Larry Lunsford will be the second person with a Truman connection to oversee a global organization comprised of more than a million members.

NO GAMBLER IN THEIR RIGHT MIND would take the odds. A trained accountant with a head for numbers, Larry Lunsford surely wouldn’t either. Lunsford is in line to be president of Rotary International, beginning his term July 1, 2027. To be the head of an organization with more than 1.2 million members is statistically unlikely. To be the second person with a Truman connection to have the role in less than 20 years is nearly unfathomable.

“It is absolutely amazing that both Ray and I have had this opportunity,” Lunsford said.

“Ray,” is Ray Klinginsmith, who worked for the University for 22 years in a variety of roles. The connection between Lunsford and Klinginsmith actually runs much deeper, enough to make almost anyone believe in fate.

Growing up in the small town of Macon, Missouri, Lunsford did not have global ambitions. He may have crossed state lines once or twice during his burgeoning athletic career in both baseball and basketball. One of the people who used to watch him play was Klinginsmith, a fellow Macon resident and the University’s general counsel for much of the 1970s. Lunsford was also gifted academically, and when this first-generation college student earned a prestigious Pershing Scholarship, Klinginsmith was assigned to be his mentor.

As Lunsford approached completion of his bachelor’s degree in accounting in 1981, Klinginsmith encouraged him to apply for a Rotary Foundation Ambassadorial Scholarship. Upon his selection, Lunsford ended up putting his original post-graduate plans on hold to spend a year at the University of Newcastle in Australia.

“The whole experience going to Australia was massive for me – life changing for me – as many international experiences are,” he said. “I’m a perfect example of being a beneficiary of an engaged Rotarian in a local Rotary club.”

Lunsford returned to Truman and received his master’s in accounting in 1983. A small-town boy no more, he moved to Kansas City and embarked on an impressive career starting with a with a seven-year stint at EY. He is currently in his 36th year with Bernstein-Rein, a family owned advertising agency. Throughout it all, his Rotary experience as a young graduate stayed with him.

“I got that opportunity as a young 23-year-old in Australia for a year, and it absolutely set me on a course of trying to pay back an organization that said ‘yes’ to me,” he said.

A philanthropic person by nature, Lunsford has donated his time to organizations such as Global Ties KC, the Church of the Resurrection Foundation, the Kansas City Spirit Festival and the Epilepsy Foundation for the Heart of America. He has made time for his alma mater, serving on both the Truman Alumni and Foundation boards. Of course, he always made time for Rotary too.

For many, Rotary invokes images of local leaders hobnobbing at weekly lunch meetings, but the organization is massive. There are more than 45,000 Rotary clubs, and they can be found in almost every country in the world. That global network is what gives Rotary power in its philanthropic endeavors, most notably the goal of eradicating polio. With the help of partners including the World Health Organization, UNICEF, the Gates Foundation and Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, Rotary has played a leading role in reducing the number of cases by 99.9% in the last 40 years.

“Rotary started with a sense of networking and building friendship,” Lunsford said. “Through that, you build community, and through that, you then leverage what you’ve grown to a sense of scale that can tackle some of the most pressing challenges the world has to offer.”

One person who played a role in guiding that leverage was Klinginsmith, who served as Rotary International president from 2010-2011. Fifteen years later, his protégé would be nominated to serve in the same capacity. Rotary schedules its presidential leadership three years in advance, giving each nominee two years of preparation before taking the reins for their own one-year term. Presidents can come from anywhere in the world, making the rural Missouri connection all that more improbable. It is certainly not lost on Lunsford, and when it came time to announce his role in organizational leadership, he chose to do so at events in Macon and Kirksville last year. One of the members in attendance when he returned was 92-year-old Bill Gaines, a Macon-area banker in the Macon County Rotary Club which sponsored his trip to Australia. Sadly, Klinginsmith was not a part of the festivities, having passed away in 2024.

Lunsford’s term as president could be a remarkable one. For polio to be considered eradicated there must be three consecutive years of no cases. Through the first four months of 2026, there were only four. Lunsford’s term has the potential to be part of the three-year window.

“I think about that,” he said. “Whoever might happen to be serving as president of Rotary International when this happens, we look forward to a great celebration of an incredible milestone.”

As president, Lunsford will spend much of the year traveling. The role comes at a perfect time, as he is moving into more of a consulting role with Bernstein-Rein, and his wife, Jill, recently retired from her career in education.

“We’re fortunate and blessed at the opportunity that we will be filling that passport with stamps from all over the world,” he said.

Wherever the journey takes him, Lunsford will be prepared, and he certainly will not forget where it all started.

“I do feel like I’m in the right place at the right time,” he said. “I’m going to give it everything I have, and I’m going to serve to make Rotarians around the world proud. I hope to make those colleagues and friends who shaped me in Macon and Kirksville proud as well.”