LEGISLATIVE RESOLUTION commending the Spring Valley Rotary Club upon the
occasion of celebrating its 75th Anniversary on April 24, 2010

WHEREAS, It is the sense of this Legislative Body to recognize and pay
tribute to those organizations of high purpose and worthy accomplishment
whose endeavors have faithfully served the welfare of the citizens of
the State of New York; and
WHEREAS, Attendant to such concern, and in full accord with its long-
standing traditions, this Legislative Body is justly proud to commend
the Spring Valley Rotary Club upon the occasion of its 75th Anniversary;
and
WHEREAS, The Spring Valley Rotary Club will mark 75 years of contin-
uous service to the local, national, and international community at a
celebration to be held on Saturday, April 24, 2010; and
WHEREAS, Rotary is a not-for-profit organization of business and
professional leaders united worldwide who provide humanitarian service,
encourage high ethical standards in all vocations, and help build good-
will through service in the community, in the workplace, and throughout
the world; and
WHEREAS, The Spring Valley Rotary Club was organized with 24 members
on February 11, 1935; its Charter Night was held a few months later on
April 29, 1935, at the Hob Nob in Nanuet, New York; and
WHEREAS, The first officers of the Spring Valley Rotary Club included
Richard Mihalko as President and Clarence (Pete) Erickson as Secretary;
and
WHEREAS, Three District Governors have come from the Spring Valley
Rotary Club; they are Hugo Mellion, 1956-1957; Frank Mellion, 1974-1975;
and Eugene Erickson, 1981-1982; and
WHEREAS, Since its inception, the Spring Valley Rotary Club has been
firmly ingrained with the spirit of service; it has sponsored the Tigers
Den in the Village of Spring Valley; it built the patio for the new
Martin Luther King Center and it also constructed a large clock in the
Village located near the train station and transportation center; it
also found the missing Time Capsule in Memorial Park and archived its
contents; and
WHEREAS, In addition, for over 32 years, the Spring Valley Rotary Club
hosted its legendary Corned Beef and Cabbage Dinner at the Singers
Hotel; these dinners were so popular that over 800 people attended the
event each year; and
WHEREAS, In 2005, the Spring Valley Rotary Club formed Schools to End
Poverty (STEP); this organization is committed to education, clean water
and the health of the community at local, national and international
levels; and
WHEREAS, STEP initially donated a refurbished ambulance for a needy
area in Vietnam, as well as provided medical supplies to a nearby clin-
ic; it has also built three schools in the poverty stricken areas of
South Vietnam and has provided computers and water filtration systems to
these schools; moreover, STEP has brought over 82 pediatric wheelchairs
to disabled children in Vietnam and has provided 58 brain shunts for
children suffering from water on the brain; currently, the STEP program
is searching for a location to build a new school in Vietnam for Disa-
bled Children; and
WHEREAS, Furthermore, STEP supports several programs in the Village of
Spring Valley including the Dictionary Project, in which over 300
dictionaries were given out to three schools in East Ramapo in January
2010; and

WHEREAS, The tradition of service to the community has been maintained
throughout the 75 year history of the Spring Valley Rotary Club, as it
continues to exemplify Rotary International's motto, "Service Above
Self"; and
WHEREAS, It is the sense of this Legislative Body to recognize and pay
tribute to organizations whose singular purpose is devoted to community
service and global benevolence; now, therefore, be it
RESOLVED, That this Legislative Body pause in its deliberations to
commend the Spring Valley Rotary Club upon the occasion of its 75th
Anniversary, honoring this worthy organization's unremitting dedication
to service and its distinguished record of accomplishment; and be it
further
RESOLVED, That a copy of this Resolution, suitably engrossed, be tran-
smitted to the Spring Valley Rotary Club.