The Roseville Rotary at the 2026 Rose Parade. Source: Roseville Rotary MN on Facebook

The Roseville Rotary Club has been a local leader in doing good things in the world since 1970

By Loren Swanson — President, Rotary Club of Roseville

Who are Rotarians?

We are a group of people that work together to get things done.

Rotary International is a community service organization founded in 1905 with more than 1.2 million members and 45,000 clubs worldwide. It brings in between $100-$500 million in revenue each year, awarded $273 million in grants during fiscal year 2024-25 and has spent $3 billion on projects over the last 100 years.

For example, Rotary began the worldwide polio vaccine program that has since been joined by many governments and charities. It has contributed approximately $1.9 billion to the program and delivered a billion doses in 2024.

Rotary also has one of the largest International Student Exchange programs with about 8,000 students participating each year. The basic concept is that if we can get all students to spend a year in another country and learn to appreciate the people there, we could certainly diminish wars if not stop them!

We ascribe to the beliefs and ethical standards of Rotary International, whose motto is “Service above Self.” Our beliefs and ethics are outlined in The Four-Way Test:

“Of all the things I think say or do:

1. Is it the truth?

2. Is it fair to all concerned?

3. Will it build goodwill and better friendships?

4. Will it be beneficial to all concerned?”

Over 55 years of local leadership

The Roseville Rotary Club is a part of Rotary District 5960 – Minnesota and Western Wisconsin. It was formed in 1970 under the leadership of Roland Wilsey, who went on to become a Club President and a District governor.

Jerry Showalter was a champion in developing the Rotary Foundation within our club, and encouraging our members to support Rotary International.

Since then Roseville Rotary Club has been a leader in doing good things in the world.  We have worked on numerous projects, such as: 

• Building chairs and dressers for Bridging
• Donating computer equipment to Parkview Elementary and as a result their ranking in this field has gone from the bottom to the top of the spectrum
• Donating furniture and equipment to Rotary Children’s Reading Room at the Roseville Library 
• Building a community center in Kidera, Uganda that contains a library, medical office and meeting room, all in one building
• Facilitating fresh water delivery directly into Kidera via pipeline from Mt. Elgon
• Three water projects around Mbale, Uganda providing fresh water to thousands of rural residents
• Directly supporting the education of several children because of their involvement in these projects
• Helping Roseville Parks and Recreation provide wind screens for the pickle ball courts at Evergreen Park
• Covering shipping costs for containers of 20,000 books for the Books for Africa program

Tending the rose garden

Much of this was able to happen because about 18 years ago, Roseville Rotary’s Jeanne Matlock had a dream of a community party in the park, which became ”The Taste of Rosefest.” Personally, I thought her vision was too big a project for our club.

Luckily she did, though; Taste of Rosefest has been a successful fundraiser that has enabled our organization to complete many of the above projects. All of these projects have come from the networking and dreams of our members.

We’re also supported by the Rotary Foundation’s grant program whereby they match monetary amounts that come from the Clubs and District divisions. I would call the dynamic a local club with a dream and a benevolent parent/grandfather that helps make things happen! It is a team project utilizing Taste of Rosefest, working carefully with the Rotary District, Rotary International and other area Rotary Clubs that enables us to spend about $50,000 or more each year on projects that help make a better world.

If there are more of you out there who would like to be part of an organization like this, we are seeking new members. I invite you to stop by and attend one of our meetings to see if this is something that would make your life better!

The Roseville Rotary Club meets every Monday at noon at the Cedarholm Community Center, 2323 N. Hamline Ave.