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ROTARY GLOBAL HISTORY SECTION HOME First Rotary Clubs of Central, South America, and Caribbean HISTORY OUTLINE RI ARCHIVES
HISTORY CALENDAR buenos aires havana lima mexico city montevideo
panama city rio san juan sao paulo valparaiso FRIENDSHIP TREES

LATIN SECTION CHAIR, JOSE MESA (ZHEMA)

ROTH SPANISH SITE HISTORY FIRST IN EACH REGION
 

Brief histories of the "RotarioLatinAmerica" Clubs

Rotario Club of Havana, First Club of Latin America

1 June 1916

Rotario International Distrito

Rotary International Convention Host Club 1940

Part of our Rotary Global History in Central American/Caribbean Section

 

Also see the Rotary Club of Matanzas, Cuba's #3

 

For the Havana Club, the first in which English was not the local language, Rotary headquarters were concerned that it might become merely an American club in a foreign country. This was the tendency in some Asian countries where the membership was largely made up of ex-pats. Secretary Chesley Perry perceived the potential problem and wrote to Alexander Kent, a lawyer and representative in Havana of the Red Feather Cinematograph Company giving him authority to form a club in Havana, but with the proviso that "You are also advised and directed to make up the Rotary Club of Havana with not more than 25 percent of American and not less than 75 percent of Cubans or Spanish-Cubans. What we want to do is to spread Rotary among the native people of other countries more than among our American brethren who happen to be in other countries."
El Club Rotário de la Habana was started in Cuba by two members of the Tampa club, Angel Cuesta and John Turner. (Reference pg 239, My Road to Rotary, Rotary Begins to Spread). Rotary Headquarters hotel

From the collection Dr. Wolfgang Ziegler

Paul Harris visited Cuba in 1927, seen here in this May 1927 photo from The Rotarian. Courtesy of Dr. Wolfgang Ziegler, RGHF Senior Historian Our complete history of Rotary in Cuba Courtesy of Dr. Wolfgang Ziegler, RGHF Senior Historian 31 May 2006
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