Rotary International was begun by Paul Harris in Chicago on February 23, 1905. In 1912 the first Rotary Club was charted in Canada, in Winnipeg, Manitoba. The Rotary Club of Kitchener was sponsored by the Rotary Club of Guelph in September 1922 as the Rotary Club of Kitchener and Waterloo. The first officers were: President- A.J. Cundick; Vice-President- T.A. Witzel; Secretary- H.M. Cook; Treasurer- P.V. Wilson; Sergeant at Arms- W.M.O. Lochead. Directors included C.A. Boehm, L.O. Breithaupt, P.E. Heeney, Jerome Lang and Oscar Rumpel. By the end of the first year the membership had grown to forty members. As of 2013 membership was sitting at 70 members.

The main project of the Rotary Club of Kitchener is the KidsAbility Centre, a Childrens Treatment Centre that serves children with a range of special needs. As well, the Rotary Club of Kitchener takes part in youth development programs, grants, a car draw fundraiser, a golf tournament, environmental protection projects, a children's Christmas party, the Rotary African Women's Education Fund, study exchange programs and more.

Since 1922 Rotary clubs have also been charted in Kitchener-Grand River, Kitchener-Westmount, Waterloo, Kitchener-Conestoga, Cambridge North, Cambridge Sunrise, and Preston Hespler.