OVER THE MOUNTAIN JOURNAL
Rotarian Talks About His Grandfather’s Business Acumen and Belief in the Power of the Four-Way Test
Ivey Randle
Businessman Al Mathis talked with fellow Rotarians in April, describing his grandfather, Herbert Taylor, his career and his authorship of the “Four-Way Test.” Taylor wrote the 24-word ethical guide in 1934, when his company was immersed in Depression-incurred debt and he wanted to promote a corporate culture of trust and goodwill, Mathis said in his speech to the Alabama Rotary’s Combined District Annual Conference. The test still is a touchstone for Rotary International, of which Taylor
had been president, and is inscribed on courtroom walls in Ghana and printed on publicly distributed umbrellas in Japan. Across the globe, more than a million Rotarians in 34,000 clubs and 200 countries rely on the simple ethical and moral code that does not split people based on their cultures, governments, religions and languages. Taylor did succeed in pulling his company, Club Aluminum, out of
debt, crediting his ethical mantra. Mathis has followed in Taylor’s footsteps, from his four-decade involvement in his family business, De Soto Caverns Fun Park to his involvement in Rotary. He also is administrator for the Four-Way Test Association and director of the Christian Workers Association. The Combined Conference, meeting at the Marriott Grandview, welcomed Rotarians from both Alabama
Districts, 6860 and 6880, and was attended by Past Rotary International president, John Germ of Chattanooga, and by Wade Nomura, of Santa Barbara, special representative of the 2018-2019 International president, Barry Rassin, of the Bahamas. Ken Schuppert of Decatur represented the Rotary Foundation as trustee. Sam Adams and Carol Argo, District Governors of 6880 and 6860, respectively, attended.
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Ivey Randle, a senior at Oak Mountain High School, earned her Gold Award for her project, “Beauty Within – God Created You Beautifully.” For her project, Randle wanted to promote selfesteem among middle school girls through the lens of her Ivey Randle Christian faith. She created a workshop for middle school girls at Valleydale Church, which included discussions and demonstrations regarding age-appropriate clothing and makeup, healthy eating and fitness, and discipleship to “remind the girls that God created each one of them beautifully.” Her project will be sustained for years to come through a Beauty Within workshop template she created for Valleydale Church. Randle said that earning her Gold Award has strengthened her public speaking, time management and problem-solving abilities. “Through the Gold Award project, I was able to act on what I believe in,” Randle said. “I think it’s important to be a female leader because younger girls need someone to look up to and have a positive role model in today’s world.”
Thursday, May 30, 2019 • 11
LIFE
Al Mathis, with an umbrella from Rotary in Japan, bearing text of the Four-Way Test.
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