History of Thiensville-Mequon Rotary
The first meeting of the Thiensville-Mequon (T-M) Rotary Club was held July 29, 1937, with the charter being officially presented on September 21, 1937. There were 20 original members. Edwin Wiese was the first president; Martin Blank was vice president; George Kroeger was secretary; and Oscar Bublitz was treasurer.
From the very beginning, the Thiensville-Mequon Rotary Club was alert to community needs, and began immediately to support and initiate worthwhile community programs and projects. One of the earliest projects was the sponsorship of the Boy Scout Program. Other early projects were the County Apple Show and Smokey, the Fire Clown (a school program). Another long-time community project has been the Rotary’s sponsorship of the National Honors Award banquet for students and parents at Homestead High School through which Rotarians contribute monies and their service to help with the event. During the World War II years, the club was involved in the sale of war bonds, clothing drives and similar wartime activities. Since then, the Club has continued to sponsor many activities in conjunction with the school district, the Village of Thiensville and the City of Mequon.
Two recent projects of the Club include the City of Mequon Rotary Park and the Thiensville-Mequon Riverwalk. The Rotary Park efforts were officially launched September 17, 1987 marking the fiftieth anniversary of the club’s existence. The site encompasses approximately 95 acres and is located on Highland Road near the Milwaukee Area Technical College’s north campus. Sensing the need for a community activities park and additional soccer fields for our youth, the TM Rotary Club and its members contributed monies and services critical to the acquisition of the land in 1991. The club has remained actively involved in its development, including the building of a public pavilion where the Club meets several weeks during the summer, and has also contributed monies to fund a second public pavilion adjacent to the baseball fields.
The Thiensville-Mequon Riverwalk is a recent project where the Rotary Club has joined with the Sunrise Club to better our community through the donation of over $100,000 and services to this project which opens the Milwaukee River to the public through a beautiful hiking trail.
Other substantial projects completed include our sponsorship of scholarships for Homestead students, our participation in the Rotary Corn Roast at the annual Fun before the Fourth event, sizable contributions to help in Rotary’s worldwide efforts to eradicate Polio, T-M Rotary’s gift of $25,000 to help fund the building of Columbia St. Mary’s Hospital-Ozaukee, the completion of the original Rotary pavilion at Thiensville Park, our holiday food drive gifts to the Ozaukee County Family Sharing program, the organization and coordination of the District 6270 Assembly and Conference held at the Grand Geneva Resort in Lake Geneva, Wisconsin with current T-M Rotarian Karl Hertz then serving as District Governor, the formation and sponsorship of a morning Sunrise Rotary Club to provide more opportunities for membership and service, the establishment by several members with the club’s ongoing support to establish and continue a medical relief clinic to help the poor in Guatamala, gifts to support the ongoing efforts of the “Gathering on the Green” annual summer concert held in Rotary Park, along with additional sizable gifts to other charitable organizations which help support our communities.
Through the years, the TM Rotary Club has established fun and entertaining fundraisers to financially support many community projects and program requests from local organizations. In prior years, for example, we sponsored a very successful “Black-Tie” fundraiser to aid in these efforts. Over the past three years, our Club has sponsored a well-attended “Fall into Comedy” event at a local country club. The Thiensville-Mequon community has always been very supportive of Rotary’s fundraising activities and we appreciate that and thank all of our local supporters.
As a member in our Rotary Club, you will have the privilege and opportunity to help with these important humanitarian efforts to better our community and the world. You will also have the opportunity to network with other local leaders in our community and to enjoy the great speakers who engage our members during our bountiful Tuesday buffets at the Ozaukee Country Club. For example, past speakers have included various political officials such as Ron Johnson, Scott Walker, AG Brad Schimmel, Rep. Jim Ott, DA Adam Gerol, Milwaukee Sheriff David Clarke, Mequon Mayor Dan Abendroth, and others, prominent jurists Atty. Gerald Boyle and former Supreme Court and current federal Court of Appeals Justice Diane Sykes, entertainment figures including John McGivern, longtime entertainment editor Mike Drew, sports figures such as Bucks GM John Hammond, Steve “the Homer” True, Drew Olsen, Olympian athletes, Bruce Pearl, Bud Selig, George Karl, Jack and Jim Harbaugh, Eddy Morgan & Jason Wise (Concordia & Chinooks baseball and hockey coaches), Homestead Football Coach Keel, and others, arts and community representatives Shawn Graff, Exec. Dir Oz. Wash. Land Trust, Milwaukee Repertory Theater Executive Director, Milwaukee Urban Ecology Ctr Director, Milwaukee Rescue Mission Development Director Tom Griffey, Developers Blair Williams and Cindy Shaffer, Mequon Nature Preserve Director Kristin Gies, and Gathering on the Green President, and various educational leaders including MT School Superintendent Dr. Demond Means, several Marquette professors, Concordia President Dr. Patrick Ferry, PAVE President Dan McKinley, and St. Marcus Superintendent Henry Tyson, and various individuals involved with our charitable efforts including Guatamala Project representatives, Northern Ozaukee County United Way, Jonathan Clark House, Stars and Stripes Honor Flight representative, our Rotary Exchange students and Rotary scholarship recipients, among others.