Newsletter for the Rotary Club of Greater Geraldton - Issue No.: 782 Issue Date: 29 Apr, 2024

Phil Martin presented R & RC on “Women in Rotary”

Originally an all-male domain, Rotary finally came of age in 1987 when women were accepted as members. Of 2.1M members, now 18% are female, nearly 200,000!

The 1989 Council on Legislation vote to admit women into Rotary clubs worldwide remains a watershed moment in the history of Rotary.

"My fellow delegates, I would like to remind you that the world of 1989 is very different to the world of 1905. I sincerely believe that Rotary has to adapt itself to a changing world," said Frank J. Devlyn, who would go on to become RI president in 2000-01. 

The vote followed the decades-long efforts of men and women from all over the Rotary world to allow for the admission of women into Rotary clubs, and several close votes at previous Council meetings.

The response to the decision was overwhelming: By June 1990, the number of female Rotarians had skyrocketed to over 20,000. By 2010, the number of women was approaching 200,000.