Sabi and Dr. Indira Singh - Arch Klumpf Society Members
Archibald C. Klumph was the founding member of the Rotary Club of Cleveland in 1911. He was a business man who owned and operated Cuyahoga Lumber.
In 1913, he became president of the club. His signature contribution to the club was to build a reserve that would ensure projects could be done in the future. In 1916, just five years after joining Rotary, Klumph became the sixth RI president. His enduring legacy as RI president was the creation of the Rotary Foundation. Though the Rotary Foundation was formally established in 1928, it was Klumph’s declaration at the RI convention in Atlanta in 1917 that launched the Foundation. And, Mr. Klumph served as the first trustee chair from 1928 - 1935.
Today, the Foundation has an endowment fund of $1.3 billion which serves as the engine that drives our DDF projects and global grants. The Arch Klumph Society was designed to achieve world understanding and peace through international humanitarian, educational, and cultural exchange programs.
To become a member of the Arch Klumph Society, one must have contributed $250,000 over time. In District 5340, we have seventeen members of the Arch Klumph Society. We are a very benevolent District, clubs and Rotarians.
And that brings us to the feature of this week’s Sunday Morning Musing: the newest members of the Arch Klumph Society, Sarbjit (Sabi) and Dr. Indira Singh of the Rancho Santa Fe Rotary club. Among other things, the Singhs will have their picture displayed at the RI headquarters in Evanston, Illinois. They will be there for a ceremony marking this auspicious occasion.
Sabi was born in the Lahore, Punjab, India. Punjab means the land of five rivers. The three rivers of Pennsylvania that merge have nothing on the Punjub. In 1947, Punjab became part of Pakistan. The Partition was based along religious lines. At 5-years old the Singh family moved back into India.
Sabi’s father, Surjit Singh (means lion) was a Ph.D. in chemistry and taught at the university level. His mother Gurbinder was a homemaker. His brother lives in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma and he has a sister as well. The family grew up in military surroundings where his father taught. About every five years the family would move because of Surjit’s job.
Sabi went to Topper Engineering College graduating as a mechanical engineer. He received an MBA from Loughborough University of Technology in Loughborough, England.
Returning to India, Sabi went to work for Formica International in Pune, India near Mumbai. Pune was the largest industrial city in India. He was the operations manager at the plant. Sabi told me "I grew up in a house that had formica everywhere". Now I know where it came from.
Seeking a better life, Sabi went to the United States. But, he didn’t come alone. He came with his new wife Indira. Sabi and Indira had an arranged marriage. This marriage was arranged by their parents as both parents scoured the classified ads looking for a match for Sabi and Indira. Now, either party could have said no to any potential match if they so decided. At the time Sabi and Indira were in this phase of their lives, arranged marriages was very common. Things did not turn out so bad as they will celebrate their 50th wedding anniversary this May 2021.
Interestingly, their children Jai, an attorney in San Diego, and Brinda, a pediatrician in Long Beach did not have arranged marriages. They chose their own spouses. Both Jai and Brinda each have two sons (as shown in the photo). It is noteworthy, that in India today, the arranged marriage is no longer common. And, the divorce rate in India is similar to the United States. Something to consider.
Once in the United States Sabi went to Wayne State University in Detroit to earn his masters in Industrial Engineering. From there they moved to Oklahoma City where Sabi was in charge of the hospital’s medical information system. Indira joined a medical practice as a pediatrician.
In 1985, Sabi struck out on his own creating Computer Plus Healthcare. This system allowed doctors and hospitals to manage their patient chart notes and records. Dr. Indira was his first customer. And from there, the company grew and flourished. After fifteen years, Sabi sold the company.
Not content to sit around and clip coupons in retirement, Sabi began to invest in real estate. Starting slow with one apartment, he grew his investment to many apartment complexes. His brother has been property manager since the investment grew beyond the one apartment.
At the time Computer Plus Healthcare developing, Sabi’s accountant invited him to join Rotary. He did and found being in Rotary a worthwhile undertaking. He loves the community service aspect of Rotary and the fellowship that comes with being in a Rotary club.
Indira Kaur (Kaur means princess) was born in New Dehli, India. Her father, Sohan Singh, was an ears, nose and throat doctor. Her mother, Krishna Kaur, was a family doctor. Her mother delivered her son Jai and her daughter Brinda. Indira has a younger sister who is a retired physician living in India.
Indira attended Lady Hardinge Medical College in New Dehli. Even before going to medical school, she wanted to be a pediatrician. She declared to her parents at age three that she wanted to be a pediatrician. And that is what happened. When she did an internship in 1969 in New Dehli, she saw 1-2 children a day who had polio. She managed the iron lungs so the children could breathe and live. This left an indelible mark on Indira. Her cause to eradicate polio never left.
When she and Sabi came to Detroit, Indira trained at Children’s Hospital of Michigan. When the Singhs moved to Oklahoma City she joined a classmate in practice. A year later, Indira opened her own practice. During the course of her practice, she treated three generations of patients. Pretty incredible.
With retirement in sight, Indira sold her practice to St. Anthony’s Hospital. As she was concluding practice she was seeing six patients a day. A low number for her.
Indira did not join a Rotary club because the demands of her practice precluded her from attending meetings. She was always supportive of Sabi’s involvement in Rotary. Becoming a member of the Arch Klumpf Society allows her to make a mark in eradicating polio.
The Singhs moved to San Diego to be close to their children and grandchildren. They looked around for a Rotary club to join as Rotary runs through their veins. They chose the Rancho Santa Fe club and have fit right in.
Sabi and Indira became Arch Klumph Society members because they wanted to support Rotary and all the good it does at home and around the world. They wanted to be a part of that enterprise. As they became less “hands on” they view their contribution as an investment in the future well being of the world. Particularly eradicating polio.
We thank Sabi and Indira for their contributions to the Rotary Foundation. They are a wonderful example of what one couple can do to make the world a better place. I encourage everyone to reach out to this lovely couple and welcome them to San Diego and District 5340.
Newsbits will be dark over the Christmas weekend, resuming on the New Years weekend, January 3, 2021.
I want to wish everyone a Happy Hannukah (that has just past), a Merry Christmas, a Happy Kwanzaa and Happy Holidays.