Wright recalls there was much talk in 1973 about the advantages of metropolitan government as a means for improving cooperation among elements of local government. At the very least, people were unhappy with the multiplicity of units of government in Summit County. Wright felt it would be beneficial to seek out a recognized authority who would be willing to speak on the subject to a Summit County audience at a Kiwanis meeting. An experience national authority at the time was the mayor of Indianapolis, Richard Lugar, now twenty years later, a U.S. senator from Indiana and recent candidate for the U.S. Presidential nomination.

"My thought was to invite Lugar to Akron and open the meeting to all citizens; special invitations would be sent to local government officials and interested community leaders," said Wright. Most were skeptical and predicted that Wright would not succeed in attracting Lugar to Akron, but he mentioned the idea to Dr. Dom Guzzetta, who had just left the presidency of Marion College in Indianapolis to become the new president of the University of Akron; Guzzetta felt that it was entirely out of the question.

Nevertheless, Wright persevered and remembers that, "with the assistance of two of Lugar's Denison University classmates - Dave Jones, president of Old Phoenix Bank of Medina, and John McCarter, president of Centran Bank of Akron - a letter of invitation was prepared co-signed by the presidents of the two banks, the president of the University of Akron and the president of Kiwanis. We were very excited when Lugar wrote back, 'I'll be glad to come!'"

Lugar spoke to an audience of 225 people at the May 24, 1973, Kiwanis meeting held at the Akron City Club in the Ohio Building. Wright remembers it as both inspiring and informative. He is also convinced that Lugar's appearances at a dinner meeting that evening a Portage Country Club followed by an open forum in the First Congregational Church later that night with the community and political leaders, stimulated interest and was an early catalyst toward charter government in Summit Country. This has been unique form of county government in Ohio. Summit County remains to this day the only county in the state with a county executive and council form of government. It was approved by voters in 1979.

Dick Wright still remembers vividly when Jack Knight, Beacon Journal Editor Emeritus, was approached and agreed to introduce Lugar at the Kiwanis meeting. Wright later wrote, "I sat next to Knight at the head table. He commented on the fact that not many outstanding speakers appeared in Akron and, referring to Kiwanis, suggested that the void should be filled." Wright took the idea back to the Kiwanis directors describing a scenario whereby one Kiwanis meeting each month could be open to anyone interested in hearing the exceptional speaker of the day.

The Kiwanis board was finally won over and agreed to invest $1,000 annually to support the project. There was the anticipated grumbling, resistance and opposition to such a change, but Wright persisted until the recommendation was approved.

Many members of Kiwanis were very supportive and volunteered to help. Al Boyer, Bruce Wert, and Duane Isham were behind the project from the beginning and used their individual talents and connections to help launch the program. Bruce Wert, director of advertising for Goodyear, secured publishers of Parade, Fortune, Sports Illustrated, and Farmers Almanac as early Roundtable speakers.

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