The Rotary Club of Peterborough is an organization of change-makers and city-builders. 

From our earliest beginnings in 1921 as one of the first Rotary Clubs in Canada to currently planning to celebrate our centennial anniversary, the Club has sought to connect leaders from diverse backgrounds to exchange ideas, share interests and take action on many of our toughest social challenges. 

For nearly one hundred years, Rotarians have played instrumental roles in building Peterborough from helping to establish and grow Camp Kawartha to the construction of the Rotary Greenway Trail, Rotarians have shown incredible leadership and vision in building our city. 

But their reach extends far beyond Peterborough. We have contributed to the global “Polio Plus Eradication” program and helped people in impoverished countries around the world with educational and female empowerment  partnership programs.

OUR VISION AND MISSION

OUR MISSION

OUR VISION

To embrace the ideals of Rotary International, contributing to a better Peterborough and a better world through significant service while providing extraordinary opportunities for networking, fellowship, friendship, and personal growth.

The Rotary Club of Peterborough is an organization of business, professional, and community leaders who come together through commitment and fellowship to create opportunities and a better future for generations who follow.

HISTORY OF ROTARY CLUB OF PETERBOROUGH

A Very Brief History of the Rotary Club of Peterborough

The Rotary Club of Peterborough was inaugurated on April 1, 1921. Its founding president was Fred L. Roy, whose drive and vision ensured the club’s creation. We were the first service club in Peterborough, and the first Rotary club in Rotary District 7010 (in fact, the district had to be created because of our founding). We quickly grew from 25 charter members to well over 100 members.

Over the next 100 years, our club sponsored the creation of three other local Rotary clubs: Lindsay (1922), Bridgenorth Ennismore Lakefield (1976), and Peterborough Kawartha (1989). 

In the fall of 1921, we purchased land on Clear Lake for a camp for children. In the summer of 1922, Camp Kawartha opened. Our club has stayed involved with this camp ever since. We were also instrumental in the creation of the Five Counties Children’s Centre in 1970-72. We purchased land and opened Langley Park for scouts and guides in 1965, and created Rotary Park in 1979. 
We have run numerous fundraisers over the decades, raising money for our many local and international good works. Our major fundraiser is the Carl Oake Easter Seals Swimathon, which started in 1987. Thirty years later, Carl and the Swimathon had raised over $1 million for Easter Seals and our other community projects. Our second-largest fundraiser is our annual Dinner & Auction. In recent years, the Auction has partnered with Habitat for Humanity (six years, where we donated $125,000 in total) and Homeward Bound Peterborough (two years, where we donated a total of $26,000).

Starting in 1993, our club funded and was the instigator for the Rotary Greenway Trail that runs through the city and all the way to Lakefield. We continue to be involved with the trail, providing benches and shelters.

ROTARY CLUBS OF PETERBOROUGH FOUNDATION INC.

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