Phone Book/Smart Directory

Over forty years ago our newly formed club responded to a request from a local resident: Create a list of phone numbers in our town so residents didn’t have to search through the massive Atlanta phonebook for local listings.

Soon, the Club decided to sell ads to cover the printing cost, and the Rotary Phone Book was born. Years passed; the city grew, the book grew, and the money generated by ads grew. By the 1980’s the project was serving in multiple ways: First, residents were provided with a smaller, local book. Second, local businesses were served by having an affordable way to advertise. Third, charities were served by donations with money raised from the book.

The funds raised over the years has exceeded $2 million. Attached is a list of the charities we donated to with the proceeds this year. Each charity sent a representative to a meeting for presentation with a large check as a photo opportunity - many of these photos ended up in the local paper. They also gave us a short description of what the charity does.

As with past years, our club members delivered books to all homes in Peachtree City. We have out-sourced delivery outside of the city, and the production of the book.

This year we launched a smartphone app that allows advertisers to publish coupons as part of the on-line directory. We have also updated the name to the Rotary Smart Directory to reflect the new on-line presence.