Rotary Club of Missoula

One of the oldest Rotary Clubs in Montana, the Rotary Club of Missoula was chartered on May 2, 1917, when automobiles -- or "horseless carriages, as they were often called -- were just beginning to appear on Higgins Avenue, Missoula's primary downtown thoroughfare. The street was named after Captain C.P. Higgins, an Irish-born American Army captain and businessman who co-founded along with Frank Worden the Hellgate Trading Post and the nearby city of Missoula. In April 1917, only a month before the new Missoula Rotary was chartered, the United States had declared war on Germany, resulting in many young Montana men turned soldiers heading for Europe to fight in World War I.

Missoula's first Rotary club was established only twelve years after Paul Harris founded the first Rotary club in Chicago. Harris's new organization focused on building peace in the world through service, an appropriate goal given the times. As the idea caught on and new Rotary clubs began to mushroom throughout the U.S., the new service organization soon became Rotary International with the addition of clubs in Canada. 

Since its founding, Rotary International and its worldwide members have accomplished countless projects to enhance communities everywhere, including the organization's most ambitious project to date -- to eradicate polio in the world. We have nearly done so. 

The Rotary Club of Missoula is Montana's second chartered Rotary club. Our members include men and women in various professions, representing businesspeople, university administrators, healthcare professionals, educators, real estate developers, sales agents, writers, artists, accountants, attorneys, elected officials, marketing professionals, museum administrators, and much more, including those who are now retired. Our club's motto is Service Above Self as we continue the founding principles that Harris established. Today's Rotary members enjoy helping with community projects, raising funds to support youth leadership camp and scholarships, assisting selected nonprofits with their missions, and working with fellow Rotary members in Guatemala to build clean water systems in mountain villages. We also meet routinely for fellowship, an important part of Rotary, too.

To learn more about Rotary, visit Rotary.org. To inquire about membership, please contact our Membership Chair Royce Engstrom at Royce.Engstrom@umontana.edu