September 15 at Lincoln South Rotary - Singing at Rotary Club Meetings

At Lincoln South Rotary Club Meeting on September 15 we heard about the history of Singing in Rotary led by President Mary and we featured the vocals of some of the Lincoln South Rotary members.

Mary pointed out some facts about singing:

1) .  The health benefits!  A study published in Frontiers in Psychology states that “choral singers had slower respiration, which in turn improved their heart rate variability and had a biologically soothing effect on overall heart function.”  Singing has also been found to reduce sleep apnea, lower stress, and strengthen immunity. 

2) Its a Rotary tradition 

3) Its Fun!

4) Its Mary's Birthday!.

 

Mary did some research on the history and tradition of singing at Rotary Club Meetings.

 

The tradition of singing at Rotary club meetings began in 1905 with Rotarian Harry L. Ruggles, of the Rotary Club of Chicago. As new Rotary clubs formed, and the practice of singing at club meetings caught on. 

 

Mr. Ruggles a printer, also designed the wagon wheel logo used by Rotary.

 

 

The tradition continues for many clubs-----some clubs even have singing contests and singing scholarship awards.

 

Then Mary shared the rest of the story as detailed in a 1978 issued of The Rotariana. It was captioned "How Singing came to Rotary, and Off-Color Jokes did not!"

 

We now know that Harry Ruggles - often referred to as the 5th Rotary member of Rotary - brought singing to Rotary. And, now we will learn why an dhow important it was to the life of Rotary.

 

Harry Ruggles was a very moral man. He detested off-color language, malicious innuendo and classless humor. He argued in club meetings for clean language.

 

Little more than a year after Rotary had been formed, at an evening meeting in 1906, the guest speaker began a story. Having heard it before, Harry also had heard the off-color ending, and felt it was inappropriate for the club, so he jumped up in the middle of the joke and yelled, “Come on boys, let’s sing!” He then led the club in the singing of “Let Me Call You Sweetheart.”

 

This was not only the first time that members had ever sung in Rotary, but apparently, also the first time that a group of businessmen ever sang at a business meeting, anywhere.

 

By his surprising actions at this evening meeting, Harry demonstrated that demeaning activities and off-color stories were not welcome at Rotary gatherings. “It was reported at the time that the would-be speaker was embarrassed and sore,” and so Harry Ruggles apologized, but the club backed him up. Right then and there, it was decided that all subsequent Rotary meetings should be conducted so that any woman could attend without being embarrassed.

 

Dirty words were not the only controversy in the early days of Rotary. Oren Arnold, in The Golden Strand, revealed, “The time came, repeatedly, when Paul Harris was faced with failure; for one reason or another — or for no real reason — the club often was at the point of disbanding. On such critical occasions Harry stepped up front and shouted, ‘Come on, fellows, let’s sing!’

 

Was it the magic of Harry Ruggles and his music that worked? Was it his infectious enthusiasm for singing? Or, just maybe, some of the reasons for its use had more to do with easing barriers between men, and ending acrimonious discussions than a need for choral music.

 

History has proven that it was, and is, good magic for clubs anywhere, for families anywhere, for groups of people anywhere. “After all, clubs are simply families; when they move in divergent paths, group singing often is the best way to reassemble them. Harry Ruggles knew that, hence the parent unit and the whole service club movement is indebted to him.”

 

Mary then introduced Tom Hyde and Joe Roberts to lead the group in singing:

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