Active 20-30 International is the result of the fusion of two Clubs, Active International and 20-30 International, whose story is told below.

History of Active International

Active International was founded in Aberdeen, Washington February, 10, 1922. A group of young men including Ernest Axland, Paul Arthand, Carl Morck, Carl Springer, Carl Teman, Edgar Jones and Pat McNamara were eager to give the young men a more active part in the affairs of the community. Thus, they formed together to establish a young men’s club which they named “Active”. They elected Ernest Axland as president.

The emblem selected for Active was the buzz saw. The buzz saw is just about the most active object you can find anywhere. Even when motionless, as it is on the emblem, it has the appearance of intense activity. Since Aberdeen was a lumber center and sawmills with humming saw blades were in evidence everywhere, it was only logical that the founders of Active chose the buzz saw for their emblem. The buzz saw represents the usefulness of intense activity and the abundant energy of responsible youth, means power, strength, and progress.

Active was incorporated under the laws of the State of Washington on August 20, 1924. Before long, Active Clubs were formed in Elma, Hoquiam, Montesano and Olympia.

In 1925 the first convention was held in Montesano, Washington with Carl Morck of Aberdeen being elected as president. In the same year, the name of the organization was officially changed from Active Club to Active Club International.

In June of 1929, the organization became international in fact, as well as in name, with the chartering of the Vancouver International Club in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.

Active clubs soon spread through Washington, Oregon, California and Montana in the United States and the provinces of British Columbia and Alberta in Canada. Clubs were also located in Idaho, Hawaii and Washington D.C.

The motto selected for this growing organization was: “Enthusiasm – Goodwill – Progress”.

Enthusiasm: “Get in” with all your heart, with spirit, interest and energy in all the activities of the Club.
Goodwill: Be more than fair in relations with our fellow men, bring more harmony, mutual appreciation and tolerance; be friendly, show greater concern for the welfare of others; justice and fairness in business, cooperation for mutual progress.
Progress: Improve health; better education and recreation, improving conditions for development and welfare of society.

The slogan used as a guide for all Active projects was “A man never stands so tall as when he kneels to help a child”.

The National Offices of Active International have been located in Aberdeen, Tacoma, Raymond and Spokane, Washington; Portland, Oregon; and Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.

History of 20-30 International

20-30 International was founded in Sacramento, CA in the fall of 1922. Paul W. Claiborne was just twenty years of age when he conceived the idea of forming a service club whose members would consist of young men.

Together with Earl B. Casey, Alfred B. Franke, Charles G. McBride and Marshall A. Page, he went with his idea to Mitch Nathan, the president of the Sacramento Chamber of Commerce.

Nathan approved of his plan and appointed a committee to foster the formation of a club whose activities would aid the growth and advancement of young men. This committee consisted of F.A.S. “Sandy” Foale, Chairman; Charles Hansen, Clinton Harbor, Joseph Quire and Mrs. Alva Archer.

A meeting was held in the Chamber of Commerce building on Tuesday, December 12, 1922, with Judge Peter J. Shields as the speaker. It was decided to proceed with the organization work immediately. Upon the suggestion of Sandy Foale, the name 20-30 was adopted.

An organizational meeting was held on December 19, 1922, and Paul Claiborne was unanimously elected as the first president. Sandy Foale was named chairman of the advisory board. After the Sacramento club had established itself, 20-30 began to expand to new areas.

On March 10, 1924, the Stockton club was chartered with the assistance of the Rotary Club in Stockton. G. Lewis Fox was elected president, and Dr. Hall was named Chairman of the Advisory Board.

A meeting between Sacramento and Stockton was held on March 5, 1925, and they created the 20-30 Club Executive Council to help with expansion to other cities.

On August of 1925, the third Club, San Bernardino, California becomes affiliated with the organization.

During 1926, 20-30 Clubs were formed in San Francisco, Hayward, Tracy and Oakland.

Delegates from the seven clubs met in San Francisco on August 21, 1926. This was the first convention of 20-30. A Constitution was adopted and the following officers were elected: Sumner Mering, President; Tom Louttit, Vice President; Ivan Shoemaker, Secretary/Treasurer.

From 20-30’s inception in 1922 until December 1941, charters were granted to 260 clubs and a total membership of 4,675 was attained. During the war years, approximately 65 percent of the membership served in the armed forces. This compelled 68 clubs to disband and decreased the number of active clubs to 122 with active membership at 1,800. In many cases the clubs were kept on active status by one or two members who maintained the charter.

Beginning with the chartering of the Juarez Club on February 16, 1944, these started the movement of 20-30 in Mexico and Latin America. It was a result of these charters that the name of the association was changed to 20-30 International at the 1946 Victory Convention.

In the years to follow, the organization continued to expand through the Mid West to Ohio and south of the border to Mexico, and afterwards to El Salvador, Dominican Republic, Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Panama, Ecuador, Cuba and Colombia.

The emblem of 20-30 International was an hourglass, symbolizing the passage of time and the need of young man to take advantage of his time and energy for useful activities. Around this hourglass, there were four “S”.

The four “S” have a double significance since these were the initials of the first four 20-30 Clubs (Sacramento, Stockton, San Bernardino and San Francisco) and they also conform the initials of the slogan “Sincerity in Service, our Slogan for Success”.

The motto of 20-30 International was, “Youth, to be Served, Must Serve”. Both were authored by Sandy Foale.