When did you join Rotary? I originally joined the afternoon club in 1981 when I came back to Somerset to set up my dental practice. I had to drop out eventually when my practice grew to the point that it became impossible for me to make the lunch meetings with any consistency. There were several previous Rotarians that shared the same problem and that is when we decided to start the morning club.
Why did you join Rotary? My father was a long time Rotarian and when I came back to Somerset, it was something we enjoyed together. It was really after I was a Rotarian that I came to appreciate the ideals upon which it was founded and serves.
What is your favorite Rotary memory? One of my favorite memories is of the first ramp that we constructed as a club. The project was one of the toughest from an engineering standpoint as the door that we accessed was really high above grade. The child for which the ramp was being built was confined to a wheelchair and had to stay in one room at the back of the small house due to astep-down from the rest of the rooms. The day we laid the ramp planking, he rolled up and down the ramp, in and out of the house supervising the construction. He was like a bird out of a cage. I can still see his smile.
What is your favorite Rotary activity? I enjoy the service projects the most. Our club is an active club full of motivated, caring people that are fun to be around. Sharing and serving side by side is what it's all about. My favorite activity has been the RAM clinic our club hosted. It was a free medical, dental and vision clinic in which our club was instrumental in serving close to 700 people and provided services totaling close to $300,000. It was a huge blessing for all us.
