On June 29, 2017 Denis Buch (Owner of Boone Creek Cabinetry & Design) was inducted as President (2017-2018) of the Rotary Club of McHenry, by Rotary District 6440 Governor Donald Brewer of the Algonquin Rotary Club. District Governor Brewer also used the opportunity to induct other officers of the Rotary Club of McHenry.
The night was highlighted by commemorating an event which occurred 62 years ago, and those that ensued thereafter. One of the founding members of the Rotary Club of McHenry in 1955 was Jerome Buch. Together with his wife Ethel and other members of the Club, the Club grew and many special traditions and achievements followed. Jerome Buch served as Club President during the 1964-1965 Year, and here we are a half-century later and his son is now President of the Club – a “first” for our Club where a father and a son have both served as Club President. Manifesting Jerome Buch’s nature as a true Rotarian, here are just some of Jerome’s achievements:
- Charter Member – 1955;
- President – 1964-1965 (during which NASA launched the United States' first two person crew (Gus Grissom, John Young) into Earth orbit on Gemini 3 and Astronaut Edward Higgins White made the first U.S. space walk from Gemini 4);
- He and others set up the then well-known and popular “motorized tow rope of McHenry Country Club 10th fairway – pulling children and adults up to the top, where they would sled or toboggan back down to be greeted by Ethel Buch who was serving hot chocolate and cookies;
- He and other Members of the Club started the famous “Rotary Ham Dinner” which continued for decades and supplied cookers and materials used at the Ham Dinners and other Rotary events;
- Within the Club, he received the first Paul Harris honorary award;
- During the 1960s, he and Ethel were active in the Rotary Youth Exchange;
- During his 40 year membership he achieved perfect attendance; and
- The list goes on and on.
Jerome Buch and other Members of the Rotary Club of McHenry designed, funded (or co-funded) and built numerous Club service projects throughout the greater McHenry and Johnsburg area. To list just a few, here are some examples: Rotary Park (located at the North East corner of 3rd Avenue and Waukegan Street in McHenry); several concession stands at McCracken Athletic Field; Petersen Park playground equipment (e.g., slides, & etc.); Fort McHenry Playground; Walsh Park (1202 N Green Street) and Harry Dean Memorial Park; more than three decades of scholarships for local residents of McHenry or Johnsburg who are pursuing post-secondary education; funding for various service projects such as McHenry Area Youth Commission; life alert systems for residents who might not otherwise be able to afford them (distributed through Centegra); and playground equipment for Pioneer Center residents; and etc. Internationally, the Rotary Club of McHenry funded (or co-funded) the eradication of Polio (now in its final stages), a fire engine truck for use in a remote area in South America, student computers for use in a school in a remote region of Central America.
To honor both his father and his mother, President Denis Buch established the “Jerome & Ethel Buch Charitable Endowment of the Rotary Club of McHenry Charitable Foundation” effective (and funded on) the date Denis shared his father’s legacy of becoming President of the Club – June 29, 2017.
Today, charitable contributions and service projects like those mentioned above are funded from the proceeds of fundraisers like Blues, Brews and Barbecue (August 18-20, 2017 in Petersen Park) through the Rotary Club of McHenry Charitable Foundation, Inc. (a 501(c)(3) tax exempt organization).
Below are Denis Buch (President of the Rotary Club of McHenry 2017-2018) and his father Jerome Buch (President of the Rotary Club of McHenry 1964-1965, Founding Member, Perfect attendance for more than 40 years)
| Denis Buch |
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| Jerome Buch |
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