With heartfelt thanks and congratulations, the Rotary Club of Ladner salutes retired dentist, Dr. Arthur Birk, after 60 years as its longest serving member.
The club recently presented a Paul Harris Fellow Award to Birk as somebody who has met high professional and personal standards set forth by Harris, the founder of Rotary International in 1905 for his extraordinary service above self.
Born in Guelph, Ont., Birk in his younger years, was active in his church, served on his school’s student council, studied piano, played sports and became a Queen’s Scout the highest honor in scouting.
Graduating in Dentistry from the University of Toronto in 1963, he married Geraldine that same year, and both moved to Ladner where he ran his dental practice for 43 years.
They have raised four children and now have six grandchildren
Among the highlights of his career in Rotary was performing as a ballerina in Swan Lake as part of a fundraiser. He also performed in an all-male fashion show, modeled in heels and a tutu.
Outside of Rotary and his dental practice, he bred and raced thoroughbred horses, served on the board of Kenneth Gordon School for students with Dyslexia, and served on the Delta Municipality Parks board for 10 years.
Since 1990 he and Geraldine helped found and serve a local mental health social group, South Delta Weekend Family & Peer Support Group, supported by Rotary Club of Ladner. More recently both have taken over organizing events, bottle collecting etc. to support the group.
Friend Ernie Burnett, Mayor of Delta from 1979 to 1987 invited Birk to join Rotary Club of Ladner in 1964. Since then, he served as club president, and on many committees.
He has been a leader of the water project for a small Mapuche Indigenous community near Temuco, Chile. He was also instrumental in sending dental equipment, through Rotary World Help, to furnish a suite in a new medical/dental office for that community.
