locally by knowing what our community's needs and assets are, and then developing a response that addresses them.
For our community of San Clemente to thrive, each of its members must honor a commitment to contribute to the well being of the whole by returning those benefits in kind. Rotarians do that here. There are two Rotary Clubs in our community and each of them contributes in different ways. The San Clemente Sunrise Rotary Club is involved in a wide range of projects, including: