Corpus Christi Caller-Times from Corpus Christi, Texas • 15

(T Jt 1 9 1 i 0 9 rx rr v-t rr! rrr rrrrv EDITORIALS AND FEATURES EDITORIAL: 2 AMUSEMENTS: 4-5 TRAVEL: 6 SUNDAY APRIL IK 1M7 SEC-TIDN ROOKS: 7 7 hey arc called clubs 9 and they are just that Behind the weekly Inn t'' cheons fund-raising drives and horseplay are civic-minded men who spend long hours constructing youth centers helping the needy and working for community betterment and trying to think up new projects -a vS 's V- 1 CHILDREN EAT LI NCI I IN YOITII BUILDING BUILT AT ST MARTI VS CHURCH RV SIX HUNTS KIWANIS CLIB The Good Men Who Get Together Exposition llall for about 15 years to raise funds for its civic projects The club nets anywhere from $2500 to $4000 on the trees and spends it on various projects I-ast year the club built a youth center at St Martin's Episcopal Chuivh Materials cost about $4400 and club members did the work The building is valued at $10000 The club built the Scout hut at Sam Houston School for years eontrihulrd $WX) a year to the Corpus Christi Museum supported Little league and Pony league teams supports the Campfire Girls Cub Scout activities and awards a scholarship every year to the top freshman at Del Mar College THE ROTARY CLUB operates on a sompwhat different theory Normally it does not conduct any fund-raising activities and has no special civic projects Instead llie club encourages its memliers to participate individually in civic activities for the hettemieiit of the community and a great many of them do Rotarians can be found working in all types of community organizations That also applies to Kiwanians Lions Optimists and ollirr service cluh members The Rotary Club has not always been a service organization of individuals In its early days It sponsored activities in which all or most mpmhei-s participated By SPENCER PEARSON MORE TUAN A HALF century ago a group Corpus Christi businessmen decided to join a young giowing organization dedicated generally to community service It was known as Rotary which in nine yea is had spread throughout the country On June 16 1914 the Corpus Christi Rotary Hub was formed and became the first one in this small (naslal city The club of 36 members decided to meet weekly for luncheon at the big new Nueces Hotel the finest in South Texas The new club's four goals of major importance were rirpp water good loads black-land farms and fuel from natural gas Its motto "Sprvicp Above Self" There was the time in 1916 when the club under- took its "greatest public service project" the opening of Corpus Christi Pass According to lister Gunst one of three charter ineinljors still active "An enthusiastic group of local Rotarians embarked from Seaside Pier with picks shovels and an ample supply" of irp cold Ifocr to do battle with the sands of Padre Island and open up the pass "The day was spent shoveling sand drinking Iwer and enjoying the fellowship of Rotary which as I recall was somewhat upset when Edwin Klato and Bill Blake got into an argument on the boat and Edwin got tossed in the drink or maybe It was Billy "However at nightfall we sailed hack to Cor-pus Christi without having disturbed the serene sands of Padre appreciably hut with having acquired the record sunburn and a large number of empty beer bottles" In 1932 the club reduced dues to $5 because of the Depression but the central relief committee report showed $356141 collected and distributed for charity purposes such as buying school lunches for needy children supporting the Boy Scouts crippled children the Red Cross Community Chest YMCA building Campfire girls and others v1--' fvt THIS SET THE pattern for other cluhs that were formed over the yeara following The Kiwanis Cluh oiganized just before Ihe 1919 hurricane and the Lions Club was formed Dec 18 1925 Today there are approximately 30 service clubs in Corpus Christi The big three eventually branched out and additional Rotary Kiwanis and Lions clubs were organized In addition there are the Civitan Cosmopolitan Exchange Optimist and Sertoma clubs Most of them meet weekly for luncheon They usually have a guest speaker who talks on some subject of general interest All are dedicated to some type of community serviep Most of them havp special projects Ihey sponsor and most conduct fund raising activities to support their community activities WHAT TYPES OF men join sendee clubs? Practically every type of business and professional man can be found among the club membership rosters There are store owners store managers and probably a shoe clerk here and there Doctors law-yprs teachers scientists salesmen vou name it You will find the gregarious glad hander and Ihe Silent Sam You will find those who join for the fellowship those who are interested in serving others and those who want to Increase their business contacts You will find the conscientious hard-working member who rarely if ever misses a meeting and spends a great deal of his time on club projects You will find men who pay their dues attend meetings and do nothing else Put them together however and you have a group of 25 to 250 men whose principal goal is service to the (ximmunity and they perform a service by supjKii ting youth improvement projects by collecting money and cloihes for the Salvation Army by contribuling to charity organizations and in scores of other ways TAKE THE I downtown I Jons Club for instance Its main project is the operation of a fi-ee kindergarten for mentally retarded children The srhnol has a full-time teacher who trains the youngsters for admission to special classes rondurled by the city school district Thp school is financed by proceeds from the annual show which it has been presenting every year since 1939 During that period the club has netted mote than $175000 The school budget runs about $4500 a year In addition the club spends several hundred dollars a year furnishing glasses to needy school children and contributes to olher charitable activities Years ago tlv club helped Goodwill Industries get on its feet and supported it for years THE SIX MINTS Kiwanis Club has been a Christmas tree sale every December in MAIN BULDLNG OF COASTAL REND YOUTH CENTER AT DRISCOLL organized as Boys City in 1916 by Downton ii Optimist (lull -y is? JAMES RANDALL (KANDY) LYNCH RECEIVES VOIAC TEXAS AWAKII from Date Comer (I) of Downtown Optimist ('lob HOTARIAN GLENN ALEXANDER WITH STUDENTS Julio Rarahona Honduras Jose Jimenez Mexico TIAYING' FOR A GOOD CAINE AT FUND RAISING MINSTREL SHOW Joe Simon (I) and Norman Utter of Downtown Lions Club i it 4 1.