Ceremony at ALEP celebrates Paraná Rotarian Day and 120 years of Rotary International

The 120th anniversary of the founding of Rotary International and the Day of the Paranaense Rotarian were celebrated this Friday (25), in a solemn session in the Plenary of the Legislative Assembly of Paraná (ALEP). The event brought together Rotarians from all four districts of the state (4710, 4630, 4640, and 4730) to celebrate the institution's trajectory and recognize the work developed by Rotary clubs in Paraná. The President of ALEP, deputy Alexandre Curi (PSD), attended the event. "Each Rotarian carries out exemplary voluntary work in favor of the community they belong to. They are present in fundamental agendas such as access to health, education, environmental protection, and economic development. Rotary preserves values and takes care of the common good, focusing on what is important for society. Every member of this organization deserves our deep respect and recognition," he stated. Recognition of the work "The tribute is very important to us because we are celebrating the day of the Paranaense Rotarian, on April 27, and the 120th anniversary of the founding of Rotary International. We are more than 531 governors in the world, and more than 1 million 200 thousand people doing good for all in the world," said the Governor of District 4730 of Rotary International, Alfredo Arten Junior, pointing out that the institution's current challenge is to attract more young people to join. The President of the Brazilian Rotary Academy of Letters/Paraná Session, Alcino Tigrinho, also spoke about the importance of the institution. "Rotary is the largest multinational of good, we, in terms of Brazil, we are more than 50 thousand associates and we also have a good weight in terms of internationality. So this moment in which we honor some of them is a moment that really brings us to a reality of society's recognition of our work." The Mayor of Ponta Grossa, Elizabeth Silveira Schmidt, praised the tribute and thanked the work they do for society. In the same vein, the Mayor of São José dos Pinhais, Nina Singer, congratulated the initiative and called on everyone to help the more than eight thousand Rotarians in Paraná. The Day of the Paranaense Rotarian is celebrated on April 27, established by Law No. 17,009/2011, in reference to the admission of the Curitiba Rotary Club to Rotary International. The club was the first in the capital and the state to join the worldwide organization, whose mission is to strengthen humanitarian and social actions. The law was signed by former deputy and Rotarian Rasca Rodrigues. During the event, proposed by State Deputy Anibelli Neto (MDB), now in its second edition, special tributes were paid to Rotarians nominated by clubs throughout the state, and commendations were given to members with outstanding performance and the longest membership in the institution. Those present at the event included Marcelo Fachinello, Secretary of Government of the Municipality of Curitiba (PMC); Francisco Carlos Jorge, Justice of the Paraná State Court of Justice (TJ/PR) and Rotarian; Marcio Barros, Superintendent of the Curitiba Metropolitan Development Secretariat; Fábio Siebert, Honorary Consul of the Republic of Costa Rica and Rotarian; Silberto Cardoso, Coordinator of Youth Policy of Paraná; Orlando Pessuti, Former Governor of Paraná and Executive Secretary of Codesul; César Luiz Scherer, Director of Rotary International 2025/2027; Alfredo Arten Junior, Governor of District 4730; Renato Rezende Egea, Governor of District 4710; Luiz Carlos Alves de Oliveira, Governor of District 4640; Édio Martello, Rotarian of the year 2019/2020; Curitiba Councilors Jasson Goulart, Tiago Zeglin, and Camila Gonda; Maicon Martins, Councilor of Colombo; as well as various Rotarians from the four districts of Rotary in Paraná, authorities, and leaders.