2023 marks the 85th anniversary of the Southampton Rotary Club, which since its inception has promoted the well-being of the Saugeen Shores community as well as abroad. The Southampton Rotary Club received its charter March 21, 1938, and held its first election of officers in June of that year with Hollis Aiken being elected president. Meetings were held on Friday nights at the Walker House and dues were $6. During the 1930s and 1940s, the club supported War Work through hosting lectures and sending monies abroad, as well sent Boy Scouts to camp, supported a tonsil clinic, held carnivals, and began hiring the swimming teacher/coach. The first was Wally Hetherington. From the beginning, the club held Ladies Nights, where the wives, known as Rotary Anns were invited to hear special speakers, etc.
The 1950s
During the 1950s, meetings were moved to Mondays and the dues rose to $14. The swimming coach program continued, and several individuals filled the role including Dave Dwyer, Jane Winchester, Suzanne Henry, and Louise Henry. Home bingo was introduced in 1954; 500 bingo cards were sold locally, and two numbers were called each day. Other supported initiatives included Crippled Children’s Fund, CNIB, Christmas Seals, Red Cross, Adventures in Citizenship, and an annual Christmas Theatre Party for children.
The 1960s and 1970s
The late 1960s saw the club changing meeting places several times and included Chippewa Gold Club (1968), The Southampton Hotel (March 1969), and the Riverside Coffee Shop (September 1969) before settling back at the Walker House in 1970. In 1968 the Town of Southampton hired a Recreational Director, and the swimming coach program was no longer needed. During the 1960s the club began selling Christmas trees for $3 a tree. Home Bingo, started in 1954, continued.
During the 1970s membership dues rose to $20. Community initiatives included hosting New Year’s Eve and Easter dances, selling tickets for a Crestliner boat (1973), hosting Thursday night Bingo in July and August (1978), donating monies for new chairs at the community centre, Scout tents, Rotary International 3H Club (Health, Hunger, Humanity). The Rotary Anns made clown suits in 1978.
The 1980s
The 1980s was a decade of giving for the Southampton Rotary Club, and in 1989 they joined the One Star Club for outstanding service. During this time, they gave away turkeys at Christmas Bingo and hams at Easter Bingo, sponsored a Ski-a-thon and a beauty contest on Heritage Weekend, and supported Meals on Wheels and Easter Seals. Locally, their financial donations supported decorative lighting downtown, equipment for the fire department, the feasibility study for the town hall elevator and the elevator, a beach erosion study, blue boxes for the recycling program, a trauma table, and the monies to landscape Pioneer Park. The Southampton Youth Band was established, and the Southampton Rotary Club is a founding patron. In 1988, Carl Crymble started a Walkathon which today is known as the Huron Shore Run. Through the decade the club continued to sell Christmas trees, hold annual carnivals and community bingo during the summer months at the Annex.
In November of 1980, the Club made an agreement with the Town of Southampton for the purchase of a lot for $1 a year for 20 years. On this property was built the “Scout House”, which officially opened in 1982. In 1981, they won Best Project of the Year at the annual district conference.
The 1990s
In September of 1993, the first female member, Marg Harden, was inducted into the club, and in 1999, the first female president, Peggy Holmes, was elected. Christmas trees were sold for $20, and bingo was still hosted and at this time, half the hall was dedicated to No Smoking. Locally, the club supported Friends of the Flag and the creation of the parkette, Saugeen First Nations Meals on Wheels, an elevator for the Chantry Centre, the fire department for a siren and uniforms, saddles for Prance, recycling bins for Southampton, and Canada Day fireworks. Member Jack Shilling sent in more than 500 pairs of glasses for the Gift of Sight Program. Land was purchased on McNab St. at the south end of Southampton where Perkins Park, dedicated in 2003, was created. The last meeting of the 20th century was held December 22, 1999.
The 2000s
In October of 2002, the club moved to their permanent home at the Rotary Scout Hall. In the months prior, the meetings were held at Chippewa Golf Course. During the first decade of the 21st century the club contributed to the Walkerton Relief Fund, the Chantry Island Lighthouse restoration, baskets of flowers to the Community in Bloom initiative, the Museum Building Project and towards a piano for the Day Away program. They also gave awards to Grade 8 students of G.C. Houston, purchased ten computers for the same school, sent kids to camp and Adventures in Citizenship & Seminar for Tomorrow’s Leaders. They purchased deep fryers and began fish fry dinners. In the months of August, between 2001 and 2008, they hosted a Tour of Homes program. During this decade was the start of many annual auction nights, a tradition carried through the 2010s and is approaching its 20th year.
Member Doug Brydon received “Best Bulletin Award” for club under 50 members, while Jack Shilling was awarded the Heritage Award and Neil Sinclair was honoured for 58 years in Rotary; 56 of those years had perfect attendance. In July of 2001 Peggy Holmes became Assistant District Governor.
The 2010s
In June 2010, the Rotary Accessible Park was opened with the addition of the Rotary Accessible Splash Pad following in 2017. In 2018, Bearama, the mascot of Winterama came in being. Donations during this time included a van for the Salvation Army, dictionaries to every Grade 3 student in Southampton and Port Elgin, funding to a material clinic in Cameroon, “mobi mats” for Southampton Beach, disaster support worldwide by donating to Shelter Box & Aqua Box. The club also donated funds to the band shell located alongside Fairy Lake.
In October of 2014, a bridge on Captain Spence Way was dedicated in honour of members Neil Sinclair, Jack Shilling, and Chuck Jonas. Tony Sheard was appointed District Governor for 2019/20.
2020 to Present
Covid-19 presented its challenges, and the Southampton Rotary Club was there for their community by sanitizing carts at Foodland. Club meetings were held via Zoom, and even a Zoom St. Patrick’s Day party was held. Today the Southampton Rotary Club can be found supporting many community events and initiatives such as barbequing at Tim Horton’s Camp Day, supporting the Huron Shores Run, hosting the pancake breakfast during the Marine Heritage Festival, donating funds to Prance for the purchase of a new horse, and even hosting a Shred-N-Go event on Earth Day.
Saugeen Memorial Hospital and the Southampton Coliseum
In 1945, as the Second World War was coming to an end, Southampton’s Mayor, and Rotary Club member, Ellis Millard had the vision of building a hospital in memory of those who paid the ultimate sacrifice. The location of Hillcrest Lodge was recommended by provincial officials as an optimal hospital site. The Lodge, a well-known tourist home with many rooms made it well suited for a hospital and kept conversion costs low. The Southampton Rotary Club pledged $15,500 towards the purchase of the Lodge in September of 1945, and the Saugeen Memorial Hospital opened its doors in October of 1947.
Since that initial pledge, Southampton Rotary Club has continued to support the hospital, and through time has contributed over $104,000 in funds for equipment such as monitoring beds, cardiac arrest equipment and capital projects, and within recent years the Toonies for Tom campaign which raised $20,002 for a new CT scanner.
In 1976 the Southampton was deemed unsafe and need to be replaced. An arena committee was set up to raise the required funds. Southampton Rotary pledged $5000, and later acted as a guarantor for the committee on a $10,000 note. The committee was successful in raising the funds, and the new arena, called the Coliseum, was built, opening in 1977. Shortly after, in the 1980s, they gave another $5000 for a ramp at the Coliseum.
*Information for this website story provided by the Rotary Club of Southampton*
*Photographs and artefacts from the Collection of the BCM&CC*
