In her father’s footsteps

Red Oak Rotarian Chris Amos has followed her father’s legacy in the Rotary.
Earlier in March, Amos was awarded the Paul Harris Fellow, the highest honor provided by the Rotary to its members, a special honor for Amos, who began her journey with the Red Oak Rotary a decade ago.
“It’s been about 10 years since I first joined. I was at Fareway and Brenda Rieken approached me and told me I needed to go to a Rotary meeting with her and so that’s how I started with it,” Amos said.
Amos said one of the appeals of the Rotary Club was that it was a Christian-based organization, and one that her family had a history with.
“I liked how they did things, and my dad was a Rotarian forever, so I wanted to be like my dad. My dad always went to Rotary when I was growing up but I never really paid attention to it then, but once you get involved in the club, you figure out that that they do good things with the community and then I liked how in Rotary we got with the other organizations such as the Red Oak Kiwanis Club and the Red Oak Optimist Club. We felt we shouldn’t be doing anything separate, and that we should all work together,” stated Amos. “It doesn’t make sense for three or four different organizations to be doing their own version of the same thing so why not why not work together? Why not help the Kiwanis with the duck race? They’re doing good things, so let’s help them out.”
The Paul Harris award, Amos said, is presented to Rotarians when they reach a certain donation threshold.
“The Rotary has a fund where we donate money for eradicating polio and then we have the Rotary Foundation which you can do grants and stuff through. Once you reach $1,000 in that, you’re eligible for the Paul Harris Fellow. I was getting close but wasn’t quite there. Marty Barnett was also accumulating dollars, and if you’re a member in Rotary and another of your members is close, you can share some of your fundraising with the other person. Marty gave me the push I needed with some of her money, and got me over the threshold to receive the Paul Harris Fellow.”
Reaching the goal was bittersweet, as her father wasn’t there, though she’s pleased to join the ranks of some of her fellow Red Oak Rotarians.
“I wanted to reach it before my dad passed. He passed in November, so I didn’t make it. I really don’t know how many Red Oak Rotarians in total have received it so far, but Tim Fridolph has reached it multiple times, Dave Hammer I believe has done it multiple times and of course Marty Barnett has received it, I think the first woman in the Red Oak Rotary to receive it. Rick Taylor has achieved it also. We had a local presentation and I had some of my dad’s stuff with me, including his Paul Harris Fellow medal, and it helped me feel like my dad was kind of there with me when I accepted my own award,” Amos commented.
Amos is thrilled to be continuing her Rotary journey, as well as helping out local businesses and hosting local events.
“The Rotary members were at the River Bend Heritage Lodge recently allowing us to support the area businesses and we have have different events different places such as the Easter egg hunt on Fountain Square Park, and the recent Daddy/Daughter dance that we hosted at the White Fair Building. We’re also happy to receive donations from the can dropoff at Fareway. We alternate collection months with the Red Oak Optimists Club. That’s how we do a lot of our fundraising for scholarships,” explained Amos.
While she enjoys all of the Rotary activities, there’s one special event that she enjoys working on the most.
“I would have to say it’s the Daddy/Daughter dance that we started a number of years ago. I remember we had a man that came up and said that he’d been bringing his daughter since kindergarten. It’s an event that really is a lot of fun,” said Amos.
If anyone is on the fence about being a community volunteer, Amos said the Rotary, or any organization, is worth a look.
“We’re a fun bunch in the Rotary, and there’s a lot of good organizations out there. Like I said that’s why we work together. I went to Rotary mainly because that’s what my dad was a part of. It’s not that I wouldn’t have considered the others, but the Rotary gave me that special connection to him,” Amos commented.
Many other notable figures have been named Paul Harris Fellows, including U.S. President Jimmy Carter, Russian President Boris Yeltsin, U.S. astronaut James Lovell, UN Secretary-General Javier Perez de Cuellar, and polio vaccine developer Jonas Salk. Amos commented on what it’s like to be included in that elite group, saying it showed that, like her, they all had their hearts in the right place.
Rotary brings together a global network of volunteer leaders who dedicate their time and talent to tackle the world’s most pressing humanitarian challenges. Rotary connects 1.2 million members from more than 200 countries and geographical areas. Their work impacts lives at both the local and international levels.
To learn more about the Red Oak Rotary Club, or to become a member, visit redoakrotary.org, or check out the Facebook page at facebook.com/redoakrotaryclub/.