Features Editor

June 24, 2000 10 PM

The Brundidge Rotary Club bestowed Rotary’s highest honor on club member Jim Medley Thursday night by naming him a Paul Harris Fellow.

Medley joined a long line of distinctive Brundidge Rotarians who have received the award. He accepted the award graciously and with great humility.

"This is truly a great honor for any Rotarian." Medley said. "The Paul Harris Fellow is bestowed upon deserving members and $1,000 is donated to Rotary International on their behalf. This is a fantastic honor for me. I am very please that my club felt I am deserving."

John Wilson, assistant district governor of Rotary Area 4, presented the award to Medley. Wilson said this country could not continue to run if it were not for organizations made up of men and women who give unselfishly of their time and talents. "Thank God for them."

Medley echoed Wilson’s sentiments.

"I thank God for the opportunity to be a part of Rotary," he said. "Rotary gives me an opportunity to serve my fellow man. Service is a way of life for me. If I were not helping my community in some way, then I wouldn’t be doing what I should be doing."

Medley has been doing what he "should be doing" for a quarter of a century and more.

He has been a member of the Brundidge Rotary Club for 25 years and is actively involved in all of its projects, especially the United Way effort.

"Some years ago the United Way was about dead in Brundidge," he said. "I had been involved in United Way as a member of its board of directors and I knew that it is a worthwhile and valuable organization. Our Rotary Club took the United Way as one of its projects and we do extremely well in contributions for a community our size. I was very proud of Rotary for taking it as a project."

Medley was a charter member of the Brundidge Rescue Squad and served until the squad disbanded 25 years later.

His interest in youth and education was expressed through his involvement in the Brundidge Boy Scout program for 10 years and the leadership role he assumed in the PTO programs of the elementary and high schools in Brundidge. His devotion to education was expanded to include all of the county schools. He served as a member of the Pike County Board of Education for eight years.

Medley’s interest in his hometown is evident in the leadership roles he has accepted. He served on the Governor’s Private Industries Council for seven years and is a past president of the Pike County Chamber of Commerce. He is a member of the Brundidge Business Association and works diligently to make Brundidge a better place to live and work.

Medley and his wife Linda have three children – twin daughters, Katherine and Karen, a son, John, and six grandchildren.