About Us

Seeing an opportunity to advance Rotary International, Moe Blakey, a Laredo businessman who specializes in the sale of medical equipment, set forth and founded the Laredo Gateway Rotary Club in 1987.  Laredo Gateway Rotary's original charter was submitted November 2, 1987, and was accepted by Rotary International on November 30, 1987.  Since the club's inception, the membership has grown to 41 members who act as representatives of their respective industries. 

With this in mind, the Club has carried out the mission that Paul Harris envisioned: Business People helping each other and their community in a proactive and progressive manner.

Charter Members

Charter District Governor:  Dave Leyendecker
Charter President:  George A Blakey
Charter Members: 

William R Alexander, Jaime Arechiga, Arnold Cisneros, Felipe Farias, Humberto Fasci III, John Fitzgibbon, Joseph Gangi, Steve Goebel, Alberto Gomez, Gustavo Guevara, Ben Horovitz, Alan Jackson, Elmo Lopez, Francisco J. Lopez,  Albert Lowry, Alfredo I. Martinez, Jr., Librado Pina Jr., Luis A. Ramirez, Reynaldo Rodriguez, Robert R. Rodriguez, David Romanos Jr., Howard Ruhlman,  Jesus Ruiz, Ernesto Santos, Rene Solis, Fausto Sosa, and James C. Whitworth

History of Rotary

“Whatever Rotary may mean to us, to the world it will be known by the results it achieves.”

 —Paul P. Harris

Our 1.2 million-member organization started with the vision of one man—Paul P. Harris. The Chicago attorney formed one of the world’s first service organizations, the Rotary Club of Chicago, on February 23, 1905, as a place where professionals with diverse backgrounds could exchange ideas and form meaningful, lifelong friendships. Rotary’s name came from the group’s early practice of rotating meetings among the offices of each member.  As they continued to meet, one of the members suggested a wagon wheel design be used as the logo. It stuck and evolved into the familiar cogwheel emblem worn by Rotarians around the world today. 

The second Rotary club was formed in 1908 in San Francisco, California. Learning from the success of the first two Rotarian groups, other cities quickly followed suit. In 1910, Rotary went international when a group was formed in Winnipeg, Canada; and by 1921, Rotary was represented on every continent, adopting the name "Rotary International" in 1922.

The Four Way Test

The Four-Way Test is a nonpartisan and nonsectarian ethical guide for Rotarians to use for their personal and professional relationships. The test has been translated into more than 100 languages, and Rotarians recite it at club meetings:
Of the things we think, say or do

1. Is it the TRUTH?
2. Is it FAIR to all concerned?
3. Will it build GOODWILL and BETTER FRIENDSHIPS?
4. Will it be BENEFICIAL to all concerned?