Pictured are Dr. Stuart Hamilton and his wife Barbara of Columbia. 

Hamilton was recently selected as the 2010 Spring Valley Rotarian of the Year.

The Rotary Club of Spring Valley is pleased to announce that Stuart Hamilton, M.D., has been selected as the 2010 Rotarian of the Year.  The announcement was made at the club’s meeting on Thursday,  June 17 by club president Babbie Jaco.

Dr. Hamilton joined Rotary in 1997.  He currently serves on the board of the Spring Valley Rotary club as the International Service Director responsible for overseeing the club’s participation in Rotary’s International programs such as Group Study Exchange (GSE), Gift of Life, Ambassadorial Scholar, Rotary Youth Exchange and water missions.  He is a Rotary Foundation sustaining member, a Paul Harris fellow, a member of the Paul Harris Society and a Rotary major donor.

“Stuart‘s philosophy of life is based on the ‘Good Samaritan’ concept.  He believes in order to render service to others, one needs to truly care about people, and be willing to give unconditionally of his time and resources,” said Jaco.

Dr. Hamilton is the Founder and Chief Executive Officer of the Eau Claire Cooperative Health Center in Columbia, S.C.  Hamilton has formerly worked as an area Pediatrician for the U.S. Public Health Service. He is also a Lieutenant Colonel (retired) in the U.S. Army Reserve Medical Corps and continues to serve as the Medical Director for Select Health of South Carolina.  Dr. Hamilton graduated from Trinity College and went on to receive his Medical degree from Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons. He completed his internship and residency in Pediatrics at Columbia Presbyterian Medical Center.

The Eau Claire Cooperative Health Center is a 501 (c) (3) non-profit, community based medical safety-net provider that was granted Federally Qualified Health Center (FQHC) status in 1993. The center provides pediatrics, internal medicine, ob/gyn, dentistry, pharmacy, and family counseling services.  All services are available using a sliding fee scale that is based upon family size and income. No one is denied services due an inability to pay.  The Cooperative is now the largest community health center in South Carolina by patient encounters and serves more than 50,000 low-income families in Richland, Lexington, and Fairfield counties.

His civic activities are not limited to Rotary.  He is an Elder at Rose Hill Presbyterian Church (PCA), serves on the Board of Directors for the SC Primary Health Care Association and serves on Advisory committees for the SC Medicaid Program, SC Office of Rural Health, the United Way of the Midlands, and Benedict College.

Stuart obtained two $25,000 grants through Rotary International which provided services to nurseries in Amaoti and Chesterville in Kwa-Zulu Natal, South Africa.   He was invited to South Africa by the Westville Christian Fellowship of Durban in 2002 to assist in the development of a maternal and child out-patient clinic at the Khombe Hospital, a 150 bed facility in Kwa-Zulu Natal, SA.   He and his wife Barbara also helped establish an additional clinic in rural Mpembeni, SA.

Stuart and Barbara reside in Columbia and have two grown children, daughter Rhia, who has just received her doctorate in education from Columbia University and is seeking a position in South Carolina; and son Arnim who has just completed a four year tour of duty with the Army’s Second Infantry Division and is completing a degree at Winthrop University.