Welcome to McKinney Sunrise Rotary Club!

This is who we are and the unique ways we serve our local and global communities.  Our Officers and Directors are available to answer any questions you may have about their areas of responsibility. The list of club officers and directors is shown on our Home Page.

As McKinney grew from a small town of 20,000 people in the late eighties, it was time for the McKinney Rotary Club to sponsor a new club.  McKinney Sunrise Rotary Club was chartered in May 22, 1992 with 20 charter members. A lot of changes have taken place since then and although the club has grown to over 40 members, Charles Koehler, Club Secretary, is the only remaining Charter member. McKinney Sunrise Rotary Club meets weekly on Wednesday mornings for breakfast and to hear an interesting program about our community. Our calendar and meeting location are shown on our Home Page.

Our Satellite Club

Our satellite club, McKinney Sunset Rotary Club was chartered on June 17, 2021 and are now called the Rotary Club of Collin County. 

Program Speakers

Interesting speakers are invited to present programs on topics of interest to our members. The programs are varied and are about international projects supported by Rotary, local non-profit organizations that are of interest, leadership and growth opportunities for members, governmental projects sponsored by the city or county, book reviews, health education, business projects, colleges, and youth programs. A link to a list of upcoming speakers is found on our Home Page.

The Flag-Lease Program

Flag leasing is the signature fundraising and service project of the club that has spawned hundreds of flag lease programs throughout the United States! Club members assemble 3’ x 5’ U.S. flags on ten-foot poles and sells flag leases to subscribers in west McKinney on five holidays a year. Boy Scouts and their adult leaders and families from the Home School Association are partners in this program who deliver and retrieve the flags. The members of the Sunrise and Sunset Rotary Clubs manage the program with a large database of subscriber information, prepare each site with a holder for the flag and oversees the delivery, retrieval and storage of flags. A link to the Flag Lease Program is found on our Home Page.

Benefactors of Our Fund Raising

The profits from the flag fundraiser are invested in international humanitarian programs and local community projects. The global areas of humanitarian service include End Polio Now (aka Polio Plus), Promoting Peace, Fighting Disease, Providing Clean Water, Supporting Education, Saving Mothers and Children, Growing Local Economies, and Disaster Response.  McKinney Sunrise Rotary Club has funded End Polio Now, Living Water, ShelterBoxUSA, WheelChairs International, Project Hand Up, Heifer International and the Guatemala Literacy Project.

The End Polio Now Effort

We want to eradicate polio from the face of the Earth. End Polio Now (aka Polio Plus) is the largest project undertaken by Rotary International in a partnership with the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, and the World Health Organization. Over 2.5 billion children in 122 countries have been immunized with a reduction in polio cases by 99.9 percent since 1979.  Rotary has contributed more than $1.8 billion toward eradicating the disease worldwide.

Local Service Projects

Local projects funded by McKinney Sunrise Rotary Club include a myriad of programs for youth such as the Rotary Youth Exchanges Program, the Rotary Youth Leadership Awards (RYLA), Interact Clubs for high school youth, Rotaract Clubs for college age and young professionals, and the Four-Way Speech Contest for middle and high school contestants. In their commitment to education, the McKinney Sunrise Rotary Club has donated thousands of dollars to the McKinney Education Foundation for Teacher Classroom Grants and for College Scholarships for graduating seniors.  Other community projects include Meals on Wheels, The Samaritan Inn, Shiloh Place, Holy Family School, Challenge Air, Heard Natural Science Museum, and clothing and shoes for McKinney ISD Middle School students.

All-Abilities Playground Project

The largest project undertaken by the McKinney Sunrise Rotary Club is the All-Abilities Playground at Bonnie Wenk Park at Hardin Boulevard and Virginia Parkway in McKinney. This unique playground will provide the gift of play for all children including those with disabilities. The playground, which is a partnership with the city of McKinney, is expected to open in the Summer of 2019. A link to the All-Abilities Playground project is found on our Home Page.

Membership

Who are the members? Members come from all kinds of backgrounds, but for the most part are professional people in our community who are businessmen and women, city and county leadership staff, education administrators, healthcare professionals, bankers and attorneys. 

If you have a “heart for service” and believe that joining Rotary is right for you, visit a local club, ask questions about service opportunities and dues, get to know us, and then request a Membership Form. A new member is sponsored by a current Rotarian who issues an invitation and requests approval by the Board of Directors. See the links at the left for downloads of membership applications for McKinney Sunrise and McKinney Sunset Rotary Clubs. Completed applications should be presented to a current member who will serve as a sponsor and will meet with you to describe the membership process.