Our Club History 

The Piedmont-Montclair Rotary Club was established in 1959 as an “extension club” of the larger downtown Oakland Rotary Club.  Following the standard model of the times, the club was formed by business and professional men serving the Piedmont Avenue business district and represented a range of business and professional categories. 
 
Women began joining the club following a Supreme Court Ruling in 1989, with Charlene Raimondi, Thelma Austin and Juanita Simon serving as Club Presidents in the subsequent years.  
 
One of the first members joining in 1959 was Mr. Reeve Gould, who remained a club member until his passing in 2019, spanning a total of 58 years and many changes in Rotary.  The growth of the Montclair Business District brought new members to the club, leading to the incorporation of the Montclair business community and the current Piedmont-Montclair club name.  Our current members come from a variety of areas of Oakland and the surrounding community with a wide range of professions, talents and interests.
 
Initially more a social and business group, over the years the club has evolved to support many charitable and community development activities.  Our motto is now “Service Above Self.” Some of our service activities include contributions to community playgrounds, tree planting as well as work on the plaza at the Lake Merritt Lake Chalet, Mario Chiodo Heroes
statue in downtown Oakland and the Peace Mural at Jack London Square.   https://oaklanduptownrotary.org/

The club has hosted a community dinner every 5th Friday at College Avenue Presbyterian Church for more than two decades, reflecting the long commitment to our community and those in need.  Supporting low-income homeowners through Rebuilding Oakland, and our continued charter of a Piedmont Scout Troop further exemplify our community commitment.
 
Despite our small size- small but mighty -we have actively supported international projects both with resources and personal engagement in such places as Guatemala, Belize, Turkey, Ghana; most recently delivering wheelchairs to those in need in Mexico City and blankets to those in Ukraine impacted by war.
 

We celebrated our 50th anniversary in 2009 with a Black-Tie Dinner, and we look forward to celebrating our 65th anniversary in 2025 with more hands-on community and international projects.
 
We invite you to join us!