Lafrenz gets district Rotary award

FORT MADISON - District 6000 Governor Mike Ruby presented Fort Madison Rotarian Matt Lafrenz with the Paul E. Hellwege Guardian of Integrity Award.

The award is named after the late Past District Governor Paul E. Hellwege of Boone (1954-55) who, at the time of his death in 2010 had been a past district governor for more than half of the 105-year existence of Rotary, whose life exemplified integrity.

FM Rotarian Matt Lafrenz is presented the Paul E. Hellwege Guardain of Integrity Award from District 6000 Gov. Mike Ruby and Tim Gobble, current FM Rotary president. Photo courtesy of Sarah Jan Garza, Fort Madison Rotary

It was the eighth year for the awards that were created in 2010 to recognize individuals who have made contributions that foster the development of integrity.

The award honors individuals who have made contributions in business, media, academia or government and who have by their actions, writing, policies and public pronouncements strengthened and fostered development of integrity and ethical practices – and who have made sacrifices and/or undertaken risks to uphold Rotary’s Core Value of Integrity.

Award Winner Fort Madison Rotarian Matt Lafrenz is in the insurance business. He is an actively involved citizen of his community, working with various service projects that benefit Fort Madison and the smaller Illinois town of Niota, where his business is located.

Already the chair of the Chamber of Commerce Ambassador Club, Matt jumped into Rotary service as a new member by serving two years as president. His creative thinking provided the notion of a child-focused community project and his leadership skills inspired other community organizations to partner to create what became a free annual event. But it all begins at home, where Matt is a great father to his three young kids.

Lafrenz accepted the award by saying:

“Rotary’s motto is Service Above Self and I take that to heart. That’s what I believe in. I couldn’t do half the things I’ve done in Rotary without the help from my board here and every member.”