Our History

The Rotary Club of Woonsocket was founded through the vision and encouragement of the Rotary Club of Pawtucket during the Rotary year 1959–1960. At that time, Pawtucket Rotarian James F. McCoy, serving as District Governor, recognized that Woonsocket—then the largest community in the United States without a Rotary Club—was ready to join the Rotary family. Governor McCoy approached Carl W. Christiansen, founder and CEO of the respected accounting firm Christiansen & Co., to explore whether there was sufficient interest to establish a club in Woonsocket.

Christiansen agreed to take on the task, reaching out to local business and professional leaders. The response was overwhelmingly positive. On February 3, 1960, the interested group met for the first time at the To-Kalon Club in Pawtucket, hosted by the Pawtucket Rotary Club. Among those in attendance from Woonsocket were Bill Crouse, Steve Abrants, Herbert Cheek, Albert Dauray, C. Arthur Foote, Paul Goffart, William Halliwell, Stanley Mundy, Robert Reichenberg, and J. Herbert Sutton. Pawtucket Rotarians outlined the aims, objectives, and history of Rotary International, leaving the group energized and determined to bring Rotary to Woonsocket.

Two weeks later, on February 17, 1960, the first unofficial meeting of the Woonsocket Rotary Club was held at Howard Johnson’s in Park Square, North Smithfield. District Governor McCoy again attended to guide the fledgling club. Additional members joined at this meeting, including Rudolph T. Sheahan, Dr. Ernest L. Dupre, Dr. Paul Narcessian, Sidney Goldstein, Roger Lanoie, Joseph Picard, John Kerlew, Emory Richard, Charles Rogers, Lionel Vachon, Harold Voelker, Dr. Louis Beaudet, Donald Valois, Ervin Koerner, Lionel Corriveau, James Gartsu, Alphones Marcoux, Ralph Whiney, John Ansley, Donald McGee, Edgar Aubuchon, and Thomas Mundy.

At this meeting, the club elected its first officers: William Crouse, President; C. Arthur Foote, Vice President; Robert Reichenberg, Secretary; Herbert Cheek, Treasurer; and Paul Goffart, Sergeant-at-Arms. It was also decided that the club would meet weekly on Thursdays at noon at Howard Johnson’s, beginning the following week.

Formal planning began quickly. By the third meeting, arrangements were underway for Charter Night, held in May at the King Philip Restaurant in Wrentham, an event remembered as one of the highlights of the club’s early years. Although Carl Christiansen’s demanding schedule prevented him from becoming a regular member, his role in founding the club was recognized when he was named an honorary member at Charter Night—a distinction renewed annually until his passing in 1982.

The club’s commitment to service was evident from its earliest days. One of the first recorded community projects provided funding to send six Girl Scouts and three Boy Scouts to summer camp. New members continued to be inducted shortly after the club’s charter, and weekly programs featured a wide range of speakers, including doctors, lawyers, police chiefs, professional athletes, elected officials such as then-Governor John H. Chafee, and notable figures like American League umpire Bob Stewart, father of past club president Barbara Josephson.

Fundraising and community engagement expanded steadily. In 1967, more than 500 people attended the club’s first Fashion Show, followed later that year by the first Rotary Breakfast, serving 400 guests. In 1971, Rotarians undertook a major hands-on service project, using picks, shovels, wheelbarrows, and rakes to build a mini-park in Depot Square, on the site of the former McCarthy’s Department Store.

Civic visibility grew in the 1970s. In 1973, under the direction of Armand Froment, the club erected a prominent Four-Way Test billboard at the head of the Cumberland Hill Road bridge and installed a message board at Woonsocket High School. In 1975, the club sponsored and organized a new Rotary club in Cumberland—now the Cumberland-Lincoln Rotary Club—presenting its charter later that year. That same year, the club awarded its first Vocational Service Award to Leo Cournoyer, Fire Alarm Superintendent of the Woonsocket Fire Department.

International service became part of the club’s story in 1976, when Cindy Seavor, daughter of Past President Charles Seavor, became the club’s first Rotary Exchange Student, spending a year studying in Australia. The club also introduced annual golf tournaments, which quickly became popular fundraising and fellowship events.

In 1979, the club played a key role in launching Autumnfest after State Representative Roger N. Begin proposed Rotary involvement. With strong leadership from Bill Bucci and a dedicated planning team, the effort was a major success, netting $8,649 for the club.

The 1980s marked significant milestones. In 1983, the club was an original supporter in forming the Rhode Island chapter of Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD). In 1985, the Woonsocket Rotary Charities Foundation was established to support charitable and civic initiatives, including a scholarship program that continues today. In 1988, past president Joseph Picard became the first Woonsocket Rotarian installed as District 795 Governor, and that same year the club installed a new scoreboard at Bouley Field.

The Foundation was incorporated as a separate 501(c)(3) organization in 1991, strengthening its ability to support community-wide initiatives focused on education, youth development, and public welfare. In the early 1990s, the club demonstrated Rotary’s global reach by collecting and delivering three tons of clothing and two tons of food to the Laplace, Louisiana Rotary Club following Hurricane Andrew. In 1993, club member Lawrence LaRoche received the Dr. Percy Hodgson Memorial Award, the district’s highest honor, for coordinating this effort.

Major fundraising continued in 1996, when a Casino Royale event raised $25,000 to support restoration of the Stadium Theatre, one of the earliest contributions to that landmark project. In 2005, the club partnered with Community Care Alliance to host the first annual children’s holiday party for families experiencing homelessness.

In 2010, the Rotary Club of Woonsocket proudly celebrated 50 years as part of Rotary International. The following decade brought new signature initiatives, including the launch of Touch-A-Truck in 2015, a free, family-friendly event that allows children and families to explore emergency, construction, and specialty vehicles while engaging with the professionals who operate them.

In 2021, the club opened the “Just for You” Giving Center, a partnership with Community Care Alliance providing free clothing and essential items to foster, homeless, and disadvantaged children from newborns through age 17 in Woonsocket, North Smithfield, and Burrillville.

As the Rotary Club of Woonsocket celebrated its 65th anniversary during the 2024–2025 Rotary year, it did so with gratitude for the members who built and sustained the club over generations. The club’s enduring hope is that future Rotarians will continue to experience the fellowship, purpose, and shared commitment to Service Above Self that has defined Woonsocket Rotary since 1960.