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Robert Powell Majors
 December
12, 1906 - November 29, 2007
President, Rotary Cub of
Charlotte - 1946
By: Marilynn Bowler
One of Charlotte Rotary's
favorite statesmen left this
earth on Thursday, November
29th leaving each of us
wanting just a few more days
with the inimitable R.
Powell Majors. With his keen
mind and clever wit, his
insatiable thirst for
learning, his unceasing
willingness to share his
time and counsel, his
dynamic personality and his
kind, kind heart … Powell
was loved by everyone whose
life he touched and by the
myriads who benefited from
his unceasing generosity.
With those piercing blue
eyes that reflected such
intelligence, and the
friendly manner that made
each of us feel he cared so
much for what we had to say,
Powell stole our hearts. His
acute mind and his amazing
longevity intrigued us. We
loved to be around him to
partake of his wisdom and
enjoy his never-ending wit …
and to hear him laugh, as he
did so often.
Whether we asked him to
plant a tree or sell a car
at CPCC; or read to a senior
citizen or diplomatically
strategize with some
well-known Republicans; or
teach Sunday School or chair
the investment committee at
Dilworth United Methodist
Church; or fund-raise for
the National Kidney
Foundation or the United Way
or the Red Cross or the
Foundation for the Carolinas
… the list goes on and on
and on. Powell never turned
us down. He did all things
with dignity and enthusiasm,
and an eagerness that turned
each venture into something
wonderful. He was a man who
wore many hats and did so
with style and grace.
From enjoying tea and tuna
at the YMCA (with Lance
crackers on the side, of
course!) to helping Sandy
stuff envelopes at our
Rotary office, no task was
too small or too large for
Powell. He brought a sense
of joy to everything he did,
but his own greatest joy was
his darling bride, Dot, and
his wonderful family. He
absolutely adored his
family. How proud he was of
Dot, his children, his
grandchildren and his
great-grandchildren. "Life
is all about children," he
told me.
"Whatever we can do to make
their lives more meaningful
is worth whatever we have to
do to get there."
R. Powell Majors is now with
God and we're better off for
having had him on this earth
for almost
one-hundred-and-one years.
In his own words, spoken
just last week, "It's been a
good life." Amen.
- - - - - - - - - - - - - -
- - - - - - - - - - - - - -
-
Rotary Invocation, December
4, 2007
George Thompson
Hebrew wisdom offers this
proverb as an admonition and
a call to prayer:
"My son, do not forget my
teaching, but let your heart
keep my commandments; for
length of days and years of
life and abundant welfare
will they give you."
-Proverbs 3:1-2 RSV
Let us pray:
O God of infinite wisdom,
power and love: we begin our
time together as friends and
fellow Rotarians, offering
prayers of gratitude for the
abundant life of Powell
Majors. You not only added
years to his life, but also
Life to his years. For many
of us in this room, Powell
was a mentor, a role model
in business, a faithful
practitioner of the marital
covenant, and a servant
leader. For all of us he was
a friend.
Thank you for his life as a
gift to us and to the many
that preceded him in death.
Thank you also for that
portion of Powell's life
that remains within us: the
clarion ideals of honesty,
integrity, and pursuit of
truth; the embodiment of
service above self; and a
wisdom rooted in scripture
and time-tested experience.
Thank you for his humanity
and his humility, his
rejection of accolades and
honors and his confession of
faults and foibles.
Wrap the arms of your
consoling presence around
Dot and their adoring
family.
At these tables of abundance
today let not grief or fear
of death prevent us from
telling our favorite Powell
Majors story. May his
selfless legacy permeate the
identity of this club and
lift us to new plateaus of
faithfulness. For we drink
from wells we did not dig,
and we are lifted by a
friendship that came as a
gift. This we remember when
we gratefully whisper the
name of your servant Powell
Majors. Amen. |
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