Rotary Clubs Honor Five People with Paul Harris Award

Five individuals were honored as Paul Harris Fellows by the Rotary Club of Plattsburgh and the Sunrise Rotary Club on Friday, Oct. 8. In Photo: (L-R, front) Norma Menard, Steve Frederick and Sunrise Club President Ron Marino; (L-R, Back row), Rotary Club President Colin Read Smith, Bob Parks, and Michael Hildebrand.

Plattsburgh, NY — Five community members were recently recognized by the Rotary Club of Plattsburgh and the Plattsburgh Sunrise Rotary Club for their service in this community. Paul Harris Fellow Award recipients were Steven Frederick, Bob Smith, Bob Parks, Mike Hildebran and Norma Menard.

The Paul Harris Fellow Award is named after the Rotary founder. It is the highest honor a Rotary Club may give someone regardless of whether he or she is a Rotarian. The award recognizes those who have put “service above self” in their community, their nation or the world.

Frederick, Smith, and Parks named Paul Harris Fellows by the Plattsburgh Rotary Club.

Steven Frederick is a member of the Plattsburgh Rotary Club and has served as Rotary president as well was on the Board of Directors. Frederick has chaired the Rotary Radio Day and been a key player in the Fishing Tournament and Salvation Army Bell Ringing. He is known for his community involvement with the Boy Scouts and Clinton County Fair.

Bob Smith, a Plattsburgh Club Rotarian who has served on the Board of Directors, is active in every Rotary fundraiser. Smith’s involvement in this community includes the United Way, Chamber of Commerce, CVPH Board of Directors, Visitor’s and Convention Bureau, PSU College Foundation and Investment Committee, and the American Heart Association.

Bob Parks, a member of the Plattsburgh Rotary Club who has served in the RoDucky Derby committee, New Member Orientation, Honor Guard, Food Shelf, and Adopt-A-Highway. Parks is also the club photographer. The Development Corporation, Chamber of Commerce, Boy Scouts, CVPH Foundation, and the Battle of Plattsburgh Association are all community organizations that benefit from Parks’ service.

Hildebran and Menard named Paula Harris Fellows by Plattsburgh Sunrise Rotary Club

Mike Hildebran is a past president of the Plattsburgh Sunrise Rotary Club and has been a member of the club since 1997. Hildebran currently serves on the Nominating Committee and is chair of the Future Directions Committee. He has served on the board for the Red Cross, Behavioral Health Services North, Northern New York Center and Mental Health Association, and is now on the Clinton County Community Services Board.

Norma Menard, the only non-Rotarian to receive the award this year, has been recognized for her dedication to this community in promoting literacy. Menard has been the executive director of Literacy Volunteers of Clinton County for ten years. She recently redesigned the tutor-training model for Literacy New York. Menard also co-founded a scholarship program that has helped 30 students from her hometown in the Philippines graduate college. In the past she worked as a language instructor for the United States Peace Corps/Philippines.

The Paul Harris Society was created to help fund Rotary Foundation programs, and accomplishes this by allowing rotary clubs who collectively contribute $1,000 to the Rotary Foundation each year the privilege of recognizing a Paul Harris Fellow.

Both the Rotary Club of Plattsburgh and the Plattsburgh Sunrise Rotary Club raise funds for various community, national, and global causes. The Plattsburgh Rotary, formed in1926, has over 100 active members and meets Wednesdays at noon at the Elks Lodge. Started in 1987 the Plattsburgh Sunrise Rotary has over 50 members and meets Tuesdays at 7:30am at the Elks Lodge.

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