Forty Years of Service, Countless Lives Touched: Cabarrus County Rotary Club Honors Its Legacy
From local projects to global partnerships, members reflect on four decades of fellowship, inclusion, and community impact.
Rotary clubs can often be compared to the sitcom Cheers — places where everyone knows your name, and members become like family.
That sense of community rings especially true for the Rotary Club of Cabarrus County, which has been serving the public for four decades through countless service projects and fellowship.
The club has weathered many challenges — including holding virtual meetings during the COVID-19 pandemic — while staying true to Rotary International’s motto: Service Above Self.
Founded on September 11, 1985, the Cabarrus Rotary Club was chartered by the Concord and Kannapolis Rotary Clubs.
Its first meetings were held at the Holiday Inn in Concord, chosen for its location near the Concord–Kannapolis line to serve the entire county. Today, the club has 64 active members.
“The most important thing is the relationships — the people you get to know through the club that you wouldn’t otherwise,” said Steve Morris, a founding member who served as president in 1987–88.
Morris was one of several past presidents who reflected on the club’s defining moments during a special panel Thursday morning celebrating the 40th anniversary.
Becoming more inclusive
The club’s first female member, Cyndie Mynatt, joined in the early 1990s and later served as president from 2013–14. In a prerecorded video, she reflected on what it meant to be invited into Rotary at that time.
“That was really an affirmation that maybe I was making my own way into the community like my dad had,” Mynatt said.
Once Mynatt joined, other women soon followed. “It really just filled out the character of the club and the color of the club,” she added.
By 2001–02, Anita Brown became the first woman to lead the club as president. At that time, the membership included 37 men and just six women.
“I do believe that women brought a new perspective in many cases and a lot of strength in the development of this club,” Brown said.
Both Mynatt and Brown said many of the most meaningful friendships in their lives have come through Rotary.
“I think that’s probably one of the greatest strengths” of the club, Brown said.
Devoted to Service
As part of Rotary International, the Cabarrus Rotary Club is connected to a worldwide network of service. Around 2004, the club partnered with a sister club in Alexandria, Romania. Members traveled there to learn about the community and identify projects where they could help.
The first effort involved sending books to an English-language library in Alexandria. Soon after, the clubs collaborated on a larger initiative: combating infant mortality by purchasing a sonogram machine.
Despite time zone and language barriers, the Cabarrus club worked on the project for about five years, raising funds locally and securing a Rotary International grant.
“When the club gets really excited about doing something, then everybody gets on board,” Anita Brown said.
Several members attended the ribbon-cutting ceremony in Romania, including Richard “Dick” Snyder, president in 2005–06, who also managed to visit the legendary Bran Castle in Transylvania.
“For this club, the relationship with Alexandria, Romania became a cornerstone” of living up to the ideals of Rotary International, said Dr. Robert Kirk, who served as president from 2020–22.
The club’s international work is complemented by service at home. In 2008, members sent personalized care packages to soldiers in Iraq through the Adopt-a-Soldier program.
They also participated in the Flight of Honor program, which sends veterans to Washington, D.C., to visit the memorials dedicated to their service.
Alan Goodman, president in 2004–05 who was honored in December for 30 years of perfect attendance, recalled greeting veterans as they returned to Charlotte Douglas International Airport.
“It was an incredibly emotional time and a moment that I will cherish forever as a part of my Rotary experience,” he said.
In 2017–18, under the leadership of President Kimberly Strong, the club raised nearly $20,000 for the CART Fund (Coins for Alzheimer’s Research Trust), in a friendly competition with the Concord Rotary Club.
“Not only did we give $20,000 to CART, but it definitely showed the spirit of Rotary in this club,” Strong said.
Most recently, on May 3, 2025, the club hosted Rotary Fights Hunger at the Cabarrus Arena & Events Center, where volunteers packed 100,000 meals for local families in need.
Expanding its reach
The Cabarrus Rotary Club has also invested in the next generation of service-minded leaders.
In 2004, it launched the Junior Rotarian program to recognize the children and grandchildren of members and encourage them to participate in Interact clubs in high school, Rotaract in college, and eventually Rotary itself.
“When they are really young, they are so pure,” said Lisa Perry, president in 2009–10, whose son Jake was a charter member of the Junior Rotarians.
More recently, the club created the Full Circle Club to engage young professionals who want to serve. Like the main club, its members take part in monthly, member-led service projects.
A call to action
When it comes to deciding how best to serve, many members look to the example of the late Dave Goff, a founding member and passionate blood donor who gave 20 gallons during his lifetime. Goff also chaired the Cabarrus County chapter of the American Red Cross.
Members often ask themselves: “WWDD?” or “What Would Dave Do?”
To honor his legacy, the club is hosting a blood drive on Wednesday, October 29, from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. at Concord’s All Saints Episcopal Church, with a goal of collecting at least 80 donations.
Goodman recalled Goff’s challenge to the club during a Zoom meeting in 2022, shortly before his passing.
“With power and strength in his voice, he commanded us to get out of this room and serve,” Goodman said. “It was clear that it was not a request, but it was a command.”
The Cabarrus Rotary Club intends to keep answering that call — continuing Dave’s legacy of service for the next 40 years and beyond.
Thank you Chris for a great article !
Great article, Chris!