100 years of Service Above Self
100 years ago, on December 1, 1920 the Rotary Club of Hilo
became the second club in the Territory of Hawai’i . 
THE HILO HOTEL, 1920
THE HILO HOTEL, 1920
Carl S. Carlsmith was named the first President and meetings were held at the old Hilo Hotel.,Over the 100 years, Rotary has been a vital part of the Hilo community. Many significant events and activities have grown our club from the original 13 men only members to nearly 100 members. Almost half the members are women, including our current President, Nancy Cabral, who was also the first female member of the club back in 1988.
A few of our significant accomplishments include:
1949 - After the end of WWII, Carl Carlsmith wrote to
General Douglas MacArthur suggesting that restoring Japan to Rotary would foster World Peace.
MacArthur agreed and at the 1949-50 International Rotary Conference, Japan was welcomed back into
Rotary. Five years later (1955), our club sponsored the Rotary Club of Hiroshima.
1955 – Founded the Boys Club of Hilo. Today it is the Boys and Girls Club of Hilo.
1970-71 – Established the sister-city Rotary relationship with Hiroshima South.
1981 – Served Christmas meals for Kamana Senior Citizens Center. The tradition continues for 40 years.
1997 – Participated in the reforestation of native Koa forest on Mauna Kea above Hakalau.
1999 – Partnered with other Rotarians to sponsor a water purification system in India.
2005 – Teamed with the other east Hawaiʻi Rotary Clubs to clean a shoreline area to create Kūhiō
Kalanianaʻole Park (Rotary Centennial Park).
2009 – Founded first major Club Fundraiser for several years – with the monies raised going to the Hilo
Medical Center Rural Residency Program and other projects through the Club’s Foundation.
2013 – Initiated the Rotary Global Peace Forum held in Honolulu.
2013 – Established the Club’s current fundraiser – Hilo Brewfest.
2016 – Served first Hawaiʻi Island Home for Recovery Thanksgiving meal, continuing today.
2017 – Donated $30,000 that went toward the purchase of Shelter Boxes, tents, shelter kits, and tarps
helping 1764 Fijian households after the devastating earthquake.
2018 – Helped to fund the Global TeleMedicine Project, our club recognized for District International Service.
2019 – Established a satellite Rotary Club – the “Social Squad”
2020 – Developed a video to coordinate with and support Dictionaries for Youth.
2020 – Cooking meals twice a week for the Hawaiʻi Island Home for Recovery, ongoing.
2020 – Creating alternative methods of delivery to continue Reading in Kindergarten, ongoing.
2020 – Helping with the Rotary COVID response in our community. (see below!)
1949 - After the end of WWII, Carl Carlsmith wrote to
General Douglas MacArthur suggesting that restoring Japan to Rotary would foster World Peace.
MacArthur agreed and at the 1949-50 International Rotary Conference, Japan was welcomed back into
Rotary. Five years later (1955), our club sponsored the Rotary Club of Hiroshima.
1955 – Founded the Boys Club of Hilo. Today it is the Boys and Girls Club of Hilo.
1970-71 – Established the sister-city Rotary relationship with Hiroshima South.
1981 – Served Christmas meals for Kamana Senior Citizens Center. The tradition continues for 40 years.
1997 – Participated in the reforestation of native Koa forest on Mauna Kea above Hakalau.
1999 – Partnered with other Rotarians to sponsor a water purification system in India.
2005 – Teamed with the other east Hawaiʻi Rotary Clubs to clean a shoreline area to create Kūhiō
Kalanianaʻole Park (Rotary Centennial Park).
2009 – Founded first major Club Fundraiser for several years – with the monies raised going to the Hilo
Medical Center Rural Residency Program and other projects through the Club’s Foundation.
2013 – Initiated the Rotary Global Peace Forum held in Honolulu.
2013 – Established the Club’s current fundraiser – Hilo Brewfest.
2016 – Served first Hawaiʻi Island Home for Recovery Thanksgiving meal, continuing today.
2017 – Donated $30,000 that went toward the purchase of Shelter Boxes, tents, shelter kits, and tarps
helping 1764 Fijian households after the devastating earthquake.
2018 – Helped to fund the Global TeleMedicine Project, our club recognized for District International Service.
2019 – Established a satellite Rotary Club – the “Social Squad”
2020 – Developed a video to coordinate with and support Dictionaries for Youth.
2020 – Cooking meals twice a week for the Hawaiʻi Island Home for Recovery, ongoing.
2020 – Creating alternative methods of delivery to continue Reading in Kindergarten, ongoing.
2020 – Helping with the Rotary COVID response in our community. (see below!)
NEW MEMBERS
Our meetings are all by Zoom... kind of hard to take great photos of new members!
Welcome to three new members during December!
DANIELLE PRESTON - Education
SHAUN O’BRIEN - Sun Construction
AARON BLAKE - Sun Construction
SHAUN O’BRIEN - Sun Construction
AARON BLAKE - Sun Construction
SPECIAL AWARDS!
CHARLENE and AMOS MEYERS
This amazing couple was honored with the “White Hat” Rotary International Award during our last Zoom meeting.
IN THE COMMUNITY!
“GO COOK ‘EM CREW”
Rotarians and Community Members help cook meals every Thursday for residents at the Hawaii Island Home for Recovery. These chefs also cooked up a great Thanksgiving Day Feast.
Rotarians and Community Members help cook meals every Thursday for residents at the Hawaii Island Home for Recovery. These chefs also cooked up a great Thanksgiving Day Feast.
100 MONTHLY "THINGS" UPDATE
120+ Trees Planted around town!
100 Hygiene Bags for Homeless Women assisted by UHH Delta Sigma Pi
PLUS....
175 boxes of Food distributed to the community.
175 boxes of Food distributed to the community.
100 people attended our Dec. 1 100th Anniversary meeting... by ZOOM!