Chuck Waters/Clarendon Citizen
Floyd marks 50th year as Manning Rotarian
To do anything for 50 years is a momentous occasion.
Marriages that last 50 years are heralded with often lavish celebrations.
Rarely do people have the same job for 50 years.
But for one Manning resident, being a part of the world’s largest civic organization has not been a job, but a passion.
Paul Floyd Sr. recently celebrated his 50th year as Manning Rotarian, distinguishing himself in a way few other Rotarians have. He joins current members Will Harvin, Burgess Sprott and James King, as those who have hit the half-century mark.
Floyd is distinguished in other ways as well.
He is a six-time Paul Harris Fellow, which means that six times he has made a contribution to the Paul Harris Foundation equal to or in excess of $1,000.
The Paul Harris Foundation, named for the founder of the Rotary Club, is a not-for-profit corporation supported solely by voluntary contributions from Rotarians and friends of the Foundation who share the Foundation’s vision: to advance world understanding, goodwill, and peace through the improvement of health, the support of education, and the alleviation of poverty.
He is also a member of the Rotary Foundation’s Bequest Society, meaning he has left $10,000 to the Foundation in his will and is working toward becoming a member a Major Donor meaning he has given $10,000 to the Foundation.
While Floyd’s generosity certainly distinguishes him (“The Foundation does such great work,” he said, “I wish other Club members would join me.”), perhaps nothing sets Floyd apart more than the fact that he is the second of three generations of Floyd men to ascribe to the motto of “Service Above Self.”
“I grew up thinking that everyone’s Dad went to Rotary every week,” he said, of his father Paul Floyd Sr. “I soon found out that it was an honor to belong to Rotary. When I graduated from college and came back to Manning, I was immediately interested in becoming a Rotarian. Strangely enough, I was invited to join by someone other than my father because his health had failed.
Floyd joined the Club the same year his father was forced to resign due to failing health and unfortunately, they never got to attend a meeting together.
However, that is not the case with the third generation of Floyd Rotarians.
One of the youngest Rotarians even inducted into the Manning club was Gene Floyd, a third generation Rotarian.
“I’m not sure if Gene was the youngest new member at 24, I was 26 when I joined,” Floyd said. “Of course, I asked him to join.”
And that was in 1988.
Paul Floyd has been a leader in the Manning Rotary, having served as president twice, a duty that has been taken on only one other time.
He has also led many of the important projects that Rotary takes on.
“Our Scholarship awards have always been important to me,” he said. “I was our club’s first Youth Exchange Officer and hosted our first exchange student; I served on the District 7770 incoming student committee for several years.”
Even today, after 50 years of membership, Floyd still takes an active role in the club’s Dictionary Project that provides a student dictionary for every third grader in a Clarendon County school.
In Floyd’s 50 years of service above self, he says his role up and down the roster has been an integral part of his life.
“I really can’t imagine my life without Rotary in it. I’ve enjoyed my years in Rotary! You get pleasure in proportion to what you give of yourself to any organization. As I said when I got the 50 year pin, I’ve now started on my next 50.”
