The Fourth Object of Rotary has a connection to Prince Edward Island. It was penned by Donald MacRae. He was born in 1872 in Canoe Cove right here on Prince Edward Island. He went to Dalhousie University on a scholarship, graduating with high honours in classics and the University Medal. He then spent six years at Cornell University, teaching Greek and earning his PhD. After a position at Princeton, he returned to Canada to study law at Osgoode Hall in Toronto and was called to the bar in 1913. Just one year later he accepted an appointment as Dean of the Law School at Dalhousie University, a position he held until 1924, when he returned to Osgoode Hall as a full-time lecturer. He retired in 1944 and died in 1957.

As an active Rotarian, in June 1918, he proposed that Rotary become an agent for the promotion of goodwill and peace among nations - the first time that this vision of Rotary was expressed publicly. In 1921, as chair of Rotary's Constitution and By-laws Committee, MacRae had an opportunity to incorporate this vision into the constitution of Rotary. He presented a resolution to the International Convention in Edinburgh, Scotland, that amended the constitution by adding the Fourth Object of Rotary. The Fourth Object became the engine that drives Rotary's international service; indeed, it has become the watchword of the Rotary Foundation.