January 2015
The Armuchee Ruritan Club announced it will host the Ruritan District Cabinet meeting on April 25, 2015 at the Armuchee Park pavilion to highlight our club’s efforts with the park's ongoing maintenance and cleanup. The Armuchee Ruritan Club undertook the park maintenance project in 2014 when the Rome Floyd Parks and Recreation Authority announced that budget issues would no longer permit them to perform maintenance at the facility. The club recognized that the park was still being utilized by a large number of residents for ball practice and family recreation, so we met with county leaders and agreed to step up and help out.
The Armuchee Ruritan Club in Our Community
February 2015
Applications were accepted for the 2015 Ruritan National Foundation Scholarship and 2015 Freeman Shelnutt Scholarship awarded annually by the club to college bound students in the Armuchee community.
March 2015
The Ruritan National Foundation notified the club that the educational fund established in the memory of Armuchee Ruritan Club Charter Member Spencer Diden had achieved permanent status, meaning it will always retain its identity and perpetuate the name of the individual.
April 2015
The Armuchee Ruritan Club presented the first of two scholarships at the club's April meeting. The Freeman Shelnutt Scholarship was established in 1999 in memory of the long-time educator in the Armuchee community and is awarded annually. Scholarship Committee chair Bill Teat announced that the Armuchee Ruritan Club has now been responsible for providing over $40,000 dollars to deserving students to further their education beyond high school.
Armuchee Ruritan Club President Lewis Evans presented the family of Spencer Diden with a plaque from the Ruritan National Foundation declaring the educational fund established in the memory of the late charter member had achieved permanent status, meaning it will always retain its identity and perpetuate the name of the individual. The purpose of the Ruritan National Foundation is to manage and maintain a trust for the encouragement, promotion, and financing of the charitable, educational, and benevolent principles and activities of Ruritan Clubs and of Ruritan National.
May 2015
The club held its first smoked meat sale to diversify our fund raising efforts. Over 100 tickets were pre-sold for this event. The club smoked and packaged the Boston butts for pickup on May 22, just in time for the Memorial Day holiday weekend and local graduation ceremonies.
The Armuchee Ruritan Club presented the second of two scholarships at the club's May meeting. The Ruritan National Foundation Grow Your Dollars Scholarship is awarded annually. Scholarship Committee chair Bill Teat and Armuchee High School Counselor Tammy Drumm are pictured with the 2015 scholarship winners.
Armuchee Ruritan Club 2021
June 2015
The club voted to have the Scholarship Committee develop criteria for a third scholarship to be awarded by the club each spring. The scholarship will be named in memory of Justin Johnson, a 2000 graduate of Armuchee High School who was killed on April 10, 2004 while serving with the United States Army in Baghdad, Iraq.
October 2015
The club hosted two events in the fall, the 14th Annual Classic Car Show and the annual Tribefest community celebration. Entry fees and sponsorships from the car show were supplemented with BBQ sales and the live auction at Tribefest. These funds help support the community service projects throughout the year.
December 2015
The club closed out 2015 by installing the new officers for 2016. Club members attending the annual Christmas party brought new unwrapped children's toys to be donated to the Swan Lake Mission project of New Armuchee Baptist Church. The club also aided a local family with a payment toward a delinquent electric bill to keep their power on.
February 2016
The club approved funding for our scholarship programs during 2016. The Ruritan National Foundation Build Your Dollars scholarship would be funded at $1200.00 while the Freeman Shelnutt and Justin Johnson scholarships would be funded at $1000.00 each. Applications for these three scholarships are available from the counselor at Armuchee High School and are due on March 15. In addition, the club approved funding for ten local children to attend Winshape Camps to be held at Pleasant Valley North Baptist Church campus the week of July 4. Information about this camp will be distributed through local schools.
April 2016
The club awarded three scholarships to Armuchee High School seniors at our April meeting. The Ruritan National Foundation Build Your Dollars scholarship was presented to Kallie Cothran. The Freeman Shelnutt Memorial Scholarship was given to Jamie Armstrong. The Armuchee Ruritan Justin Johnson Memorial Scholarship was awarded to Caitlin Brownlow.
August 2016
Students at Glenwood Primary and Armuchee Elementary Students participate in the Character Education program. The Armuchee Ruritan Club believes that the character traits of respect, responsibility, perseverance, caring, self-discipline, citizenship, honesty, courage and fairness are essential traits in the development of our children. Our club is happy to partner with our schools in this program by providing t-shirts in recognition of those students who best exemplify these traits.
May 2016
The club held its second annual smoked meat sale on the Friday before Memorial Day. Over 100 tickets were pre-sold for this event. The club smoked and packaged the Boston butts as one of the club's fund raising activities for 2016.
October 2016
The Armuchee Ruritan Club held three fund raising events on October 15: our annual BBQ sale and live auction at the Tribefest Community Celebration at Armuchee High School. In the afternoon, the club hosted the Cars On Broad car show on Broad Street in downtown Rome, in conjunction with the Downtown Development Authority's Fiddlin' Fest. Over $4000 was raised for club projects.
November 2016
The Armuchee Ruritan Club voted to make a $2000 donation to the Armuchee-Glenwood Education Foundation at their November meeting, or $500 for each area school.
December 2016
The Armuchee Ruritan Club collected toys at the December meeting to support the Christmas mission project to the Swan Lake community by New Armuchee Baptist Church.
February 2017
The Armuchee Ruritan Club approved funding for ten local children to attend Winshape Camps to be at Pleasant Valley North Baptist Church campus the week of July 10. This is the second year the club has provided scholarship assistance to this worthwhile cause. Information about this camp will be distributed through local schools. In addition, the club approved a $500 donation to Armuchee Elementary School to help defray the cost of an upcoming fifth grade field trip.
April 2017
The Armuchee Ruritan Club announced the winners of the three scholarships awarded annually. The Armuchee National Foundation Build Your Dollars Scholarship was awarded to Anna Kail McBurnett; the Freeman Shelnutt Memorial Scholarship was awarded to Emma Trotter; the Armuchee Ruritan Justin W. Johnson Memorial Scholarship was awarded to Kiana Mata.
May 2017
The club held two fund raising events in May. On May 13, we held a car show in conjuction with the Roman Roast BBQ competition. 35 vehicles were registered for the show. We also held our third annual smoked meat sale on May 26. Over 100 tickets were pre-sold. The club purchased, prepped, smoked and packaged the Boston butts as a fund raiser for 2017. The date coincided with Floyd County High School graduation parties and Memorial Day festivities.
July 2017
The club donated $1000 to the purchase of book bags and supplies for needy children in our community. The distribution of the school supplies was coordinated by New Armuchee Baptist Church.
August 2017
In support of the Character Education program at Glenwood Primary and Armuchee Elementary Schools, the club purchased t-shirts for students.The Armuchee Ruritan Club believes that the character traits of respect, responsibility, perseverance, caring, self-discipline, citizenship, honesty, courage and fairness are essential traits in the development of our children. The total cost of the shirts was $2050.
October 2017
The Armuchee Ruritan Club held three fund raising events in October: our annual BBQ sale and live auction at the Tribefest Community Celebration at Armuchee High School. On the same day, the club hosted the Cars On Broad car show on Broad Street in downtown Rome, in conjunction with the Downtown Development Authority's Fiddlin' Fest. All the money raised goes for future club projects.
November 2017
The club voted to donate $1640 to pay for ten scholarships to the Winshape Camp being held in the summer of 2018 at Pleasant Valley North Baptist Church. The club also announced the completion of the renovation of the outdoor amphitheater at Glenwood Primary School. Originally constructed in 1998 as an Eagle Scout project by area teens Josh Baker and Chip Cox, the facility was no longer being used to due deterioration. The stage decking and lattice was replaced, as were the forty bench tops. Over fifty man hours went into the project at a cost of just under $1900.
December 2017
Members of the Armuchee Ruritan Club donated toys to assist with New Armuchee Baptist Church's Christmas mission project to the Swan Lake community.
Brent Wheeler from the Ruritan National Foundation presented Grace Dempsey with the Tom Downing Fellow Award. It is the most prestigious award a Ruritan member can receive, presented to less than 1% of all members. Grace's husband John is also a Tom Downing Fellow, having served as Ruritan National President in 1989.
April 2018
The Armuchee Ruritan Club donated $690 to Armuchee Elementary School to pay for tuition scholarships for three students to attend the Nature’s Classroom trip to Mentone, Alabama May 14-16. In addition, the winners of the three scholarships totalling $4500 that are awarded annually to graduating seniors at Armuchee High School were announced. The Armuchee National Foundation Build Your Dollars Scholarship was awarded to Erin Carney; the Freeman Shelnutt Memorial Scholarship was awarded to Janna Early and the Armuchee Ruritan Justin W. Johnson Memorial Scholarship was awarded to Brandy Wacker.
May 2018
The club held its annual smoked Boston butt sale on Memorial Day weekend. Club members got started at 6am on May 25, first seasoning the 120 pieces of meat before putting them on the grill for eight hours. Ranging from 8-10 pounds in pre-cooked weight, 124 butts were sold, adding funds for future club projects.
August 2018
In support of the Character Education program at Glenwood Primary and Armuchee Elementary Schools, the club purchased specially designed t-shirts for students.The Armuchee Ruritan Club believes that the character traits of respect, responsibility, perseverance, caring, self-discipline, citizenship, honesty, courage and fairness are essential traits in the development of our children. The total investment was $2035.
July 2018
The club donated $1000 toward the purchase of book bags and back to school supplies as part of the ministry project of New Armuchee Baptist Church for the Swan Lake community.
December 2018
Members of the Armuchee Ruritan Club gathered for the annual Christmas Party. Club members donated new toys to assist with New Armuchee Baptist Church's Christmas mission project to the Swan Lake mobile home community.
October 2018
The month of October was a busy one for the Armuchee Ruritan Club. On October 13, the club hosted the Cars On Broad car show on Broad Street in downtown Rome, in conjunction with the Downtown Development Authority's Fiddlin' Fest. Close to 150 vehicles participated in the show. We held our annual BBQ sale and live auction at the Tribefest Community Celebration at Armuchee High School on October 20. All the money raised goes for future club projects.
January 2019
As part of our continuous effort to support education in our community, the Armuchee Ruritan Club donated $1800 to purchase eight Chromebooks for Armuchee High School.
April 2019
The Armuchee Ruritan Club announced the winners of the three scholarships totalling $4500 that are awarded annually to graduating seniors at Armuchee High School.The Ruritan National Foundation Build Your Dollars Scholarship was awarded to Brooke Dellis; the Justin Johnson Memorial Scholarship was awarded to Ethan Mixon, and the Freeman Shelnutt Scholarship was awarded to Ben Graves. Scholarhip Committee Chair Bill Teat estimated that the club has awarded over $80,000.00 in scholarships since the club began the first scholarship award.
June 2019
For the third year in a row, the club voted to donate $1690 to pay for ten scholarships for area children to attend the Winshape Camp being hosted by several area churches and held at Pleasant Valley North Baptist Church during the week of July 1.
August 2019
Students at Glenwood Primary and Armuchee Elementary Students participate in the Character Education program. The Armuchee Ruritan Club believes that the character traits of respect, responsibility, perseverance, caring, self-discipline, citizenship, honesty, courage and fairness are essential traits in the development of our children. Our club was happy to partner with our schools in this program by providing the $2845 to pay for t-shirts given to those students who best exemplify these traits.
March 2019
During their regular monthly meeting, the Armuchee Ruritan Club celebrated their 65th Anniversary. Although none of the club’s 46 charter members are still living, 51 people took part in the anniversary celebration. Representing the Ruritan organization were National Director Donna Poulton, Ruritan Foundation Treasurer and Zone 4 Governor Brent Wheeler, Georgia/North Alabama District Governor Les Hopper, District Lt. Governor Steve Mullis, District Treasurer and Zone 4 Lt. Governor Bill Wheeler, Zone 1 Lt. Governor Elizabeth Robinson, Zone 2 Governor Don Beckham, Zone 3 Governor and National Director James Mills and Zone 3 Lt. Governor Vicki Mills.
October 2019
On October 12, the club hosted the Cars On Broad car show on Broad Street in downtown Rome, in conjunction with the Downtown Development Authority's Fiddlin' Fest. This was the 18th show the club has hosted in the late summer/early fall and the third year we've been on Broad Street. 122 vehicles participated in the show. A week later we held our annual BBQ sale and live auction at the Tribefest Community Celebration at Armuchee High School. All the money raised goes for future club projects.
August 2020
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, students at Glenwood Primary were planning to conduct some outdoor activities during the school year. The club donated $400 to purchase two tents to be used for educational purposes.
May 2020
The club awarded three scholarships to Armuchee High School seniors. The Ruritan National Foundation Build Your Dollars scholarship was presented to Audrey Young. The Freeman Shelnutt Memorial Scholarship was given to Ana Maria Reyes. The Armuchee Ruritan Justin Johnson Memorial Scholarship was awarded to Alexis Howell. Each scholarship award is $1500.00.
November 2019
The club kicked off a new project by placing American flags along Martha Berry Highway in the Armuchee community on select holidays. The first display was to commemorate Veterans Day 2019. The flags will also be placed on Memorial Day and Independence Day.
July 2020
The placing of American flags along Martha Berry Highway for Memorial Day and Independence Day proved to be one of the most successful projects that the club has been involved with. The number of businesses grew to 52 with three flags placed at each location.
September 2020
Our smoked meat sale was moved to September due to the pandemic. 145 tickets were sold. This was an important fundraiser since Tribefest was cancelled for 2020.
October 2020
Despite the pandemic and threatening weather, we were able to hold our Cars On Broad car show on October 10. Seventy-four vehicles were registered. It is the largest fund-raising activity of the year.
November 2020
The Armuchee Ruritan Club hosted the annual Georgia-North Alabama District Convention. The Ruritan National President Linward Hedgspeth was one of the many Ruritan dignitaries attending the meeting.
October 2021
The club held its 20th annual classic car show on October 9 as part of the Fiddlin' Fest event sponsored by the Downtown Development Authority. This was the fifth year that our show was held on Broad Street. A total of 133 paid registrations were received, making this event our number one fund raiser of the year.
Later in October, members of the Armuchee Ruritan Club provided the labor to re-build the decking, stairs, top rails and seats of the outdoor stage in front of Armuchee High School. The Armuchee-Glenwood Education Foundation paid for the materials.
April 2022
The club went on a tour of the Presbyterian Church of America's Mission to North America Disaster Response Center in Armuchee. Centrally located within a day's drive to areas in the eastern US that historically experience storm damage, the center provides disaster relief materials, supplies and heavy equipment that can be used to assist victims.
May 2022
Three seniors at Armuchee High School were selected to receive the three scholarships sponsored by the Armuchee Ruritan Club. The winning students and their families were guests of the club at our May meeting and the checks were presented at the Armuchee High School Awards Night on May 19.
August 2022
The club voted to honor the memory of Past President Claude Kail by re-naming the Ruritan National Foundation Scholarship to the Claude Kail Memorial Scholarship. This scholarship originally began as he result of the Ruritan National Foundation Build Your Dollars Educational grant program. In 1968, the Ruritan National Foundation was established as a separate non-profit association managed by trustees. The Build Your Dollars Educational grant program is one of the major grant programs of the Foundation. This program allows Ruritan clubs to deposit $300 with the Foundation and receive a share of the net income the Foundation earns the next year. The amount of the grant received by the club is based on the number of clubs that participate and the income available for distribution. The club supplements the total award based on the success of our annual fund raising events. Applications can be found under the Scholarships tab on our website.
July 2022
Superior Court Judge Kay Ann Weatherington spoke to the membership and explained the process used by the court during the COVID-19 pandemic to get our court system back up and running and how the Rome Judicial Circuit was a model used by other judicial circuits statewide.
October 2022
Two of our major fundraisers are held in October. Our Cars On Broad car show was the largest ever, with 200 paid registrations. At the Tribefest community celebration held at Armuchee High School, the club held a live auction and sold BBQ sandwiches. Many thanks to all those who participated in these two events, which help us raise money to meet our budgeted community service projects.
November 2022
The Armuchee Ruritan Club hosted the Georgia-North Alabama District Convention on the 15th. Ruritan National President Glen Broadwater and First Lady Linda were in attendance.
February 2023
The club donated $1000 to Armuchee High School to allow students to participate in the Georgia Center for Civic Engagement’s mock United Nations event February 26-28 in Atlanta. The Georgia United Nations Assembly is a simulation of the United Nations that aims to educate participants about civics, effective communication, globalization and, multilateral diplomacy. The club also made a $150 donation to Armuchee Glenwood Education Foundation for an ad in the Follies program, a $500 donation to New Armuchee Baptist Church for use of their facilities, a $1000 donation to Veterans for the American Flag for flag replacement and $300 to Ruritan National Foundation Build Your Dollars Scholarship Program.
March 2023
The Armuchee Ruritan Club renewed our support for the Presbyterian Church in America's Disaster Response Center located in our community with a $500 donation. We were treated to a visit from one of the co-owners of the Armuchee Dairy Queen Kristy Souther, who gave the club some insights on their new store in our community.
