Rotary Club of Manila

The Rotary Club of Manila is the first and oldest Rotary Club in Asia. After its establishment, the Rotary Club of Manila would go on to sponsor other organizations, including the Rotary Club of Iloilo (1933), the Community Chest Foundation, the Philippine Band of Mercy (1937), the Philippine Safety Council, and the Boy Scouts of America Philippine Islands Council (1923). In 1932, Rotary International deputed Everett Stanton Turner of the Rotary Club of Manila to Cebu to establish the Rotary Club of Cebu.

In 1919 Manila businessman Leon J. Lambert sent communication to Rotary in Chicago about the possibility of organizing Rotary in the Philippines. In response to Lambert's proposal, Rotary sent Roger D. Pinneo of the Seattle Rotary Club to the Philippines to help set up a club in Manila. On 12 January 1919, Pinneo and Lambert held a luncheon meeting with four of Manila's prominent businessmen (Alfa Walter Beam, Fred N. Berry, Edwin Emil Elser, and James Geary) to form an organizing committee. Another meeting later resulted in the formation of a Manila Rotary Club. The 38 charter members were men heavily involved in the sociopoliticoeconomic life of the country and active in many socio-civic endeavors. They included 35 Americans, 2 Filipinos, and 1 Chinese. The founding officers were:

The Rotary Club of Manila subsequently informed Rotary International in Chicago that the Manila Club had been formally organised. In June 1919, the Rotary Club of Manila received communication from Rotary International recognizing the Club with Charter 478.

LEON J. LAMBERT: Sergeant, 13th Minnesota Volunteer Infantry, Spanish–American War (Aug 1898) and Philippine–American War (Feb–Aug 1899). Owner of Lambert Sales Co. and other businesses. Philippine delegate to Democratic National Convention, 1920, 1924, 1928, 1932. Honorary Vice-President, Democratic Party, 1912. Member, Committee on Rules and Order of Business, Democratic Party, 1912. Member, Platform and Resolutions Committee, Democratic Party, 1924.

...
Wikipedia