The following list contains the most frequently asked questions to the Rotary Club of Carrollton-Farmers Branch, Texas. Although not a complete list, please be sure to read all of the questions and answers carefully. If you need further information, contact us here.

Q: What is Rotary?
A: Rotary is a non-profit service organization comprised of business and professional leaders united worldwide, who provide humanitarian service, encourage high ethical standards in all vocations, and help build goodwill and peace in the world.

Q: What are some of the objectives of Rotary?
A: The main objective of Rotary is service-in the community, in the workplace, and throughout the world. Rotarians provide goodwill and peace, provide humanitarian service, and encourage high ethical standards in all vocations. The Rotary motto is "Service Above Self".

Q: What exactly do Rotarians do?
A: Rotarians initiate and help raise money for community projects that address many of our society's most pressing issues, such as violence, drug abuse, youth, AIDS, hunger, the environment, and illiteracy. Rotary clubs are autonomous and determine service projects based on local needs.

Q: What is Rotary International?
A: Rotary International is the umbrella organization for every Rotary Club in the world. It has collaborated with many civic and humanitarian organizations as well as the government agencies of various nations in its efforts to improve the human condition. An example of what these partnerships can accomplish can be found in Rotary's ambitious PolioPlus program. Launched in 1985 with the World Health Organization, the US Centers for Disease Control, and UNICEF, the RI program's goal is to immunize every child in the world against polio by 2005, thus eradicating polio from the face of the earth. In just two more years, Rotary will have committed one half-billion US dollars to the effort.

Q: How many members does the Rotary Club of Carrollton-Farmers Branch, Texas, have?
A: Close to 100 business and professional men and women from Dallas, Denton and Collin Counties.

Q: Is it just a local organization?
A: No, Rotary is a worldwide organization.

Q: How many clubs are there?
A: There are over 31,000 clubs worldwide, made up of approximately 1,200,000 members.

Q: How do I join?
A: You must be proposed for membership by a Rotarian, and then invited.

Q: Are there certain qualifications to join?
A: Yes, Rotary is based on a classification system where each member, who must be management-level, or a member of a profession, is selected by classification, and no more than ten percent of the membership may be of the same classification.

Q: What are the expectations if I join?
A: You are expected to maintain an attendance of at least 60%. You are expected to be involved in the club's activities and participate in the community service aspect of the club.

Q: Can I visit a meeting without having a sponsor?
A: No, Rotary meetings are exclusively for Rotarians and their guests.

Q: How often are the meetings?
A: Each club meets once a week. The Rotary Club of Carrollton-Farmers Branch, Texas, meets at noon on Thursdays at Brookhaven Country Club, 3333 Golfing Green Drive in Farmers Branch. For information on other club meetings in the Dallas area, click here.

Q: How long has Rotary been around?
A: Rotary is the world's first service club and was founded February 23, 1905.

Q: Is attendance important if I become a member?
A: Yes. Members must maintain an attendance percentage of at least 60%.

Q: Are the members all from the same industries?
A: No.

Q: Isn't Rotary just a club for old fogies?
A: Certainly not. This isn't your father's Rotary. The Rotary Club of Carrollton-Farmers Branch, Texas, has a diverse membership of all ages. Dr. Patsy Fulton, then president of Brookhaven College, became the clubÕs first woman member in 1987, just months after the U.S. Supreme CourtÕs decision admitting women.

Q: I'm 30, am I too young to join?
A: No. There is no age limitation to join Rotary.

Q: Can anyone join?
A: Prospective members must actively hold - or be retired from - a professional, proprietary, executive or managerial position. They must have the desire and ability to meet each individual club's attendance requirements.

Q: When I visited a Rotary Club, I heard the term "Paul Harris Fellow". What is that?
A: A "Paul Harris Fellow" is a recognition given to a person for a donation of $1,000 to The Rotary Foundation of Rotary International. Paul Harris was the founder of Rotary. You do not have to be a Rotarian to receive Paul Harris Fellow recognition, and the donor can designate someone else to receive the recognition.

Q: Does Rotary have programs that are for younger people, or those that are still in school?
A: Rotaract and Interact are Rotary programs for 18 to 30 year-olds and high school students, giving younger people the chance to work on Rotary programs.

Q: After I join Rotary, can I solicit business from other Rotary members?
A: In 1905, Rotary began as a business club. By the late 1920s, Rotary was almost completely changed into a service club. The original model didnÕt insure the best members. Business from Rotarians is bestowed, not solicited. It should be granted, not requested.

Q: Some of the members of the Rotary Club of Carrollton-Farmers Branch, Texas, wear their name badges attached to a blue and yellow ribbon that hangs around the neck. What does that mean, and why don't all the members have those ribbons?
A: Each member of the Rotary Club of Carrollton-Farmers Branch, Texas, that wears a blue and yellow ribbon has either contributed, or been honored with a contribution in his or her name to The Rotary Foundation of Rotary International in the amount of $1,000, and been presented with a Paul Harris Fellow recognition. To proudly wear such a ribbon, all any Rotarian in our club has to do is contribute $1,000 to The Rotary Foundation.

Q: How can I find my local Rotary club?
A: Here we are. If you live in the northwest Dallas area, Addison, Carrollton, Coppell or Farmers Branch, then come and visit us at noon on Thursdays at the Brookhaven Country Club, 3333 Golfing Green Drive in Farmers Branch.

Q: Can women join?
A: Women were invited into Rotary and the Rotary Club of Carrollton-Farmers Branch, Texas, after the U. S. Supreme Court handed down its decision on May 4, 1987, allowing women as members. That fall, the Rotary Club of Carrollton-Farmers Branch inducted its first woman member, Patsy Fulton, the President of Brookhaven College. However, it was in January of 1989 that Rotary's Council on Legislation officially changed the constitution of Rotary International, and it took affect July 1, 1989. Women are the fastest-growing segment of Rotary's membership with well over 120,000 members. There are more than 2,200 women club presidents and women have rapidly assumed leadership within Rotary.

Q: Is Rotary a secret organization?
A: No! The Rotary movement is nothing like Freemasonry - it is open to men and women from many different professions. Members provide humanitarian service, encourage high ethical standards in all vocations, and help build goodwill and peace in the world.

Q: If I become a member, what is expected of me?
A: Weekly attendance at meetings is essential to learning about and becoming involved in Rotary. If you need to miss a meeting, there are opportunities to make up at other clubs.

Q: What are the meetings like?
A: The meetings serve as forums where Rotarians can meet with local leaders, share community concerns, and keep informed on events of regional and national significance. Members get to know other Rotarians over lunch and enjoy camaraderie. The meetings are fun, as well as educational.

Q: What isn't Rotary?
A: Rotary is not a leads club.

Q: What does it cost to be a member of the Rotary Club of Carrollton-Farmers Branch, Texas?
A: The average member spends approximately $820 per year, including meals. A new member would also pay an Initiation Fee of $100.

Q: What does the $820 go towards?
A: There are Dues of $50 quarterly, or $200 annually. They pay the dues that your club pays to Rotary International (approximately $47 per year, including The Rotarian magazine) and District 5810 (approximately $25 per year) as well as help to pay the expenses of the club. Each member pays $130 quarterly for meals, or $520 annually, as that is what it cost the club for those meals. We also ask each member to make a Sustaining Member Contribution to The Rotary Foundation of $25 quarterly or $100 yearly. New members are automatically assessed $25 per quarter to establish themselves as participants in the Sustaining Member programs of The Rotary Foundation, which requires an annual contribution of $100.

Q: What's the best way for a new member to get involved?
A: The best way to get involved is to come to the meetings, attend Rotary functions, and join a committee or two. These are good ways to get to know other Rotarians and to learn more about Rotary.

Q: Can I be a member of a Rotary Club, as well as a member of another service club at the same time, such as Kiwanis or Lions?
A: Rotary by-laws used to prohibit members from belonging to other service organizations because of Rotary's strict attendance requirements. The concept is based on the concept that "no one can serve two masters." Now the Rotary Manual of Procedure (MOP) "strongly urges" no other service club membership. Membership in a fraternal organization is acceptable.

Q: Where did the name "Rotary" come from?
A: The name "Rotary" was chosen because the club met in rotation at each member's place of business. From its beginning in Chicago, the Rotary idea of friendship, fellowship and service to others has spread to every continent, including Antarctica.

Q: What is a Rotarian?
A: A Rotarian is a person who looks beyond himself or herself to the community, the nation and the world. A Rotarian seeks the truth, lets fairness govern relationships; endeavors to build goodwill and better friendships and strives to benefit all in every interpersonal relationship.

Q: What are the benefits of membership in a Rotary Club?
A: A Rotarian member: Broadens his/her circle of friends and acquaintances. Is in "touch" with the mainstream of community life and the people who make it tick. Develops contacts in every business and profession represented in the club's membership. Acquires the opportunity to seek counsel from others. Gains recognition for his/her business or profession for participating in an organization dedicated to service vocation, community and international goodwill and understanding. Is enabled to express in a practical way those nobler desires found in every person who wishes to make a contribution to the betterment of society. Broadens his/her social life as well as that of his/her spouse. Finds new outlets for goods and services. Finds individuals with whom to share hobbies and interests. Has the opportunity to benefit from the business experience of others. Obtains increased knowledge of business and professions other than his/her own, and a sympathetic understanding of the problems of others. Increases his/her knowledge of world affairs; receives a keener appreciation of the customs and character of other peoples. Acquires a friendly contact and a warm welcome in almost every important city of the world.

Q: What are the obligations you owe to yourself and to Rotary, when you accept the invitation to be a Rotarian?
A: You are obliged to pay all fees and subscriptions. You will make every effort to attend the weekly meeting; and endeavor to attain a 100% attendance record (in which you will receive a recognition). You will endeavor to attend the Service Committee meetings you have been assigned to and to take active participation in all your cub's projects in general and of the committee in particular. You will uphold the Object of Rotary to the best of your ability. You will apply the Four-Way Test in all your endeavors.

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