GI V I NG BAC K
Two Decades-Plus
of Service
Richard Robson
Richard Robson’s long-term membership in the Cashiers Valley Rotar y Club has strengthened his commitment to ser vice.
R
ichard M. Robson, MAI, SRA, of North Carolina Appraisal Company, has been living in Cashiers since 1995 and has been a Rotarian since 2000, having been invited to join by Jim Zoller of Zoller Hardware. In those 22 years, he has seen changes in the Cashiers Valley Rotary Club’s membership, and growth in the organization’s community support.
He explained, “At the time (2000), most of the year-round business people belonged, about 40 members then. Then membership grew as high as almost 80. But the economic conditions in 2008 caused big changes in Cashiers and we lost some people. Only one member, Vanna Cameron, has been in the club longer than I have.” He added, “The Cashiers Valley Rotary Club has raised and given back to the Cashiers’ community at least $1 million over the last 20-plus years for projects, including at the area schools, scholarships for area students, and monies to the library, hospital, Humane Society, Boys and Girls Club, Big Brothers/
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Big Sisters, Cashiers Literacy Council, and numerous other nonprofit organizations.” Robson, a past president and member of various committees during his time as a Rotarian, noted that main fundraising activities for which he has been involved encompass everything from the 4th of July symphonies in Sapphire to craft shows on the Village Green. “My father never belonged to a club like Rotary, but long after his death my mother shared with me that he always told her that if he had joined a club, it would have been Rotary because ‘they always did what they said they would do,’ according to him. So, I am proud to be a member of the Cashier Valley Rotary Club.” Further, Robson informed that the club is comprised “of a diverse group of both working and retired people, male and female, with all types of backgrounds. Some of our members have traveled abroad for our club so the experiences for our membership is very interesting.” by Deena Bouknight
