Hiram
E. Shorey (1862-1944)
A merchant tailor in 1905. One of the founding four members of the Rotary
Club of Chicago, he remained a Rotarian for only a short time before moving
back to his home state of Maine. Upon his later return to Chicago, he
rejoined for a brief time before resigning again. Despite his brief
membership, Shorey was always supportive of the Rotary Club of Chicago and
voiced pride at his early association with Rotary.
Gustavus H. "Gus" Loehr (1864-1918)
A Chicago mining engineer who lent his office on the
seventh floor of the Unity Building at 127 Dearborn Street in Chicago for
the first gathering of the founders of Rotary on 23 February 1905. Loehr
invited Hiram Shorey to this meeting. His health later deteriorated and he
left the club, but remained a supporter of Rotary until his death at age 53.
Silvester Schiele (1870-1945)
A coal dealer and a client of Paul Harris in 1905. Born
in rural Indiana, Schiele liked to tell Harris interesting anecdotes of his
"young pioneer" boyhood. During the course of their business dealings,
Harris first shared the idea with Schiele for a new kind of club for
professionals. On 23 February 1905, Harris invited Schiele for dinner to
develop his ideas of a fellowship and booster club. In addition to becoming
first president of the Rotary Club of Chicago, Schiele developed a close
lifelong friendship with Harris.
Paul P. Harris (1868-1947)
A Chicago attorney in 1905 when he had an idea for a
club in which professionals could share "mutual cooperation and informal
friendship such as all of had once known in our villages." On the evening of
Thursday, 23 February 1905, Harris gathered three business acquaintances to
form a group that became the Rotary Club of Chicago, initiating the world's
first service organization. Harris became the first president of what would
later become Rotary International, the association of Rotary clubs around
the world with 1.2 million members united under the motto Service Above Self
Rotary Ahmedabad North
R.I. Dist. 3050
Charter No. 04-305-0015076
Charter Day : 17th May 1977