Service Above Self: Rotary Club Spotlight with Michael Motsinger

Michael Motsinger

Washington County as a whole is chock-full of various organizations that are ready and willing to lend a helping hand to those of us that need it most. One such organization is the Salem Rotary Club. Recently, we have had the pleasure of beginning an interview series with each of the members to find out more about what the Rotary Club has to offer for Washington County.

Among the many Salem Rotary Club members is Michael Motsinger. Motsinger is a life-long county resident, two-time club president and has been a Rotarian since 2002. He also spent 15 years at Smith Cabinet Company before becoming one of the owners of Eddie Gilstrap Motors, where he worked for 40 years. He retired about seven years ago and will turn 74 in September. He is married to Nina Motsinger, and together they have two children, Jenny and Jay, and six grandchildren.

“I’ve lived here all my life. I grew up in South Boston,” he said. “I love being able to give back. It’s more fun to be able to do that than to gain, let’s say, wealth.”

He added that he gained his wealth by doing things for people, saying, “I’ve always been that way, and I love it.”

It was no mere accident that landed Motsinger in the Salem Rotary Club. He had previously been a member of the Salem Exchange Club, until they eventually dissolved. He was then invited to join Rotary by Steve Miller.

“I’ve enjoyed it ever since,” he said. “We do a lot of things for the community, and also for the nation. Rotary is Rotary International. It’s all over the world.”

He went on to add that he has seen Rotary plaques all over the world when he would go on trips as an employee for Ford and Chrysler.

“I thought that was neat…” he said. “Partially, what got me in [Rotary] was being able to pray and being able to do the Pledge of Allegiance. They’ve taken that out of a lot of different things, but I enjoy that part.”

Rotary’s motto is “Service Above Self.” When asked what that means to him, Motsinger said it is all about the people.

“I like giving back,” he said. “In my career at the car lot and in general, I just love people. And I think if you talk to anybody about me, they know I do. I love my customers that I sold cars to. Out of 40 years, I think I knew everybody in this community. I was able to gain a lot of trust and faith in those people, and it just feels so good when I can go back and give to the community like they gave to me.”

One popular place you are sure to see the Rotary Club in action each year is the Old Settlers Days festival. It has become quite the tradition for them to provide freshly made apple cider and parched corn for festival goers to enjoy. Mostsinger shared a funny memory of how the late John Mead would tell everyone the corn was fried in bear fat. This was, of course, a tall tale, but it was one that Mead was quite fond of telling. In reality, local Amish farmers plant a patch of Silver Queen corn just for the club. Members pick it, haul it to the fairgrounds, dry it on wire racks, shuck it, and fan off the silk before it is fried and sold.

“All of this while fighting off the occasional squirrel,” Motsinger laughed. “Just being able to spend time with our friends like that has probably been the best thing I’ve ever been through. I know some people don’t have a desire to be around people that much, but that’s just something I need. I need people around me.”

After Old Settlers Days is said and done, the club switches gears and prepares for their annual Daddy-Daughter dance at Cornerstone Chapel and Celebration Center. The dance is normally held in February, and it was originally at Southern Hills Church before it quickly outgrew the venue and had to be moved to Cornerstone.

“It grew so much, it got too big and we were overflowing,” he said. “We were worried about the fire marshal coming in.”

Proceeds from the evening go straight back into community projects, often alongside partners such as Awareness Washington County and the Washington County Community Foundation.

“When we started it, I didn’t think it would amount to anything,” Motsinger said. “But it’s done very well. It would be hard to ever quit.”

These two events, Old Settlers Days and the Daddy-Daughter dance, are two of the most important fundraising ventures for the club, allowing them to provide things such as coats, toboggans, gloves, and other warm clothing for children in the winter, and the club spends a day handing them out. When a family loses a home to a fire, Rotary does what they can to help. If someone in the community is hurting financially, members are encouraged to bring that need to a meeting so the board can decide whether to give.

“We never hesitate on giving somebody money to use for the kids,” he said.

Additionally, they participate in Operation Christmas Child each year. Together, the club usually packs approximately 25-30 shoeboxes full of toys, ministry items and school supplies to be sent off to countries all over the world.

Another mission that is important to Rotary on the international side of things is their fight to eradicate polio. Motsinger cited this as one of the reasons he joined to begin with. Although cases world-wide have been dwindling down to only a handful, the disease has a way of cropping back up. The Salem club also contributes to the Rotary Foundation and, for a number of years, purchased water purification units for communities that do not have clean water at roughly $5,000 per unit.

“There’s a lot of countries that fight to have clean water,” he said. “That’s one of the big things we do.”

Motsinger then spoke about how well the members get along and work together in the club.

“All the years I’ve been in there, I don’t think I’ve hardly met one person that I can’t stand to be around,” he said. “We all get along really well together. We work well together, and we don’t usually have too much trouble getting workers when we need them.”

He continued by saying Rotary is open to “whoever wants to join. We love to welcome new members and we love to welcome new people. You’re always welcome to come whether you’re a member or not… We’d like to have some new members. We’re getting older, and we’d like to have some young members.”

The club also holds Rotary Springs, a property along Rush Creek that Michael believes the county transferred to Rotary years ago. Last year the Boy Scouts were asked to clean it up and utilize the property. Members have also established a memorial for John Mead at the John Hay Center and hope also to place a sign in his memory at the spring.

When asked what he would say to someone interested in joining, he said, “If people are going to be in something that helps other people, I think that’s the best organization in this community. If you’re looking for something to help people and to give your opinion about different things, that’s the way to do it. Become a member. We can sit down with anybody and explain what Rotary does, and I think just hearing how I feel about it would hopefully bring somebody in.”

Lastly, he offered some advice to anyone thinking about making Salem their home.

“If they’re looking for a small, peaceful town to move to, Salem, Indiana is the place to go,” he said. “I’ve been to a lot of big cities, and I don’t like that at all. They’re not friendly. They’re not loving. Salem isn’t like that at all.”

He added that it is the same mindset that has kept him involved in Rotary all these years, citing the motto, “service above self.”

“There are so many projects that we do, and so many good people in this club,” he said. “And like I said, the fellowship is just awesome. So, if anybody wants to come talk to me about it, I’d be happy to do so.”

With all of the work that the Salem Rotary Club puts into our community, it is no wonder they are actively seeking fresh faces to join in and help out. So, be sure to join them on Mondays at 12:00 pm at the Lions Club building next to the Washington County Family YMCA for a great lunch provided by LaDonna Mitchell and a wonderful experience while planning for Washington County’s future.

To read more about Rotary International, visit https://www.rotary.org.